The Story of CO2 Is the Story of Everything: How Carbon Dioxide Made Our World – A Natural History of Planetary Climate and the Future of Life

by Peter Brannen

Carbon dioxide. This seemingly simple and ubiquitous substance is fundamental to how our planet works. All life is made from CO2 and its behavior on this planet has kept it bizarrely habitable for hundreds of millions of years. In its workings lie both the splendor of our world—and the potential for life’s destruction. In short, it is the most important substance in Earth’s history. But why is CO2 as essential to life on Earth as it is capable of destroying it? In THE STORY OF CO2 IS THE STORY OF EVERYTHING, award-winning science journalist Peter Brannen reveals carbon dioxide’s fundamental role in the operation and maintenance of Planet Earth. Starting at the beginning of time and working all the way up to our present reality, he illuminates how CO2 has been responsible for the planet’s many deaths and rebirths, for the evolution of life, and for the development of modern human society. Carbon dioxide’s movement through the rocks, the air, the oceans, and life has kept our planet’s climate livable, its air breathable, and its oceans hospitable to complex life for more than 500 million years. And only by understanding CO2 in the context of deep Earth history can we see how it gave rise to today’s industrial economy – and more clearly recognize what it means to be churning through hundreds of millions of years of old life in the form of fossil fuels and converting it all to carbon dioxide. With groundbreaking research and a clear-eyed perspective, Brannen shows how a deep exploration into the mechanics of the carbon cycle and the history of our planet can provide hope for averting environmental catastrophe in the future. It all starts with a richer understanding of the essential role of one substance. 

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, History, Climate Change, Nature, Environment, Geology

512 pages, Hardcover

Published August 26, 2025

Reviews

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

My thanks to NetGalley and HarperAudio for an ALC of this book to listen to and review.

DNF at 10% of the way into the book. Just the intro told me that the book was going to be incredibly negative re: humankind and our ability to kill this beautiful planet we call home, without much thought or malice, just through ignorance and an unwillingness to learn and do better.

So, that was fun. Then add in the overly technical (to this layperson listener) scientific jargon, interwoven with purple prose and a narrator with a very calming, even tone of voice, and you had this listener nodding off during her commute to and from work, both from being bored and from the wonderfully modulated voice of the narrator.

2, recommended if you are having problems sleeping and you won't get nightmares of the messed up carbon cycle killing you in your sleep, stars.

[Gijs Limonard · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 stars; this is some solid science writing; sure, life is carbon based, and life is life because life persists in relation to its environment, which is the source of the carbon; so indeed the story of biology is the story of the oxidisation of carbon; nothing new here but an interesting viewpoint from which to explore biology, geology and even the realm of human affairs concerned with the acquisition and protection of carbon resources; politics and war; only minor downside is its length; the text couldbe condensed to a more agreeable 250-300 pages and not lose its central argument and punch.

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hate GoodReads. I already did a review for this book and it's popping up on my currently reading under a different edition.

This thread has my comments, which I don't want to lose and the other one already has likes on it and my full review, so I don't want to delete that one.

My apologies to anyone who is confused by this (if anyone cares, these are my random musings and honestly, it's not like I'm a super-important book reviewer, lol). Please refer to my review on the other edition of this book if you are interested in it.

My thanks to NetGalley and HarperAudio for an ALC of this book to listen to and review.

[Amelia Durham · Rating 5 out of 5]

He’s not kidding around. This book is fascinating. I especially enjoyed part one which has given me a whole perspective.

Part two makes me feel like I should get some therapy but I’m worried I’ll send her into an existential crisis.

The entire book is filled with so many fascinating facts one read just won’t cut it. I’ve already started it again.

[Pooj · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an in depth discussion about CO2 and the role it plays in the creation, maintenance and the future destruction of our planet. This was a very dense novel with a lot of information to parse. It was quite interesting and I enjoyed reading the history of the molecule. I will say this book would benefit from some illustrations of what is being discussed. There are a few references to illustrations which I couldn't tell if there were supposed to be pictures that weren't compatible with digital reading. I think I would have had an easier time reading if I had a physical copy to flip through.

Overall a pretty informative, interesting book. 3/5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Greta Thunberg (Swedish, b. 2003) represents the zeitgeist (i.e., 'spirit of the time') for the values of today's climate change activists.

I agree with her position on electrification. She supports electrification as part of a larger, systemic shift away from fossil fuels, but stresses it's not a silver bullet; she demands rapid, equitable fossil fuel phase-outs, urgent systemic change over mere individual greenwashing (like just getting an EV), and emphasizes that solutions require deep societal transformation, not just technological fixes, focusing on what we stop doing and keeping the most vulnerable at the center (climate justice).

One reason electrification is not a silver bullet: Copper and consumer electricity are irrevocably linked. "With regard to the large copper industry, today's average grade of copper mined in the U.S. has dropped to only 0.4 percent. This means that 99.6 percent (globally, it's 99.4 percent) of the rock mined in the U.S. for copper doesn't have copper in it. The low-hanging fruit has already been picked. Vastly more rock will need to be mined, ground down, and processed which will take vastly more energy and fresh water, and at a time when both will be in extremely high demand, perhaps direly so." (excerpted from Brannen's book)

This consideration of electrification constraints is in the context of awareness "that currently CO2, in our atmosphere, sits at 421 parts per million, or 0.042 percent, far higher than it's ever been in the history of Homo sapiens. In fact, it's the highest it's been since the Pliocene epoch over 3 million years ago, when evergreen forests stretched all the way to the shores of the Arctic Ocean, the Greenland and the West Antarctic ice sheets likely didn't exist, and the shoreline of the U.S. pushed almost halfway into the Carolinas." (also excerpted from Brannen's book)

Peter Brannen, a science journalist, unequivocally and correctly states that CO2 is essential to life and without question, CO2 came alive on Earth. It's the ultimate source of carbon for all life and is the primary knob of Earth's temperature. And CO2 is our species' signature product.

All life is ultimately made from CO2, and it has kept Earth bizarrely habitable for hundreds of millions of years. In short, it is the most important substance on Earth.

Imagine the unceasing, repetitive movement of CO2 from the air to limestone, coal, liquid petroleum and methane gas and then back into the atmosphere where the longest components of the cycle operate on a hundred-millennia to million-year timescales.

Carbon cycle equilibrium fluctuations can severely impact the biosphere. These perturbation details are interesting, though it's the numerous species-ending results - extinction events, summarized by the geologic time scale, that's the primary story.

The author does an excellent job of linking extinction events represented by geologic time scale divisions to perturbations of the carbon cycle. He skillfully narrates the known details.

And that it's only by reckoning with this planetary scale history that we can understand the cosmic stakes of our current moment on Earth - and how dangerous our experiment with the climate really is.

Humans, like all animals, have a climate niche. It's a surprisingly narrow band of the climate - concentrated between mean annual temperatures of 52°F and 59°F (11°C and 15°C).

A farm in a region that may dry up next year is not loan worthy. A country drowned by sea-level rise on its coasts, charred by wildfires inland, and racked by crop failures is not bondable. And heat makes people stupider and kill each other more.

So, what can be done to stop our burning of fossil fuels, stabilize climate change, and prevent perturbing the carbon cycle?

The author says, "The advocates for degrowth are right about one thing: truly endless growth on a finite planet is physically impossible. Unquestionably, a major energetic retreat today by purposely reducing global GDP would entail incalculable human suffering. Deliberate degrowth isn't a viable strategy.

The author writes minimally and cautiously about the future possibility of generating electricity using commercial nuclear fusion reactors.

The author's opinion is that "there are very good practical and energetic reasons to think fusion as an energy source will not be scalable in the near future, but, as many have noticed, there's a nuclear reactor in the sky that operates and generates energy for free."

He narrates descriptions of a couple of viable alternatives to burning fossil fuels including geothermal heat and geologic hydrogen. Several unfeasible alternatives like, direct air capture machines and splitting water for its hydrogen are described.

The author writes, "After eons freeloading off the energy captured by photosynthesis and burning it back to CO2, we need to capture our own and become photosynthetic.

He also mentions the unfortunate human behavior called the Jevons paradox named after a nineteenth-century English economist. New modes of economy and efficiency almost always leads to an increase of consumption.

"We must be prepared for our carbon dioxide removal schemes to be a failure. Because without all but ceasing CO2 emissions, carbon dioxide removal will be less than useless."

In summary, he says, "we're in deep shit. Still, given what we know about the carbon cycle, on balance it still seems like a no-brainer to try to decarbonize, despite the difficulty. There needs to be a positive vision for the future for people to sign on to, not a prescription for austerity, no matter how righteously advanced. And lets try, as best we can, to avoid being simple catalysts for the resurrection of the Carboniferous."

Beyond this book's focus, I have researched methods of solution with more of a humanistic slant.

Art and philosophy offer crucial tools for tackling climate change by shifting mindsets, fostering emotional connections to nature, visualizing complex data, inspiring hope, and prompting ethical reflection, moving beyond just scientific facts to drive the deep societal & personal changes needed for a sustainable future. Art makes the abstract tangible and acts as a catalyst for dialogue. Philosophy provides tools to critically analyze the cultural norms, consumerism, and power structures that drive the crisis by bridging the gap between knowing about climate change and feeling compelled to act, encouraging radical societal shifts. Together they can move society from a purely rational understanding of climate change to a holistic, values-driven, and action-oriented approach, essential for the "rapid, radical, and transformative societal change" needed.

For starters, listen to these popular songs readily available at YouTube.com.

Neil Young has many songs about the environment, reflecting his deep commitment to climate activism.

After the Gold Rush (1970): The title track paints a dystopian picture of environmental decay. “...look at Mother Nature on the run..."

And his, 'On the Beach' (1974) is about being a vampire “sucking blood from the Earth.” Greendale (2003) is a concept album with characters like "Sun Green" dealing with environmental issues, and anthems like "Be the Rain".

Bob Dylan doesn't have many explicitly environmental anthems, but his nature imagery, apocalyptic warnings, and calls for change in his songs like, 'A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall', 'The Times They Are A-Changin' are relevant.

Joni Mitchell's “Big Yellow Taxi” from her 1970 Ladies of the Canyon album, is an iconic environmental conservation song.

Popular Music Artist: Billie Eilish is a highly popular contemporary artist whose music addresses environmental concerns. Including songs like, 'all the good girls go to hell' from her 2019 debut album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?

Relevant poetry suggestions to make the abstract more tangible.

Jim Harrison's poetry is rich with environmental themes.

Gary Snyder has poetry lines that emphasize nature as home, urging deep connection and responsibility, highlighting wildness, simple living, and Indigenous wisdom.

Olafur Eliasson is a leading international figure recognized for large-scale installations and photography that directly engage the public with the climate crisis. His 2015 artwork Ice Watch placed massive blocks of melting ice from Greenland in public squares in Paris and London to highlight the urgency of glacial melt.

American painter Elizabeth Peyton chose her 2019 portrait Greta Thunberg as the leading image of one of her shows and has been depicted in multiple murals. Other visual art focuses on Thunberg's image.

Some of Thunberg's speeches have been incorporated into music. In 2019, Thunberg contributed a voiceover for a release of "The 1975", a song by the English band by the same name.

Sculptor: Courtney Mattison is a former ocean conservation scientist who creates intricate, large-scale ceramic sculptures visualizing the fragile beauty of coral reefs to raise awareness about ocean pollution and warming waters. Her work, such as Confluence and Malum Geminos, uses art to communicate complex scientific issues.

Jason deCaires Taylor: Creates underwater sculptures that form artificial reefs, highlighting marine degradation.

Edward Burtynsky: Known for large-format photos revealing the immense scale of industrial impact on landscapes.

Novel Writer: Kim Stanley Robinson is a leading voice in the "cli-fi" (climate fiction) genre and is widely considered one of its most important contemporary writers. His novel 'New York 2140' is an example.

Edward O. Wilson's nonfiction book, 'Half-Earth: Our Planet's Fight for Life' argues that the situation facing us is too large to be solved piecemeal and proposes a solution commensurate with the magnitude of the problem: dedicate half the surface of the Earth to nature.

In L. Ron Hubbard's 1982 science fiction book, 'Battlefield Earth', a saga in the year 3000, mining is portrayed as a destructive, exploitative force driven by alien greed. It serves as a harsh analogy for unchecked corporate extraction and environmental disregard. Humanity is reduced to primitive laborers to facilitate this resource theft for profit, highlighting themes of colonialism and environmental devastation.

As a challenge to complacency, author Daniel Alpert provides a provocative account of a world suffering from economic abundance in his book, 'The Age of Oversupply: Overcoming The Greatest Challenge To The Global Economy' which speaks to the results of laissez-faire ideas.

Leveraging an aphorism, 'use fire to fight fire,' I tried an Artificial Intelligence (AI) experiment to focus on humanistic approaches to improving understanding the dangers of carbon cycle perturbation.

I asked Google's version of AI to 'speculate on a specified individual's or institution's philosophical response to the 21st century climate change crisis? Here is a summary of the results:

a) Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) was an Austro-British philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language.

He'd emphasize that real change comes from understanding our embeddedness in natural systems, moving beyond mere technical fixes to transform our forms of life (language and practices) to show reverence, rather than just saying we care.

For him, climate response isn't just about scientific facts but changing our form of life, our daily routines, values, and relationships with nature. We are part of nature, not separate masters of it.

He might see purely technical or economic "solutions" (e.g., relying solely on market signals) as insufficient, preferring a gardener's approach by understanding and working within complex systems rather than trying to engineer them from above.

Climate change's profound ethical dimensions might be seen as mystical aspects, requiring a fundamental shift in our worldview, not just more data.

Wittgenstein would diagnose climate denial and inaction not just as ignorance, but as a failure in our language, our practices, and our understanding of our place in the natural world. Like deep, transformative shifts in how we live and speak about our existence.

b) Baruch Spinoza (1632 - 1677), philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin was born in the Dutch Republic. He was a prelude to the Age of Enlightenment.

He rejected traditional religion, dogma, free will, and miracles, proposing that true freedom comes from understanding our place within this determined system, mastering our passions, and finding happiness through increased power and knowledge, ultimately leading to a peaceful, rational life.

Spinoza's philosophical response to 21st-century climate change would likely emphasize rational understanding of humanity's non-dualistic place within nature and motivate action through enlightened self-interest, rather than moral appeals, fear, or guilt. He'd be against moral judgment. He'd say, people are not separate from or masters of nature.

His response to the climate crisis would not be panic, blame, or repentance. Instead, it would require a rational, scientific understanding of the causes and consequences of climate change.

Fundamentally, Spinoza would likely urge humanity to abandon anthropocentric superstition.

c) Friedrich Nietzsche (1844 - 1900) was a German philosopher. He was both heavily influenced by and highly critical of Schopenhauer's philosophy.

He is particularly remembered as critical of traditional (Christian) morality and labeling it as being a "slave morality," born from resentment, favoring weakness, pity, and equality, contrasting it with a master morality of strength and affirmation.

A Nietzschean philosophical response to 21st-century climate change would likely be a scathing critique of modern "herd" morality, a rejection of universalist calls for guilt-driven action, and a challenging demand for a revaluation of values leading to a new, life-affirming relationship with the Earth. His perspective would emphasize strength, responsibility, and the emergence of a higher type of human being.

The idea that one "should" conserve the environment out of pity for future generations or other species would be rejected.

He'd likely reject the "Apocalypse" Narrative.

The climate crisis, for Nietzsche, might be a crucial moment of transition—an opportunity to escape consumerism's nihilism and a test that only a "higher" type of human, the Übermensch, could pass.

In essence, Nietzsche would likely see the climate crisis not merely as an environmental problem but as a profound spiritual and cultural challenge, demanding a fundamental re-evaluation of our most deeply held modern values and the cultivation of a stronger, more life-affirming humanity.

d) Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) was a German philosopher who witnessed the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. His philosophy is characterized by profound pessimism; the world is a place of suffering, conflict, and endless frustration (the "best of all possible bad worlds").

Pessimism in 1850s Germany stemmed from the failed 1848 revolutions, leading to severe political reaction blow back, crackdowns, limited rights, and heavy censorship, alongside harsh economic realities like poverty and the social costs of early industrialization, fueling emigration and a sense of disillusionment with progress despite eventual growth.

It was a time of economic hardship and deep societal divisions between the rising bourgeoisie and struggling workers, all while traditional order was being noticeably eroded by modernization.

While deeply pessimistic, Schopenhauer transformed art from mere decoration into a substitute religion. Artists were not merely skilled hands; they were priests or prophets of his ideas. His doctrine of aesthetics justified artistic work as a matter of highest importance in human society.

He'd reject the idea that climate art should inspire environmental activism. Art only provides a brief palliative to escape from suffering.

He would likely view 21st-century climate change as entirely predictable and would not offer conventional political or technological solutions, but rather a deeply pessimistic commentary on human nature and the inherent suffering of life.

He'd see climate change as a symptom of industrialization, consumerism, and the relentless pursuit of comfort and growth.

In summary, Schopenhauer would likely look at the climate crisis as a grand, tragic opera, confirming his belief that life is a "senseless and painful episode" driven by a blind force, with human egoism leading inevitably to widespread suffering for all sentient beings.

Schopenhauer's aesthetic doctrine was developed in direct opposition to the philosophy of Hegel and opposition to German Idealism, in general.

e) Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831) was a German philosopher. His philosophy is fundamentally and inextricably aligned with German Idealism.

It's worth knowing that German Idealism was a substitute for religion after the U.S. Civil War when Americans were drawn to German Idealism because of a loss of faith in traditional cosmic explanations.

A German Idealist philosophical response to 21st-century climate change would emphasize humanity's moral duty and rational responsibility to protect the environment, viewing the crisis as a manifestation of a damaged relationship between human spirit and the natural world. A profound reorientation of humanity's self-understanding and its place within the natural world is required.

f) David Hume (1711-1776), Scottish philosopher, historian, economist and essayist was a prominent intellectual of the Enlightenment.

He'd surely point out the harsh reality that governments aren’t acting on the climate crisis because they are being paid not to.

He would emphasize the limits of motivating human behavior solely on the basis of facts.

He would stress that the missing link in climate action, as some modern interpretations suggest, is not information, but sufficient public passion and sympathy.

g) Buddhism. The ultimate goal is to achieve Nirvana, a state of liberation from the cycle by eliminating cravings and realizing the true impermanent nature of reality and becoming aware there is no-self. Your actions (karma) in one life determine the conditions of your next existence, potentially leading to rebirth in fortunate realms (gods, humans) or unfortunate ones (animals, ghosts, hells). The cycle of rebirth is inherently unsatisfactory and painful because of clinging to the illusion of a permanent self. Being born human is considered rare and fortunate because it offers the best opportunity to practice the Dharma (i.e., the nature of reality) and attain enlightenment.

Peter Brannen's 2025 book, 'The Story of CO2 Is the Story of Everything,' provokes explorations into new and old ways of thinking. I've tried to summarize his concepts in the context of related historical understandings, the zeitgeist of our era, and my thoughts on avoiding perturbation of the carbon cycle. It's a revolutionary book with abundant revelations.

[holls.22 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Woahhhh.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Brannen’s The Story of CO2 Is the Story of Everything is a magisterial work of non-fiction: detailed, highly informative, easy to follow without being dumbed down, well-structured, wide-ranging, and engaging. Just an overall fantastic read.

Brannen walks us methodically through the entire history of Earth from literally the very beginning, because as he says in the introduction, “the truly cosmic nature of our current climate crisis can only be understood in the context of deep Earth history.” And so we begin at the Big Bang, move quickly to Earth’s formation, then into its earliest time periods, and from there we move forward age by age and eventually century by century, sometimes slowly sometimes quickly depending on points being made with regard to carbon’s impact on the planet and (eventually) its life forms. Much of the exploration is done through the prism of entropy and the way energy moves through the planetary system, both naturally such as by hurricanes or photosynthesis through most of the planet’s history and then through humanity’s use of coal/fossil fuels.

This is the thread that runs throughout the work and ties all the disparate elements and time periods together, lending it an effective sense of unity and making it all hold together in the reader’s mind. And there are a lot of elements here, as Brannen ranges far afield, not in any digressive sense but more along the lines of showing us how everything (and I mean everything) is connected. So we learn about plate tectonics, unitary continents, clouds, volcanoes, the change in oxygen in our atmosphere, comet impacts, major and minor extinction events, the change in plant life over time, the shift in carbon usage within photosynthesis, ocean currents, the move from hunter-gatherer systems to agriculture, domestication of animals (especially the horse), the Nazi war machine running down, the Industrial Revolution, human evolution, mastery of fire, imperialism, and the list goes on. All of it tied to carbon’s impact. It sounds like it should be overwhelming ,but it is not, not at all. Instead it is fascinating, mesmerizing, and stimulating as the interconnectedness of it all comes into sight. I’ve rarely felt so widely and fully informed on a topic in terms of context.

The end point, of course, is the warning we’ve been ignoring for decades now — that our sudden blast of carbon into the atmosphere, which though less than has been ejected before is now occurring in a much, much, much, more concentrated time period is leading us to a series of tipping points that can potential bring human modern civilization down (not humans — he is not calling this an extinction event). This is no rant or diatribe, and anyone who thinks this is about “global warming” is grossly simplifying and distorting this scientific and social history. As noted above, Brannen is methodical and patient, building a deep and abiding understanding with occasional dips into our current danger, before towards the end dealing with climate change more directly, though not at any great length and in any self-righteous fashion (and in fact, he is critical of those who argue for “the world” to draw down energy or people in general to cut back, pointing out for instance that for poorer countries, increased energy use goes not to huge SUVs or backyard water fountains but to hospitals and food. As he says, “these ae not luxuries.” Refusing them that would be a gross act of immorality.

As for what to do about it, things get a bit depressing there. Brannen concisely dismisses (with explanation) a number of suggested paths to bring our carbon emissions down (cutting back energy growth, geoengineering, etc.) and ends up, in a highly relatable expression, where a lot of us probably are: “in summary, we’re in deep shit.” He ends, however, somehow, on a somewhat hopeful (or at least, not hopeless) note.

Beyond the content, Brannen is an excellent writer and stylist. It’s one of best written non-fiction books I’ve read in some time. Always clear, always engaging, sometimes lyrical, always precise, often making use of good metaphors/analogies, often returning back to earlier points to keep things coherent but without becoming repetitive. Really, it’s just an overall excellent work of non-fiction and one I can’t recommend enough.

[Conor · Rating 4 out of 5]

An ambitious and really quite impressive synthesis of a whole array of disparate topics, many of which I've been thinking & reading about a great deal over the last few years. That might be why this book has provoked me into my first review.

Part 1 is an utterly fascinating dive into how Earth's carbon cycle works and has been foundational to the emergence of life. This is illustrated by a wonderfully colourful journey through our planet's deep history, focusing on particular moments when things have gone awry, causing mass extinctions of living beings, and explaining how CO2 levels are pretty well always implicated in these processes. The first half is so rich in details and interconnections that will shake your assumptions and understanding of the world, including that the storing of fossil fuels below ground is what gave rise to the oxygen-rich atmosphere we depend on. As he ties together energy, geology, ecology, and metaphysics, Brannen is truly masterful in Part 1.

Part 2 then integrates this Earth science and deep-time context into the course of human history and civilisation, attempting to synthesise the realities of our physical, living planet with a modern politics and economics that are wholly determined to ignore and obscure those realities. He emphasises the all-important connection between material/energetic throughput and economic growth which makes clear that, even ignoring all the environmental challenges we face, we would still need to pivot away from fossil fuels pretty urgently, since we're burning through them millions of times quicker than they can regenerate. He also does a good job of dispelling the myth that efficiency gains will lead to declining energy use, or indeed easier lives. This section is really skilful and perceptive - until, towards the end, we arrive at the so-what-should-we-do-about-it? chapter.

Here, Brannen turns out to be about as psychologically incapable as most of us of contending with the revolutionary implications of the utter catastrophe that he's spent the last few hundred pages staring in the face. The cognitive dissonance is plain to see as he meticulously dismantles the prospect of endless economic growth with finite resources, all the while dismissing post-growth economics as cynical and misanthropic. He makes no bones about the fact that "we're in deep shit." But then, inexplicably, his prescription ends up being a pretty limp "the only way is through," suggesting that we should just continue decarbonising (presumably at the excruciatingly slow rate that capital investment dictates?) without attempting to change the structure of our economies, much less our relationship with the world, and, essentially, hope for the best. (I'm obviously doing considerable violence to his argument here for the sake of brevity - but that appears to be the gist of it.)

Don't get me wrong, I loved this book. It is valuable and intelligent, and many more people should read it than will. Sure, the ending is a bit confused. Sure, a book that brings such clarity to bear on connecting our species' story to the Earth's physical processes might have had more to say about our profound cultural and psychological disconnect with those same physical processes, and the living world more broadly. Nevertheless, this is an exceptional, important book that dishes up a lot of insight into the world around us, and provides no small amount of wonder at the mystery of life on the planet we call home.

[Jan Peregrine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Story of CO2 Is the Story of Everything~~~

There;s a touring high school percussionist band in Lincoln that calls themselves Pangea. They may be under the impression that the second supercontinent in Earth's geologic history was cool, as if it reflected well on their band, but the supercontinents were dead and deadly places no living thing would be able to inhabit. Pangea actually had five mass instinctions. This is just one little thing I learned in science writer Peter Brannen's 2025 book The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything with a long subtitle.

The most important thing I learned was that it's not how much carbon dioxide (CO2) is in our atmosphere that's so crucial, but how fast it's accumulating in said atmosphere. Only once before was a massive amount of CO2 released so quickly into the atmosphere as today and that was several epochs ago, was caused by a spontaneous eruption of volcanos, and the Earth just about died.

You might have noticed that word 'spontaneous' in the last paragraph, That means the volcanic eruptions were triggered when CO2 passed a threshold in the Earth that had to be released in lava,

The fossil fuel industry and the agriculture industry, which includes cows farting methane that turns into CO2, are two of the largest CO2 releasers into our atmosphere. If Earth is to have a chance to safely store that awesome amount of CO2, such as in the ocean depths and new rock that needs weathering, then the industries must slow down energy production using fossil fuels. Renewable energy sources aren't the best solution. We the people need to use much less energy, Find different hobbies like reading books, sports, board games, art, conversation.

I also learned that we live in a brief interlude between ice ages called an interglacial. We and our fellow creatures evolved in a very rare interglacial period, which is why we have ice caps on the poles and why they must stay covered in ice if the Earth is to remain habitable.

Carbon dioxide may be a miniscule part of our atmosphere, but it is why we have life and can live here, Our sun sends a bit of CO2 to us, which causes the Earth to try to get rid of it so it could return to its equilibrium, which meant it wanted to be eternally dead. The Earth never wanted life, which is its way of trying to get rid of CO2. How do religious people explain that, I wonder?

Brannen doesn't sugar coat our immense challenges in regards to our climate change, but I think he could've mentioned that robots may help in many ways in the near future. Let's hope!

Oh, and dinosaurs ruled Earth for 135 million years. Climate change probably got them in the end,

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Brannen's The Ends of the World is an all time favorite for me, so I was stoked to get my hands on this bad boy. Brannen is just a marvelous writer who brings a sense of humor and, not to overstate things, but the soul of a poet to what is frequently some pretty hard science. I kept highlighting parts to come back to, here's one:

The blasted planet that followed the greatest catastrophe of all time was extremely boring. Two hundred fifty million years ago, a globetrotting ecologist could have traveled to the ends of the Earth only to find, everywhere, the same impoverished ecosystems. The same stupid clam in this tidepool was the same stupid clam you'd see in all the other tidepools, thousands of miles away, all around the planet, everywhere you went. The same torpid little piglike Lystrosaurus picking at weeds in Antarctica was the same ugly creature you'd find gnawing on the same miserable shrubs in China, or Russia, or India, or Africa. Life was drab, simple, generalist, weedy. The world was deserted, dismal, and insanely hot.

I admit I had to take a pause in the middle and read a few random thriller novels to let my brain chill for a minute because this book serves up a LOT of information. But I was delighted to return, despite the fact that we are all doomed. I'm glad to be alive at the same time as Brannen here in the last geological quarter-second of a human-habitable Earth.

My thanks to Ecco and NetGalley for the ARC. Quote above is from the ARC and may not reflect what's in the final copy.

[Ashley : bostieslovebooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks Ecco for the gifted ARC book.

As Brannen states in the Acknowledgment of The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything, “this book covers an inadvisably wide range of subjects,” and it most certainly does. I thought I had started reading early enough to finish before the pub date, but this ended up being a dense and consuming read that took longer than I anticipated, though I’m totally okay with that. I tabbed a ridiculous number of pages.

There’s life in the writing as it has a literary touch rather than being straight-up academic. It’s well-researched and grotesquely educational without being dry. This is the kind of book that makes my science brain simultaneously rejoice at the depth of fascinating knowledge we have about how things work while also feeling a little overwhelmed by the intricacies of how those things work. We’re talking about billions of years of planetary history!

So much is covered here, some in more detail than others, all in a cohesive manner. Everything truly comes back to the carbon cycle and carbon dioxide – a substance essential to life, yet responsible for destruction. Photosynthesis and climate change may be the first things that come to mind on the topic of carbon dioxide, however, Brannen discusses its influence on hunter/gatherer societies, mass extinctions, the Industrial Revolution, capitalism, and much more. After reading, you’d be hard-pressed to find something that cannot be connected back to carbon.

This was definitely an engaging read! Ultimately, this exploration and understanding of the carbon cycle is important if we are to have hope of avoiding future planetary catastrophe.

[Dfour · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good and important book. Everyone should read either this or his other book Ends of the World. Ideally, folks will take the time to read both.

The carbon cycle provides a grand, unifying framework to understand not just ecology, geology, and evolution; it also provides a powerful lens through which a lot of human history, industry, and economics can be understood as well. It really is the story of everything. Or, at least the things we care about on this planet.

Somewhat paradoxically I found the deep history and geologic context these books provide simultaneously reassuring and deeply disturbing. It is not like what is happening to our climate today is incomprehensible or unprecedented. Actually, it is very similar to things that have occurred to this planet before. The mechanisms make perfect sense. It is just that when these things happen, it doesn’t go well for life on this planet.

Hopefully lots of people read these books, and the shared knowledge becomes the foundation for collaborative action.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a colossal history of geologic time through human time. The epic throes of planetary history are of the likes we cannot imagine and at timescales beyond our depths of understanding. Some extremes that happened before we may face on a timescale of our own minuscule making. All because we live out of sync with the carbon cycle. This we know, but in this book you go on the full journey and it is one hell of a ride. I would love if this book was made into a documentary series for even bigger impact. Unfortunately it ends on the usual note of books like these—an inconclusive take on what we should do other than to try. Maybe as a sequel (or complementary book) to complete this saga would be one on what are the collective psychological flaws of humans that make us unable to be curious about deep time or generally empathetic to the world around us.

[Pauline Stout · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a history of carbon dioxide and how it interacts with life and the planet, starting all the way at the beginning of life and ending with modern times.

I saw this on Netgalley and I was intrigued so I asked for a copy. I’m glad I did because this book was fascinating. It covers the start of life, different mass extinctions, different ice ages, different time periods and the life involved in them, the rise of humanity, and the state of humanity and the environment today. I can tell this was well researched. There was so much in this that I didn’t know about before and I loved learning about it. This book is very well written in my opinion and very readable.

Overall I greatly enjoyed this and highly recommend it for nonfiction fans/readers of all ages.

[Andrea Wenger · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book explores the crucial role of carbon dioxide in Earth’s history, from its contribution to life’s evolution to its current threat to the climate. By understanding the carbon cycle, we can better address the global climate crisis.

The book is full of useful information but written in a purely fact-based style that does nothing to take the reader’s well-being into account. The tone is alarmist. A few pages of the introduction are enough to inspire existential terror. If you’re interested enough in the subject to find the book valuable, take whatever steps you need to in order to protect your mental health.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

[Shelby Fleischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enlightening.  He draws heavily from his geology / biogeochemistry / planetary science which he used in his earlier work, and goes beyond, bringing in theories about the origin of metabolism (e.g., life), anthropology, economics and history.  He puts climate change (the dynamics of C02, oxygen, the carbon cycle) into a geological time framework, and shows so well how we are now a geological force.  A heavy dose of anthropomorphic and effusive adjectives ... but with a purpose. Sobering.

Although I believe I am reasonably well-versed in current issues about climate change, this work provided me with geological time-scale perspectives, and an understanding of how our technological and financial structures interconnected, to make us a powerful geological force.

[Casey O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has everything I want out of a nonfiction: straightforward, well-researched and a little bit scary. Honestly just the idea of this book was exciting to me because I’m shocked at how few CO2 books are out there for the public. This pick is easy to follow but still scientifically robust.

I think Brannen does a brilliant job making concepts accessible and looping back to previous concepts and metaphors to show just how CO2 is connected to everything we are, do, eat and breathe. A wealth of recommendations and resources within as well.

Super informative and really interesting book. Also loved the App State rep!

3.5/5 overall.

Thank you Harper Collins for another fabulous arc ily <3

[Miguel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this in spite of the Brannen's writing style (which was eerily similar to William T. Vollmann although not as good) - the author does not have a similar speaking rhythm (as evidenced by his podcast appearance on Decoupled which made me wonder why he couldn't simply write as he talks)... Regardless, whether Brannen has everything exactly as it is and shall be in here is yet to be seen, but he does make a compelling case and cites the experts I most trust in the area of energy use (i.e., Smil). It's sober reading, but even Wallace-Wells has walked back some of his most dire predictions. I'd more like to put on rose-coloured glasses and believe along the lines in McKibbon's latest...but again only time will tell the planet's outcome.

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was disappointing. I had previously read Peter Brannen’s “The Ends of the Earth” and loved it. The writing was sharp and articulate; not so for “The Story of CO2”. Most of my reading time was spent trying to decipher the excessively literary writing rather than in assimilating information. While some of the writing had humour, I also felt at times I was being scolded. And while some of the explanations of the science were good, these were buried under layers of poetic text that obscured most of it. I was not getting what I wanted out of the book and stopped reading about a third of the way through. Thank you to Edelweiss and Ecco for the digital review copy.

[Phoebe A · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a marvel. What Brannen has done is not written just another pop science book about geology or mass extinctions. Instead, he's written a book that fully integrates the story of humanity with that of the rest of the earth system -- in this story rocks are not just cool things to look at, but in fact, are intricately tied to our own history, our own fate. This book deftly interweaves the geological and human -- I learned an immense amount not just about our planet's history but also about human civilization and our economic system. A must read for anyone interested in truly understanding how and why fossil fuels are leading us down such a dangerous environmental path.

[Sydney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel was information dense. It took me many days to read so I could digest small portions at a time, otherwise I would find my mind wandering and disengaging. I don’t think this is the fault of the author. His writing is clear and I enjoyed learning more about the carbon systems of our world. It was simply a lot of information and so I took my time.

I did a hybrid read where I listened to the audiobook and read the novel. I found this helped me fully understand the material. The narration was fantastic, the lively voice kept me interested despite the, at times dry material.

Thank you to eccobook for the physical book and Harper Audio for the audiobook

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love getting perspective on things and this is the ultimate perspective of us (humanity) on this planet. This planet has been through a lot. It has seen mass extinctions, ice ages galore, and times of incredible speciation. I love how this guy puts it all in perfect detail and perspective. Spoiler alert: we might not make it through this human caused CO2 increase. My recommendation would be to print out a copy of geologic timeline for your reference. Something that would have been east to include in the book!

[Ula Tardigrade · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a remarkable popular science book.

While the role of CO2 may seem a familiar tale, this book's author takes such a fresh approach that I guarantee you will be surprised. Writing in a unique style, he presents mind-boggling ideas in a unique style that challenges many popular assumptions and makes readers think outside the box.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to the publisher, Ecco, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

[Jamie Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's really fascinating looking at the birth, evolution, extinction and survival of all life on earth not through the eyes of humans, but from the perspective of carbon dioxide.

The comparisons between our own metabolism, and that of the industrial machine is hauntingly accurate. We're feeding a monster with food we don't own.

Although, I felt a bit disappointed by the sometimes defeatist tone, and a little overwhelmed by the scientific jargon.

[David Kirchman]

A wide ranging, free-wheeling, riveting, epic history of the Earth's climate and how we are screwing it up. A common thread running through the book is CO2, but the gas goes unmentioned for many pages. The author is able to find a new angle and a new way to express even the most widely known facts.

[Lydia Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a understandable explanation of some of the most difficult scientific concepts. It also proves that CO2 is of the most beneficial atmospheric gases, THE most important gas in our atmosphere. Highly recommend.

[Michael Tori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Brannen has a way of writing that is mystical, poetic, and digestible. This is an amazing story of Earth, us, and our relationship with our world. We live on an amazing planet and Brannen brings that to light through the eyes of carbon dioxide. This is a beautiful read.

[Rob McFarren · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very informative, very approachable history/geology look at the history of the planet and life. it brings to light the framework for understanding our current circumstances, while offering a take on what has happened in history and why our moment in time is precarious and temporary.

[Elyse · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

There's a lot of great info in this book and I learned so much. But it was also very dense and hard to absorb it all for me. Others might have an easier time though. I enjoyed how the author definitely tried to make sure this info was easy to understand, but some of it was still too much.