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The Last Tree on Easter Island
In twenty short books, Penguin brings you the classics of the environmental movement.
This is Jared Diamond's haunting account of visiting the mysterious stone statues of Easter Island, showing how a remote civilization destroyed itself by exploiting its own natural resources - and why we must heed this warning.
Over the past 75 years, a new canon has emerged. As life on Earth has become irrevocably altered by humans, visionary thinkers around the world have raised their voices to defend the planet, and affirm our place at the heart of its restoration. Their words have endured through the decades, becoming the classics of a movement. Together, these books show the richness of environmental thought, and point the way to a fairer, saner, greener world.
This is Jared Diamond's haunting account of visiting the mysterious stone statues of Easter Island, showing how a remote civilization destroyed itself by exploiting its own natural resources - and why we must heed this warning.
Over the past 75 years, a new canon has emerged. As life on Earth has become irrevocably altered by humans, visionary thinkers around the world have raised their voices to defend the planet, and affirm our place at the heart of its restoration. Their words have endured through the decades, becoming the classics of a movement. Together, these books show the richness of environmental thought, and point the way to a fairer, saner, greener world.
Kindle Edition
Published August 26, 2021
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About the author
Jared Diamond
43 books7,995 followersJared Mason Diamond is an American scientist, historian, and author best known for his popular science and history books and articles. Originally trained in biochemistry and physiology, Diamond is commonly referred to as a polymath, stemming from his knowledge in many fields including anthropology, ecology, geography, and evolutionary biology. He is a professor of geography at UCLA.
In 2005, Diamond was ranked ninth on a poll by Prospect and Foreign Policy of the world's top 100 public intellectuals.
In 2005, Diamond was ranked ninth on a poll by Prospect and Foreign Policy of the world's top 100 public intellectuals.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
February 14, 2022
Chilling stuff, presented in an authoritative, heavily researched and clear context, built upon geography, history, people, food, government and society, the forest, the iconic statutes/carvings, etc., all of which builds up to the daunting question:
What did the Easter Islander who cut down the last palm tree say while he was doing it? ... Similar questions arise for every society that has inadvertently damaged its environment. Societies nevertheless do make such mistakes.
This content was originally published, as part of a larger work, in 2006. Republished as a standalone here, this slender volume is installment 13 in the Penguin Green Ideas collection, which I'm finding well worth the investment ... and the minor hassle of acquiring it... Sadly, as my local independent bookstore confirmed, it is not available for sale (in the slipcase collection) in the U.S. (but it's not that difficult to order it from a UK supplier).
What did the Easter Islander who cut down the last palm tree say while he was doing it? ... Similar questions arise for every society that has inadvertently damaged its environment. Societies nevertheless do make such mistakes.
This content was originally published, as part of a larger work, in 2006. Republished as a standalone here, this slender volume is installment 13 in the Penguin Green Ideas collection, which I'm finding well worth the investment ... and the minor hassle of acquiring it... Sadly, as my local independent bookstore confirmed, it is not available for sale (in the slipcase collection) in the U.S. (but it's not that difficult to order it from a UK supplier).
December 16, 2023
I’m begging someone to assign me a tri-fold board project on Easter Island —something like I would’ve had to do in middle school. I learned so much in this short lil nonfiction text (second time this year a book has shocked me with surprise cannibalism). Brought to you by Penguin Classics green ideas series (book 13 of 20) and the geographer, biologist, anthropologist, linguist, historian author behind Guns, Germs, and Steel
August 27, 2023
This is how I need to experience Jared Diamond—excerpts only from now on, please.
The Last Tree on Easter Island was pulled from Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, a book I read a few years back, but with almost zero recollection. Even in this heavily condensed form, the piece still managed to drag for me. But almost entirely forgiven by how it all came together at the end.
I found Diamond's statistical analysis of deforestation on remote Pacific islands particularly fascinating. This was based on work he did with Barry Rolett (this was annoying to find...I really wish more people would include citations in popular science books):
Rolett, B., Diamond, J. Environmental predictors of pre-European deforestation on Pacific islands. Nature 431, 443–446 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02801
The analysis showed that Easter Island ticked every box they tested for correlation with high levels of deforestation. Plus he discussed (in the book) how it was combined with the social/political issues at the time, such as the building of Easter Island's famous stone statues, moai, which became ever larger and more impressive. A resource-heavy practice that likely contributed to deforestation on the island. Diamond then points to Easter Island's rise and collapse as a metaphor for our own global climate crisis.
"...if mere thousands of Easter Islanders with just stone tools and their own muscle power sufficed to destroy their environment and thereby destroyed their society, how can billions of people with metal tools and machine power now fail to do worse?"
The Last Tree on Easter Island was pulled from Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, a book I read a few years back, but with almost zero recollection. Even in this heavily condensed form, the piece still managed to drag for me. But almost entirely forgiven by how it all came together at the end.
I found Diamond's statistical analysis of deforestation on remote Pacific islands particularly fascinating. This was based on work he did with Barry Rolett (this was annoying to find...I really wish more people would include citations in popular science books):
Rolett, B., Diamond, J. Environmental predictors of pre-European deforestation on Pacific islands. Nature 431, 443–446 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02801
The analysis showed that Easter Island ticked every box they tested for correlation with high levels of deforestation. Plus he discussed (in the book) how it was combined with the social/political issues at the time, such as the building of Easter Island's famous stone statues, moai, which became ever larger and more impressive. A resource-heavy practice that likely contributed to deforestation on the island. Diamond then points to Easter Island's rise and collapse as a metaphor for our own global climate crisis.
"...if mere thousands of Easter Islanders with just stone tools and their own muscle power sufficed to destroy their environment and thereby destroyed their society, how can billions of people with metal tools and machine power now fail to do worse?"
October 3, 2022
The book summarizes the evidence that deforestation occurred on Easter Island and poses a convincing theory that the reason for deforestation occurred. Diamond proposes that the reason for the deforestation was the overuse of its forests due to a complex society that used trees for construction and erection of its famous statues. To me, the book, like much of Jared Diamond's work, has its main charm and strength in the many small sub-theories of how various sides of the functioning of the historic society on Easter Island. Jared Diamond very elegantly connects his theories with the existing evidence which then again ties into the grander narrative. All the while the author comes across as honest as to where uncertainties exist and which of his assertions are speculative. I read this book in one sitting and it was a great read.
October 11, 2021
I read in English but this review is in Bahasa Indonesia
Sebuah pengakuan dosa: aku belum pernah membaca tulisan Jared Diamond.
Namanya mencuat dalam radarku ketika banyak yang membandingkan Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind dengan Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
miliknya. Ketika aku menonton dokumenter tentang Bill Gates pun, nama Diamond hadir dan bahkan ada slot beberapa menit karena ia adalah salah satu penulis favorit Gates.
Melihat fakta itu, sesunggunya aku agak skeptis--ini berhubungan dengan rasa sentimenku dengan Gates. Apalagi belakangan aku memang agak selektif dalam memilih bacaan. Diamond yang seorang Amerika, laki-laki cis berkulit putih mendapatkan kesan yang cenderung membuatku bertanya-tanya seperti apakah nanti tulisannya disajikan.
The Last Tree on Easter Island merupakan salah satu bagian dari Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, bukunya yang terbit sekitar tahun 2006 silam. Seperti judulnya, tulisan setebal 80 halaman ini membahas bagaimana tidak ada pohon sama sekali di Pulau Paskah sana.
Diamond membawakan tulisannya dengan runut. Sebagai seorang profesor di bidang geografi, ia membukanya dengan cerita tentang Pulau Paskah. Dari keadaan tanahnya, ketinggian pulau dari atas permukaan laut, hewan apa saja yang hidup di sana, dan bagaimana warga lokal mencari penghidupan. Klimaks pun mulai terasa ketika adanya orang Eropa yang singgah ke pulau kecil itu hingga terjadi deforestasi yang menghancurkan Pulau Paskah.
Dalam tulisan ini, terlihat bahwa eksploitasi sumber daya karena keserakahan manusia menjadi penyebab hancurnya Pulau Paskah. Diamond juga mengingatkan bahwa tidak semua hal yang menggunakan kata "modernitas" memang baik untuk keberlangsungan dan keberlanjutan hidup. Dengan keilmuan yang kita miliki, malah hendaknya kita jadi tahu apa saja yang harusnya dilakukan dan tidak boleh dilakukan. Misalnya dalam kasus di Indonesia adalah reklamasi pulau yang tidak perlu atau membuka tambang di Sangihe.
The Last Tree on Easter Island menjadi proses perkenalanku denga Jared Diamond. Tulisannya rapi dan runut namun tidak membosankan. Apakah ini waktunya untukku membaca tulisan-tulisan Diamond yang lain?
The overall picture for Easter is the most extreme example of forest destruction in the Pacific, and among the most extreme in the world: the whole forest gone, and all of its tree species extinct.
Sebuah pengakuan dosa: aku belum pernah membaca tulisan Jared Diamond.
Namanya mencuat dalam radarku ketika banyak yang membandingkan Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind dengan Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
miliknya. Ketika aku menonton dokumenter tentang Bill Gates pun, nama Diamond hadir dan bahkan ada slot beberapa menit karena ia adalah salah satu penulis favorit Gates.
Melihat fakta itu, sesunggunya aku agak skeptis--ini berhubungan dengan rasa sentimenku dengan Gates. Apalagi belakangan aku memang agak selektif dalam memilih bacaan. Diamond yang seorang Amerika, laki-laki cis berkulit putih mendapatkan kesan yang cenderung membuatku bertanya-tanya seperti apakah nanti tulisannya disajikan.
The Last Tree on Easter Island merupakan salah satu bagian dari Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, bukunya yang terbit sekitar tahun 2006 silam. Seperti judulnya, tulisan setebal 80 halaman ini membahas bagaimana tidak ada pohon sama sekali di Pulau Paskah sana.
Diamond membawakan tulisannya dengan runut. Sebagai seorang profesor di bidang geografi, ia membukanya dengan cerita tentang Pulau Paskah. Dari keadaan tanahnya, ketinggian pulau dari atas permukaan laut, hewan apa saja yang hidup di sana, dan bagaimana warga lokal mencari penghidupan. Klimaks pun mulai terasa ketika adanya orang Eropa yang singgah ke pulau kecil itu hingga terjadi deforestasi yang menghancurkan Pulau Paskah.
Dalam tulisan ini, terlihat bahwa eksploitasi sumber daya karena keserakahan manusia menjadi penyebab hancurnya Pulau Paskah. Diamond juga mengingatkan bahwa tidak semua hal yang menggunakan kata "modernitas" memang baik untuk keberlangsungan dan keberlanjutan hidup. Dengan keilmuan yang kita miliki, malah hendaknya kita jadi tahu apa saja yang harusnya dilakukan dan tidak boleh dilakukan. Misalnya dalam kasus di Indonesia adalah reklamasi pulau yang tidak perlu atau membuka tambang di Sangihe.
The Last Tree on Easter Island menjadi proses perkenalanku denga Jared Diamond. Tulisannya rapi dan runut namun tidak membosankan. Apakah ini waktunya untukku membaca tulisan-tulisan Diamond yang lain?
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March 31, 2024I struggle to rate non-fiction and with this book I don't feel like I can give it a rating since it's technically an excerpt.
It was an interesting, and sometimes chilling, read about the devastating effects of deforestation. I picked it up on a whim but it felt appropriate to read over Easter.
It was an interesting, and sometimes chilling, read about the devastating effects of deforestation. I picked it up on a whim but it felt appropriate to read over Easter.
May 29, 2022
Oh dear, looks like we’re going to end up as treeless cannibals.
November 28, 2025
Looovee this book. So interesting and well rounded. Only problem is it’s so short! Would have loved a deeper dive. But lots of recommend reading from Jared at the end
December 3, 2023
Great source for learning and getting introduced to the history of Easter Island. I learnt so much about the theorized whys and hows of this island’s rich background and how it came to see some large declines of biodiversity and environment. I thought it was full of fascinating facts but some of the methodology and details of the archeology were dull and long. Overall this book sparked my interest in discovering more about Easter Island.
July 28, 2022
A short book which presents evidence-backed theories of how the supposed nonchalant and egoistic Easter islanders of the past have brought down their own civilization. Years of overconsumption have left them destitute, so much so that they had to resort to cannibalism. What was once home to subtropical forests filled with an abundance of flora and fauna, is now left barren with not a single tree left standing!
October 26, 2021
A quick read on a subject I knew nothing about previously. It felt like the Earth metaphor was shoe-horned in across the last page and a half, but I get the message.
Read at home and finished on the mustard armchair.
Read at home and finished on the mustard armchair.
September 19, 2022
This book has long haunted my mind.
However, after further research into multiple sources, many of which have not existed in Diamond’s time, it was clear that rather than a prophetic story applicable to our time, it is a great example of scientific bias and how tricky it is to construct speculative narratives with limited historical data.
His main premise is that driven by a desire to please their gods, and competition between communities, the islanders have struggled to build ever bigger statues, whose elaborate construction and transport from the quarries off to their final position on the shore, has cost them the balance of the surrounding ecosystem, finally causing the ecological disaster and leaving them unable to feed themselves, and the population to shrink to a shadow of its former self.
All of this equals an attractive narrative about how greed and the growing needs of a population can wreak havoc on the environment, resulting in an all-too-familiar fall from grace with nature due to the tainted nature of the human condition - so, no wonder it works so well as a story.
In retrospect, this seems to be an overly simplistic way of thinking about the demise of the island, and the causative link between deforestation and the collapse of complex society on Rapa Nui isn’t as clear as Diamond makes it appear. According to more recent data, it seems that coming in contact with European visitors on multiple occasions, rather than deforestation due to building, was a source of microbial contact that triggered illness for years to come.
Nevertheless, this was a fascinating read and triggered a binge of other reads for me. The Rapa Nui culture didn’t cease to amaze me with its ingenuity in overcoming the natural deficiencies and utilizing the abundance of the island, constructing monumental sculptures and buildings (stone chicken coops being my personal favorite), nourishing an inherently pacifistic culture for almost all of its existence, and probably being one of the few places on earth to independently develop writing. Its demise is less a tale of an environmental disaster triggered by greed, and more a tragedy of circumstance and causation at first, and later organized genocidal campaigns from different outside nations.
Still, Diamond’s theory serves as a great parable, rather than a historically and archeologically based theory.
However, after further research into multiple sources, many of which have not existed in Diamond’s time, it was clear that rather than a prophetic story applicable to our time, it is a great example of scientific bias and how tricky it is to construct speculative narratives with limited historical data.
His main premise is that driven by a desire to please their gods, and competition between communities, the islanders have struggled to build ever bigger statues, whose elaborate construction and transport from the quarries off to their final position on the shore, has cost them the balance of the surrounding ecosystem, finally causing the ecological disaster and leaving them unable to feed themselves, and the population to shrink to a shadow of its former self.
All of this equals an attractive narrative about how greed and the growing needs of a population can wreak havoc on the environment, resulting in an all-too-familiar fall from grace with nature due to the tainted nature of the human condition - so, no wonder it works so well as a story.
In retrospect, this seems to be an overly simplistic way of thinking about the demise of the island, and the causative link between deforestation and the collapse of complex society on Rapa Nui isn’t as clear as Diamond makes it appear. According to more recent data, it seems that coming in contact with European visitors on multiple occasions, rather than deforestation due to building, was a source of microbial contact that triggered illness for years to come.
Nevertheless, this was a fascinating read and triggered a binge of other reads for me. The Rapa Nui culture didn’t cease to amaze me with its ingenuity in overcoming the natural deficiencies and utilizing the abundance of the island, constructing monumental sculptures and buildings (stone chicken coops being my personal favorite), nourishing an inherently pacifistic culture for almost all of its existence, and probably being one of the few places on earth to independently develop writing. Its demise is less a tale of an environmental disaster triggered by greed, and more a tragedy of circumstance and causation at first, and later organized genocidal campaigns from different outside nations.
Still, Diamond’s theory serves as a great parable, rather than a historically and archeologically based theory.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 9, 2024
God what a snooze fest. Very stiff and scientific language, but informative and interesting at times (especially the section about Easter Islands cannibal problems). But, I was so bored toward the end that I raced through the last ten pages with eagerness to get to the next book, which obviously isn’t a good sign. Sorry Jared.
My favorite paragraph: “I have often asked myself what did the Easter Islander who cut down the last palm tree say while he was doing it? Like modern loggers, did he shout ‘jobs not trees’ or ‘technology will solve our problems,’ ‘never fear, we’ll find a substitute for wood’ or ‘we don’t have proof that there aren’t palms somewhere else on Easter, we need more research. Your proposed ban on logging is premature and driven by fear mongering.’ Similar questions arise for every society that has inadvertently damaged its environment. Societies nevertheless do make such mistakes.”
My favorite paragraph: “I have often asked myself what did the Easter Islander who cut down the last palm tree say while he was doing it? Like modern loggers, did he shout ‘jobs not trees’ or ‘technology will solve our problems,’ ‘never fear, we’ll find a substitute for wood’ or ‘we don’t have proof that there aren’t palms somewhere else on Easter, we need more research. Your proposed ban on logging is premature and driven by fear mongering.’ Similar questions arise for every society that has inadvertently damaged its environment. Societies nevertheless do make such mistakes.”
December 27, 2022
Starting this book I knew very little about Easter Island. I knew it as ‘the island with those big heads’ and nothing else, which was ignorant of me. Having read this book which focuses solely on the prosperity and decline of Easter Island and its residents I feel enlightened and informed.
This is a factual book, though it is short and easy to understand (which often is not the case). It covers the development of the Easter Islanders, their activities and their challenges. If you want a decent amount of information condensed into 80 pages or so on Easter Island, I thoroughly recommend this book.
It is also an insightful metaphor into how the principles of Easter Island’s decline are similar to Earth’s as a whole. Much like the blurb says, we should take Easter Island’s environmental collapse as a warning of the Earth’s own.
This is a factual book, though it is short and easy to understand (which often is not the case). It covers the development of the Easter Islanders, their activities and their challenges. If you want a decent amount of information condensed into 80 pages or so on Easter Island, I thoroughly recommend this book.
It is also an insightful metaphor into how the principles of Easter Island’s decline are similar to Earth’s as a whole. Much like the blurb says, we should take Easter Island’s environmental collapse as a warning of the Earth’s own.
August 10, 2025
Such an interesting account on the historical, anthropological and environmental history of the Easter islands by Jared Diamond.
I never even knew that modern Easter island did not have trees, and the knowledge of a previously existing lush forest hosting some of the largest palms in the world and largest number nesting bird species amongst the Pacific Islands, instead of what is now a devastating sand / barren land with no native bird species, is fascinating to say the least.
A population so reliant on their resources that could not stop 'relying' on them even when it was just too late. What are the consequences of overexploitation of our environment? Extinction of bird species, inability to sail / fish, inability to grow any crop and inability to even provide proper burial to the dead.
I never even knew that modern Easter island did not have trees, and the knowledge of a previously existing lush forest hosting some of the largest palms in the world and largest number nesting bird species amongst the Pacific Islands, instead of what is now a devastating sand / barren land with no native bird species, is fascinating to say the least.
A population so reliant on their resources that could not stop 'relying' on them even when it was just too late. What are the consequences of overexploitation of our environment? Extinction of bird species, inability to sail / fish, inability to grow any crop and inability to even provide proper burial to the dead.
December 27, 2022
A brief overview of the history of Easter Island and the dangers of human overexploitation.
Knowing nothing about Easter Island other than the famous heads I assumed this would be a description of early European settlers coming to an isolated island and leaving a wave of destruction & devastation. But instead the evidence points to a much earlier downfall, predicated by the seemingly universal need to exploit nature. And as such, when there are no more resources, and you are trapped on an island thousands of miles from the nearest habitable land mass your society collapses.
Lessons can definitely be learned that our planet only has so much, and once we've gone too far we will have to adapt, almost certainly for the worse and we must face the consequences.
Knowing nothing about Easter Island other than the famous heads I assumed this would be a description of early European settlers coming to an isolated island and leaving a wave of destruction & devastation. But instead the evidence points to a much earlier downfall, predicated by the seemingly universal need to exploit nature. And as such, when there are no more resources, and you are trapped on an island thousands of miles from the nearest habitable land mass your society collapses.
Lessons can definitely be learned that our planet only has so much, and once we've gone too far we will have to adapt, almost certainly for the worse and we must face the consequences.
August 19, 2024
60% - interesting, possibly too concise.
Jared Diamond gives a (very) brief outline of the history of Easter Island - from theories of its colonisation, its rise and height as a thriving communication, then theories about what all went wrong, and contact with the western world. He then draws comparisons with what happened in the microcosm of the island, and what is happening globally.
The writing style is easy to follow and he makes good cases for his pet theories, while acknoweging the limitations of drawing conclusions on very little data. But 87 pages is just not enough space to look at any particular aspect in any detail and I often found myself wanting to know more, a sentence about the pantheon, or writing system, was too vague, even for an overview.
Jared Diamond gives a (very) brief outline of the history of Easter Island - from theories of its colonisation, its rise and height as a thriving communication, then theories about what all went wrong, and contact with the western world. He then draws comparisons with what happened in the microcosm of the island, and what is happening globally.
The writing style is easy to follow and he makes good cases for his pet theories, while acknoweging the limitations of drawing conclusions on very little data. But 87 pages is just not enough space to look at any particular aspect in any detail and I often found myself wanting to know more, a sentence about the pantheon, or writing system, was too vague, even for an overview.
July 30, 2024
unsure how i feel about this one - ive encountered diamond through both the history/archaeology undergrads i was studying, and from that perspective it was fine. i think without the wider context of the collapse book this doesn't necessarily work - i think it also seemed a little dated or to be missing something? look, i lament the loss of knowledge we have from easter island, and i know this isn't probably super intentional, but the way this was written seems a little light on the blame on colonial powers (im not saying they are all to blame, but again only form a short end to the chapter). perhaps within the wider context of the book this is from, it's top tier writing.
January 9, 2022
This appealed to my anthropology background. I had just wanted the “Easter to Earth” comparison to be a little more…I don’t know, eloquent? All the data is there for you to draw your own conclusions—I mean, it’s so glaringly obvious that what happened to the deforested, ravaged island is an ominous foreshadowing to our own demise—-I guess I just wanted to hear a little more about Jared’s opinions on the matter.
December 28, 2022
A critical and thorough analysis of what happened on Easter Island. "Easter Islanders' toppling of their ancestral moai reminds me of Russians and Romanians toppling the stairs of Stalin and Ceausescu when the Communist governments of thise countries collapsed." What a way to catch the interest of the reader! Connect a long time ago event with a recent one. Apparently the determining factors were things that they could not control: odds were stacked against them. Quite enlightening book.
March 1, 2023
This is not a real review, just some thoughts I like to write down.
Das ist keine richtige Bewertung, nur ein paar Gedanken, die ich aufschreiben wollte.
Guter Abriss über die gesamte Geschichte der Osterinsel und wie sie sich selbst durch den verursachten ökologischen Kollaps an den Rande des Aussterbens schoben. Es wird ein ganzes Bild der Geschichte diskutiert, und nicht nur direkt der umweltspezifische Aspekt.
Das ist keine richtige Bewertung, nur ein paar Gedanken, die ich aufschreiben wollte.
Guter Abriss über die gesamte Geschichte der Osterinsel und wie sie sich selbst durch den verursachten ökologischen Kollaps an den Rande des Aussterbens schoben. Es wird ein ganzes Bild der Geschichte diskutiert, und nicht nur direkt der umweltspezifische Aspekt.
April 15, 2023
Jared Diamond brings out the concern for Green ideas clearly and how an Island of 40000 years gets decimated in 700 years between 900 and 1600 AD by indiscriminate population who cut the trees . The small island in Chile is pre historic, can it be revived ? Whether scientific advancement can help in reviving the planet remains an unanswered question.
The 20 books in the Green Ideas series must be a good read
The 20 books in the Green Ideas series must be a good read
March 30, 2023
Loved it loved it!! 80 pages little book on the case of Easter Island and it's total (total meaning total) deforastation. Super interesting!
It has probably become one of my favourites among the Green Ideas series. (Plus it was a given to me by Marina, bought at a flea marker in London and gifted months later for my bday hehehehehe coolest friends coolest ideas)
It has probably become one of my favourites among the Green Ideas series. (Plus it was a given to me by Marina, bought at a flea marker in London and gifted months later for my bday hehehehehe coolest friends coolest ideas)
June 11, 2024
I profoundly mean this when I say this could have been an email. my dude rambles on about how easter island is one of the worst examples of deforestation or how humans destroyed an entire ecosystem, then ends the book saying something like ‘this island is a metaphor for the whole world rn’
there ya go, I just saved you like 80 pages xx
there ya go, I just saved you like 80 pages xx
August 6, 2024
I found this account of the settling and history of Easter Island to be fascinating. I took my time reading it and brought it up many times in conversation with others. Love that it was presented in this short version, as I don’t know that I ever would have picked up the bigger book it was excerpted from—though now I might.
September 18, 2025
This book felt prescient considering the times we find ourselves in. In this well researched book Diamond explores the rise and collapse of human society on Easter Island through its iconic Moai statues. A parable of what can happen when over consumption and societal problems go unchecked in an isolated group this book draws chilling parallels to our modern day.
November 9, 2025
Veldig interessant! men litt sær til tider.. mulig jeg ville gitt den 3,5 stjerner om jeg kunne
«i have often asked myself, «What did the Easter islander who cut down the last palm tree say while he was was doing it?»………… Similar questions arise for every society that has inadvertently damaged its environment. Societies nevertheless make do make such mistakes.»
Gysninger!
«i have often asked myself, «What did the Easter islander who cut down the last palm tree say while he was was doing it?»………… Similar questions arise for every society that has inadvertently damaged its environment. Societies nevertheless make do make such mistakes.»
Gysninger!
January 17, 2024
Although a short book, it provides enough details as to why Easter Island became deserted and the statues remained, with several factors contributing to its loss of trees and plants, and in turn, animals and birds for anyone to remain living there.
August 23, 2024
A very interesting book giving a good introduction to Easter Island and it’s history. It is easy to read and short, as it is a small part of one of his longer books. There is a section of suggested further reading, but I do miss a proper reference list to the literature he is citing.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews