Continental Drift (P.S.)

Book Description

A powerful literary classic from one of contemporary fiction's most acclaimed and important writers, Russell Banks's Continental Drift is a masterful novel of hope lost and gained, and a gripping, indelible story of fragile lives uprooted and transformed by injustice, disappointment, and the seductions and realities of the American dream.

Customer Reviews:

A powerful story! .......2007-05-05

Here is a book of great passion. The pathos of the last lines is stunning. The lines are written about a man, who step by step, became involved the Cocaine smuggling.

"Knowledge of the facts of Bob's life and death changes nothing in the world. Our celebrating his life and grieving over his death, however, will. Good cheer and mournfulness over lives other than our own, even wholly invented lives--no, especially wholly invented lives--deprive the world as it is of some of the greed it needs to continue to be itself. Sabotage and subversion, then, are this book's objectives. Go, my book, and help destroy the world as it is."

How profound! I wrote inside the cover of this powerful book the following lines: "How glad I am that I have a vision of what society should be!" Without idealism, the world is meaningless. That's what was wrong with main character in this memorable novel.

The world as it is.......2007-03-29

I have always found Russell Banks' writing to be more affecting than it seems like it should; to have more hefty than his straight ahead, sometimes colorless narrative style would imply. This weighty meaning is often right up front in the powerful stories he tells of people trying to carve a small piece of the good life out of rotten husk of the bad lives they are mired in. This is true of Affliction, Sweet Hereafter, Cloudsplitter, and Rule of Bone, but none more than Continental Drift, his best book.

Why do people refuse to except the lot they are given? Why do they continue to pursue counterproductive, desperate measures-- like uprooting a family and moving across the country on little more than a whim, or taking a perilous boat ride to a promised, and unlikely prosperity-- on the off chance that somehow this sacrifice will deliver them the life of happiness they have always dreamed about? They do so because individuals and society as a whole have lost their moorings, and Banks explicitly describes the dissatisfaction with modernity, at the individual and societal level, during the searing epilogue. Though Banks does leave us with a vision of hope for the power of empathy, he does not have many positive things to say about the world as it is.

...even though the Haitians keep on coming, and many
Of them are drowned, brutalized, cheated and exploited,
and where they come from remains worse than where
they are going to; and even though the men in three-piece
suits behind the desks in the banks grow fatter and more
secure and skillful in their work; and even though young
Americans men and women without money, with trades
instead of professions, go on breaking their lives trying
to bend them around the wheel of commerce, dreaming
that when the wheel turns, they will come rising up from
the ground like televised gods making a brief special
appearance here on earth, nothing like it before or since,
such utter transcendence that any awful sacrifice is justified.
The world as it is goes on being itself.

If only Oprah would endorse this -.......2005-10-10

I became a huge fan of Russell Banks several years ago after hearing a discussion of "Continental Drift" on NPR. After reading all of his novels, this stands out as by far one of his finest works - far better than even the more-widely known "Sweet Hereafter". Now, with movies such as "Crash" and the upcoming film version of T.C. Boyle's "Tortilla Curtain", it's high time this astonishing and enduring story of culture clash reached the audience it deserves. Oprah, are you listening? Clint Eastwood, have you looked into the movie rights? Just read it.

Note: This cassette audiobook is "exerpts" only........2005-04-22

Buyers note: The cassette audiobook for this listing is of Russell Banks reading exerpts of two chapters of Continental Drift. It is one audiocassette 63:12 in length.

Heading south to disaster.......2005-02-21

Bob Dubois, married and sinking fast in malaise and failure, quits his oilburner job in New Hampshire and moves to Florida. There he encounters only more failure, until he decides to transport illegal aliens from Haiti, which goes horribly wrong and many people drown. In trying to return the blood money, Dubois is killed in the Haitian community in Miami. The book is well written and very intense. Banks has a way of grabbing the reader's attention and not letting go. The only detraction for me was the subplot near the end about a Haitian woman who ends up surviving the disastrous crossing. Recommended reading.

Average customer rating:

Excellent!

New Views on an Old Planet
Tjeerd H. van Andel
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0521447550

Book Description

Earth Science is history, and because the earth is changing every day, earth history is being added every moment. Professor van Andel's now famous book on earth history interweaves three main themes: the evolution of the solid earth; the history of oceans and atmospheres; and the evolution of life. In the decade since this award-winning book was first published, much new information has been learned and confirmed, and Dr. van Andel draws on this wealth of knowledge to thoroughly revise and update the text. There is a new chapter on how we can improve our grasp on geological time and, mindful of the current interest in global change, new sections describe the greenhouse effect and address its possible future ramifications. In prose that is both concise and compelling and with a glossary and suggestions for further reading New Views on an Old Planet: A History of Global Change, makes earth history appealing to the general reader .

Customer Reviews:

Excellent!.......1999-10-11

Careful and clear presentation of continental drift, tectonic plate theory and related subjects. Written by an expert in the field for the intelligent and inquisitive layperson.

The Rejection of Continental Drift: Theory and Method in American Earth Science

Average customer rating:

Cogent, thoughtful history of science
History of science at its best
Very, worthwhile reading!

The Rejection of Continental Drift: Theory and Method in American Earth Science
Naomi Oreskes
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Plate Tectonics: An Insider's History of the Modern Theory of the Earth
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Principles of Geology (Penguin Classics)

ASIN: 0195117336

Book Description

In the early twentieth century, American earth scientists were united in their opposition to the new--and highly radical--notion of continental drift, even going so far as to label the theory "unscientific." Some fifty years later, however, continental drift was heralded as a major scientific breakthrough and today it is accepted as scientific fact. Why did American geologists reject so adamantly an idea that is now considered a cornerstone of the discipline? And why were their European colleagues receptive to it so much earlier? This book, based on extensive archival research on three continents, provides important new answers while giving the first detailed account of the American geological community in the first half of the century. Challenging previous historical work on this episode, Naomi Oreskes shows that continental drift was not rejected for the lack of a causal mechanism, but because it seemed to conflict with the basic standards of practice in American geology. This account provides a compelling look at how scientific ideas are made and unmade.

Customer Reviews:

Cogent, thoughtful history of science.......2005-09-06

I don't typically review books, but this one strikes me as so good as to require it.

This book has as good an explication of the imperfections of the "scientific method" (as practiced collectively by a discipline) as any book I have ever read. The discussion of the history and philosophy of individual Earth scientists from 1850-1950 is also particularly well done here.

Any practicing geologist will likey find this to be a useful read, and it may also be useful for a graduate class on scientific methodology.

History of science at its best.......2005-05-07

Naomi Oreskes has written a fascinating explanation of why the American geology community rejected, for half a century, what is the most important unifying principle in geology and arguably of science in the 20th century: continental drift. This book is brilliant storytelling, the history of science at its best.
Of course we all know the right answer. Continental drift seems so intuitively obvious now, the cornerstone of so many of our planet's processes, that it seems incomprehensible any intelligent person could have rejected Alfred Wegener's explanation, first published in 1912. The mystery deepens when we read that the concept was suggested earlier by an American geologist (Taylor) and that several highly respected American geologists did in fact accept it enthusiastically, as did the great majority of geologists in Europe, South Africa, and Australia.
Oreskes lays out for the non-specialist the history of related geological concepts as well as the drift controversy per se. She thoroughly punctures the myth that continental drift was rejected simply because Wegener had not proposed a causal mechanism, even though her citations show that this was used as an excuse after the fact. She explores and convincingly presents the deeper reasons. Her conclusions are not complimentary to either the American psyche nor to the scientific method. (Lord Kelvin's arrogant parochialism, rejecting all field data and bullying geologists with his theoretical calculations based totally on a naive model of simple heat conduction, seems particularly shallow.) Remarkably, the author manages to present a sympathetic side to the human dilemmas of the story, while not at all mitigating the really profound implications of a story that goes far beyond geology - the weakness, even fragility, of the scientific method.
This masterfully told story suggests a paraphrase of arch-conservative William F. Buckley's critique of capitalism and capitalists: the trouble with science is scientists.

Very, worthwhile reading!.......1999-04-15

I can highly recomend this book to anyone interested in the history and philosophy of the earth sciences. I have been looking for books on this subject for some time and this was certainly the "find" I was hoping for.

I am not, however, able to comment on the specifics of Oreskes' thesis, since the subject lies outside my field of expertise, but her more general comments about the status of science are certainly worth considering, and the evidence she marshalls is very impressive.

Book Description

From xenophobic appropriations of Joan of Arc to Afro-futurism and cyberpunk, the "national" characters of the colonial era often seem to be dissolving into postnational and virtual subjects. In Continental Drift, Emily Apter deftly analyzes the French colonial and postcolonial experience as a case study in the erosion of belief in national destiny and the emergence of technologically mediated citizenship.

Among the many topics Apter explores are the fate of national literatures in an increasingly transnational literary climate; the volatile stakes of Albert Camus's life and reputation against the backdrop of Algerian civil strife; the use of literary and theatrical productions to "script" national character for the colonies; belly-dancing and aesthetic theory; and the impact of new media on colonial and postcolonial representation, from tourist photography to the videos of Digital Diaspora.

Continental Drift advances debates not just in postcolonial studies, but also in gender, identity, and cultural studies; ethnography; psychoanalysis; and performance studies.

Average customer rating:

This is one Great read --an emotional "upheaval"
A taut, suspenseful read, highly recommended.
A WINNER
A wild and crazy thriller with a bit of truth
wild ride of a thriller

Drift
Steven Paul Mark
Manufacturer: Booklocker.com, Inc.
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Binding: Paperback

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Ancestor
Torpedo
Deep Storm: A Novel
Bad Luck and Trouble
The Woods

ASIN: 1601450621

Book Description

At an interview with Imperium Solutions, a mysterious oil company, Max LaFollette inadvertently reveals information triggering a chain reaction that threatens his life. It's the best day he's going to have for a long time.

Customer Reviews:

This is one Great read --an emotional "upheaval".......2007-03-25

As good as Crichton --this guy knows his stuff --i will get a chill every time i hear a vibration.

Great adventure -- non stop action with unforgettable characters -- both evil and heroic.

And i learned just enough about "tectonic plates" and Natural History to be dangerous.

'Drift" will be one hell of a movie!

A taut, suspenseful read, highly recommended........2007-03-04

Entertainment attorney Steven Paul Mark presents Drift, a high-strung thriller novel about Max LaFollette, an unemployed ex-Marine who says the wrong thing at the wrong time to Imperium Solutions, a powerful oil company that is utterly ruthless in exercising its mysterious agenda. Shortly afterward, Max's wife is murdered and he is forced to flee for his life, in a cat-and-mouse chase that leads from the Manhattan undercity to the halls of Washington to the desolation of Chechnya. Set amid a modern era of global warming, catastrophic heat waves, and melting polar ice caps - an accidental byproduct of Imperium's work, or the more sinister outcome of their deliberate plot? - Drift follows LaFollette as the most unlikely instrument of Imperium's destruction, with the ecology of the Earth as humankind knows it in the balance. A taut, suspenseful read, highly recommended.

A WINNER.......2007-02-21

What a riveting book, a tremendous surprise!

I saw each scene as if watcthing a thriller on the big screen.
IF I WERE THE HEAD OF UNIVERSAL, DRIFT WOULD BE MADE INTO AN ACTION MOVIE!

SURPRISES were, as my 8th graders would say, "SWEET".

Each event was gripping, intricate, yet well conceived and connected.

Character reveals were pleasant revelations.
Intelligently crafted, complex and compelling.

I truly loved the characters-- each extremely well developed. I really cared about what happened to them and could walk in their shoes and see through their eyes.

I honestly did not have time to read it, but found myself looking for, and stealing time to get back to the story. I really loved it, and I don't say that lightly.

Very visual and visceral.
Descriptions were eloquent.

Having taught Science for many years, including Earth Science, I was especially shaken by the plot, that the plates could actually be moved to create such chaos. Your weaving of science and history made it even more plausible and interesting for me.

Gripping
Vivid
SUSPENSEFUL
Action Packed
A page turner
Intelligent

Every page held my interest and I can say honestly, that I was never bored on any page, at any time. It would have been a faster read, if I did not also have a 60 hour plus- per week prior commitment. I couldn't wait to pick it up again.

WHAT AN ACTION PACKED ENDING.
Drift stands on its own, and I look forward to Mr. Mark's next book.

A huge fan!

A wild and crazy thriller with a bit of truth.......2007-01-24

Reviewed by Cherie Fisher of Reader Views (1/07)

I found it hard to believe that "Drift" is the first novel that author Steven Paul Mark has written. The author obviously has done a lot of research on a variety of subjects; geology, government, corporations, FBI, NYPD and the New York subterranean are only some of the topics he covered in this very well written novel.

The world as he knows it is over for ex-Marine Max LaFollette. He just lost his job, his wife is murdered and now Max is running for his life from the people who killed her and hiding out from the NYPD who thinks he is involved in his wife's murder. He inadvertently set off a chain of events that he cannot control when he interviewed at Imperium Solutions. The only way for him to survive is move underground to live in the subterranean beneath New York City with a band of ragtag warriors determined to stop the diabolical plans that Imperium Solutions has embarked on.

At the same time, the world weather has gone crazy. Earthquakes, tsunamis, heat waves, polar ice cap melting and weather reversals are occurring all over the globe. Could it really be true that a corporation really has the technology to cause all of this devastation? As Max realizes the enormity of the problem he heads to California to meet with the famous geologist Becky Hausman, who he had rescued from an accident in the subway tunnels in New York. She quickly joins his efforts to stop this company from destroying the world.

As Max and his fellow warriors move to stop this company they head to Washington D.C. and find out that the reach of Imperium is too high and nothing will be done about the evidence that they uncovered. Realizing that the world is headed for disaster if this company is not stopped they head for Chechnya for the final confrontation.

The story is very fast paced and full of intrigue and drama from the beginning to the end. It is very hard to put down once you start it. It is very disturbing to read this after all the crazy weather, earthquakes, hurricanes and tsunami that we have seen over the last few years. I highly encourage people that enjoy detail oriented thrillers to read this book. I also think that "Drift" has the makings for what would make a great movie.

wild ride of a thriller.......2006-12-15

Is it possible that greed could actually put an end to our world, as we know it? Could our gluttonous behavior be our demise? In Steven Paul Mark's novel, "Drift," the world is in grave danger of dinosaur extinction proportions, all because of the almighty dollar.

Imperium Solutions is an oil company of epic standings. Their drills go deeper and produce more liquid gold than any in history. And they are making history in other ways. The only problem is that if they continue on, there will be no one left to record that history or even care about it. Our hero, Max, stumbles upon the company one afternoon, as fate throws a drafted inter-office memo in his face during a tickertape parade in New York. Max, having just been let go by his previous employers, takes the seeming opportunity that the memo mentions. It seems some guy named Bran is about to be terminated and Max sees it as an opportunity to get his foot in the door. What he doesn't realize is that Bran is not to be let go, but exterminated, and the mention of his name is enough to get his apartment ransacked, his wife killed and his own life in grave danger. What follows is a crescendo of story that involves the underworld of NYC subway systems, the elusive Bran, paid off cops, and the destruction of the world, literally. Drift refers to continental drift, fault lines, deep vibrations in the earth and Mother Nature's reaction to greed. The whole world is under the influence of one company's doings. Can Max do anything about it?

This wild ride of a thriller is fraught with intense possibilities, consequences, and excitement. Full of drama of all kinds, from the police and FBI side of things to terrorism, and from psychological intrigue to human relations and romance, it's all in here. The result is a book that transcends the gender gap of reading materials and the genre gap of novels. The writing is excellent, with a tight plot and perfect flow. The characters are well conceived, creating people in the mind whom we hope are truly out there to protect our world, and also detailing the villains who unfortunately have a basis in reality. An excellent read!
Review by Heather Froeschl.

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In the California Canon
Murder mystery with earthquake shakes

Continental Drift (California Fiction)
James D. Houston
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Snow Mountain Passage
The Last Paradise (Literature of the American West)
Suite Francaise
A Thousand Splendid Suns

ASIN: 0520207130

Book Description

The San Andreas Fault is both a real and a metaphorical player in this novel of northern California in the early 70s. Set on a ranch near Monterey Bay, it explores relationships in a family jarred by the return of a son from Vietnam, almost whole but shaken and confused. His return coincides with a series of bizarre killings that panic the community--a reminder that in the legendary land of promise abundant possibilities and agents of destruction live side by side.

Customer Reviews:

In the California Canon.......2003-10-15

James D. Houston's Continental Drift chronicles the Doyle family's reactions to a series of brutal murders that suspiciously coincides with the return of their youngest son from the Vietnam War. Unlike a typical mystery novel, Continental Drift concentrates on the physical and psychological landscapes of the murders--the ranching community of Monterey, California--instead of the murders themselves.

The narrative's tension revolves around the characters' relationships with the land, themselves, and the history of the Golden State. Instead of actions, artistic descriptions are used to hook readers: "Perhaps inheritance isn't the right word. This could be something absorbed, or ingested, or inhaled with the lifelong blending of apple scent and crumbling adobe and exhaust fumes and molecules of rubber dust that hang forever in the air above the freeways. He inherited a state of mind that goes right back to the Spaniards, where everything out west begins." Odd, spooky situations also capture the reader's attention, but the amount of description far outweighs the number of scenes. Thus, suspense as it pertains to the killings never really takes off until halfway through the book. But by that time, every character is a suspect.

Continental Drift is a language rather than plot driven mystery. James D. Houston centers his story around California, which almost becomes a character itself. Readers interested in a classic who-done-it may want to look elsewhere. Those interested in the West and a gifted writer's poetic expression to a land he loves, should not hesitate buying this book.

Murder mystery with earthquake shakes.......2003-01-24

I admit I expected more from this author, especially after reading his excellent book about the Donner party, _The Snow Mountain Passage_.

The story unfolds around Monterey Bay, California on a ranch inland on the San Andreas faultline. The owner of the ranch, Monty, lives quiely with his wife in a nice home with large acreage, renting out another home to an artist. The story opens with the return of their youngest son from the Vietnam war. Not sure what to expect, they anticipate his arrival with a house party and even welcome the unexpected girlfriend on his arm when they pick him up at the airport.

It becomes blatantly obvious that the son has changed. His behavior is bizarre and unpredictable. Not only do his parents fret about the returning Vietnam vet, but his older brother does as well.

His return coincides with a series of shocking murdurs in the area, and with some analysis it appears the murdurer is closely in the vicinity of the ranch and is actually burying his victims on the fault line.

In panic, the parents fear the worse when the girlfriend turns up murdered and they are unable to locate their son. Monty especially feels the chill of this heinous crime as he was freshly intimate with this woman in the field the evening prior to her death.

Unfortunately, the relationship of Monty and his wife is contaminated by Monty himself as he falls victim to his sexual urges and violates himself and the vows of his marriage. The murder investigation takes a fevered pitch and Monty plots out on a map that they are at risk as the murderer is apparantly following a clear path along the fault line and they are right on it.

The mystery is fairly predictable, but since the author is of high standing in his other books, I would recommend this one, although it is clearly not one of his best.

The Origin of Continents and Oceans
Average customer rating:

It was good

The Origin of Continents and Oceans
Alfred Wegener
Manufacturer: Dover Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0486617084

Book Description

One of the most influential, most controversial books in science, the classic statement for continental drift. Full 1966 translation. 64 illus.

Customer Reviews:

It was good.......1998-12-15

It was very complex, with all the theories and information on continental drift.But, overall it was good.

Ending in Ice: The Revolutionary Idea and Tragic Expedition of Alfred Wegener

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Ending in Ice: The Revolutionary Idea and Tragic Expedition of Alfred Wegener
Roger M. McCoy
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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Binding: Hardcover

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The Origin of Continents and Oceans

ASIN: 0195188578

Book Description

An old truism holds that a scientific discovery has three stages: first, people deny it is true; then they deny it is important; finally, they credit the wrong person. Alfred Wegener's "discovery" of continental drift went through each stage with unusual drama. In 1915, when he published his theory that the world's continents had once come together in a single landmass before splitting apart and drifting to their current positions, the world's geologists denied and scorned it. The scientific establishment's rejection of continental drift and plate tectonic theory is a story told often and well. Yet, there is an untold side to Wegener's life: he and his famous father-in-law, Wladimir Koppen (a climatologist whose classification of climates is still in use), became fascinated with climates of the geologic past. In the early 20th century Wegener made four expeditions to the then-uncharted Greenland icecap to gather data about climate variations (Greenland ice-core sampling continues to this day). Ending in Ice is about Wegener's explorations of Greenland, blending the science of ice ages and Wegener's continental drift measurements with the story of Wegener's fatal expedition trying to bring desperately needed food and fuel to workers at the central Greenland ice station of Eismitte in 1930. Arctic exploration books with tragic endings have become all too common, but this book combines Wegener's fatal adventures in Greenland with the relevant science--now more important than ever as global climate change becomes movie-worthy ("The Day After Tomorrow").

The Lithosphere: Earth's Crust (Earth's Spheres)

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The Lithosphere: Earth's Crust (Earth's Spheres)
Gregory Vogt
Manufacturer: Twenty-First Century Books (CT)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

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ASIN: 0761328386

Continents adrift and continents aground: Readings from Scientific American

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Continents adrift and continents aground: Readings from Scientific American

Manufacturer: W. H. Freeman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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