
A Brief History of Earth
Four Billion Years in Eight Chapters
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $16.19
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Tom Parks
-
By:
-
Andrew H. Knoll
About this listen
How well do you know the ground beneath your feet? A primer for every Earth resident, by Harvard’s acclaimed geologist.
“A sublime chronicle of our planet." (Booklist, starred review)
Odds are, where you’re standing was once cooking under a roiling sea of lava, crushed by a towering sheet of ice, rocked by a nearby meteor strike, or perhaps choked by poison gases, drowned beneath ocean, perched atop a mountain range, or roamed by fearsome monsters. Probably most or even all of the above.
The story of our home planet and the organisms spread across its surface is far more spectacular than any Hollywood blockbuster, filled with enough plot twists to rival a bestselling thriller. But only recently have we begun to piece together the whole mystery into a coherent narrative. Drawing on his decades of field research and up-to-the-minute understanding of the latest science, renowned geologist Andrew H. Knoll delivers a rigorous yet accessible biography of Earth, charting our home planet's epic 4.6 billion-year story. Placing twenty first-century climate change in deep context, A Brief History of Earth is an indispensable look at where we’ve been and where we’re going.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2021 Andrew H. Knoll (P)2021 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
-
London
- The Biography
- By: Peter Ackroyd
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 32 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London: The Biography is the pinnacle of Peter Ackroyd's brilliant obsession with the eponymous city. In this unusual and engaging work, Ackroyd brings the listener through time into the city whose institutions and idiosyncrasies have permeated much of his works of fiction and nonfiction. Peter Ackroyd sees London as a living, breathing organism, with its own laws of growth and change.
-
-
Great Book
- By Joann on 01-04-21
By: Peter Ackroyd
-
How the Earth Works
- By: Michael E. Wysession, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Michael E. Wysession
- Length: 24 hrs and 31 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
How the Earth Works takes you on an astonishing journey through time and space. In 48 lectures, you will look at what went into making our planet - from the big bang, to the formation of the solar system, to the subsequent evolution of Earth.
-
-
Excellent course
- By Doug B. on 05-23-19
By: Michael E. Wysession, and others
-
The Philosopher's Toolkit: How to Be the Most Rational Person in Any Room
- By: Patrick Grim, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Patrick Grim
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Taught by award-winning Professor Patrick Grim of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, The Philosopher’s Toolkit: How to Be the Most Rational Person in Any Room arms you against the perils of bad thinking and supplies you with an arsenal of strategies to help you be more creative, logical, inventive, realistic, and rational in all aspects of your daily life.
-
-
This should NOT be an audio book
- By Brooks Emerson on 03-21-20
By: Patrick Grim, and others
-
Mycophilia
- Revelations From the Weird World of Mushrooms
- By: Eugenia Bone
- Narrated by: Aimee Jolson
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Mycophilia, accomplished food writer and cookbook author Eugenia Bone examines the role of fungi as exotic delicacy, curative, poison, and hallucinogen, and ultimately discovers that a greater understanding of fungi is key to facing many challenges of the 21st century.
-
-
Absolutely awful, insufferable, racist author
- By Rs 🦇 on 11-25-19
By: Eugenia Bone
-
A Most Elegant Equation
- Euler’s Formula and the Beauty of Mathematics
- By: David Stipp
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bertrand Russell wrote that mathematics can exalt "as surely as poetry". This is especially true of one equation: ei(pi) + 1 = 0, the brainchild of Leonhard Euler, the Mozart of mathematics. More than two centuries after Euler's death, it is still regarded as a conceptual diamond of unsurpassed beauty. Called Euler's identity, or God's equation, it includes just five numbers but represents an astonishing revelation of hidden connections.
-
-
Good treatment of the subject
- By Kindle Customer on 04-09-18
By: David Stipp
-
The Pagan World
- Ancient Religions Before Christianity
- By: Hans-Friedrich Mueller, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Hans-Friedrich Mueller
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Pagan World: Ancient Religions Before Christianity, you will meet the fascinating, ancient polytheistic peoples of the Mediterranean and beyond, their many gods and goddesses, and their public and private worship practices, as you come to appreciate the foundational role religion played in their lives. Professor Hans-Friedrich Mueller, of Union College in Schenectady, New York, makes this ancient world come alive in 24 lectures with captivating stories of intrigue, artifacts, illustrations, and detailed descriptions from primary sources of intriguing personalities.
-
-
The Pagan World
- By arnold e andersen md Dr Andersen on 03-28-20
By: Hans-Friedrich Mueller, and others
-
London
- The Biography
- By: Peter Ackroyd
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 32 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
London: The Biography is the pinnacle of Peter Ackroyd's brilliant obsession with the eponymous city. In this unusual and engaging work, Ackroyd brings the listener through time into the city whose institutions and idiosyncrasies have permeated much of his works of fiction and nonfiction. Peter Ackroyd sees London as a living, breathing organism, with its own laws of growth and change.
-
-
Great Book
- By Joann on 01-04-21
By: Peter Ackroyd
-
How the Earth Works
- By: Michael E. Wysession, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Michael E. Wysession
- Length: 24 hrs and 31 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
How the Earth Works takes you on an astonishing journey through time and space. In 48 lectures, you will look at what went into making our planet - from the big bang, to the formation of the solar system, to the subsequent evolution of Earth.
-
-
Excellent course
- By Doug B. on 05-23-19
By: Michael E. Wysession, and others
-
The Philosopher's Toolkit: How to Be the Most Rational Person in Any Room
- By: Patrick Grim, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Patrick Grim
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Taught by award-winning Professor Patrick Grim of the State University of New York at Stony Brook, The Philosopher’s Toolkit: How to Be the Most Rational Person in Any Room arms you against the perils of bad thinking and supplies you with an arsenal of strategies to help you be more creative, logical, inventive, realistic, and rational in all aspects of your daily life.
-
-
This should NOT be an audio book
- By Brooks Emerson on 03-21-20
By: Patrick Grim, and others
-
Mycophilia
- Revelations From the Weird World of Mushrooms
- By: Eugenia Bone
- Narrated by: Aimee Jolson
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Mycophilia, accomplished food writer and cookbook author Eugenia Bone examines the role of fungi as exotic delicacy, curative, poison, and hallucinogen, and ultimately discovers that a greater understanding of fungi is key to facing many challenges of the 21st century.
-
-
Absolutely awful, insufferable, racist author
- By Rs 🦇 on 11-25-19
By: Eugenia Bone
-
A Most Elegant Equation
- Euler’s Formula and the Beauty of Mathematics
- By: David Stipp
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bertrand Russell wrote that mathematics can exalt "as surely as poetry". This is especially true of one equation: ei(pi) + 1 = 0, the brainchild of Leonhard Euler, the Mozart of mathematics. More than two centuries after Euler's death, it is still regarded as a conceptual diamond of unsurpassed beauty. Called Euler's identity, or God's equation, it includes just five numbers but represents an astonishing revelation of hidden connections.
-
-
Good treatment of the subject
- By Kindle Customer on 04-09-18
By: David Stipp
-
The Pagan World
- Ancient Religions Before Christianity
- By: Hans-Friedrich Mueller, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Hans-Friedrich Mueller
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Pagan World: Ancient Religions Before Christianity, you will meet the fascinating, ancient polytheistic peoples of the Mediterranean and beyond, their many gods and goddesses, and their public and private worship practices, as you come to appreciate the foundational role religion played in their lives. Professor Hans-Friedrich Mueller, of Union College in Schenectady, New York, makes this ancient world come alive in 24 lectures with captivating stories of intrigue, artifacts, illustrations, and detailed descriptions from primary sources of intriguing personalities.
-
-
The Pagan World
- By arnold e andersen md Dr Andersen on 03-28-20
By: Hans-Friedrich Mueller, and others
-
A Little History of the World
- By: E. H. Gombrich
- Narrated by: Ralph Cosham
- Length: 9 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
E. H. Gombrich's world history, an international best seller now available in English for the first time, is a text dominated not by dates and facts but by the sweep of experience across the centuries, a guide to humanity's achievements, and an acute witness to its frailties.
-
-
an enlightening book; very well read
- By A.B.Oxford on 06-03-06
By: E. H. Gombrich
-
To the Edges of the Earth
- 1909, the Race for the Three Poles, and the Climax of the Age of Exploration
- By: Edward J. Larson
- Narrated by: Paul Michael Garcia
- Length: 12 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As 1909 dawned, the greatest jewels of exploration - set at the world's frozen extremes - lay unclaimed: the North and South Poles and the so-called "Third Pole", the pole of altitude, located in unexplored heights of the Himalaya. Before the calendar turned, three expeditions had faced death, mutiny, and the harshest conditions on the planet to plant flags at the furthest edges of the Earth.
-
-
brutally honest accounts unbelievable stories
- By Troy Hamilton on 07-17-18
By: Edward J. Larson
-
The Search for Exoplanets: What Astronomers Know
- By: The Great Courses, Joshua N. Winn
- Narrated by: Professor Joshua N. Winn
- Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As recently as 1990, it seemed plausible that the solar system was a unique phenomenon in our galaxy. Thanks to advances in technology and clever new uses of existing data, now we know that planetary systems and possibly even a new Earth can be found throughout galaxies near and far.
-
-
Fun across the universe
- By Mark on 01-08-16
By: The Great Courses, and others
-
Symphony in C
- Carbon and the Evolution of (Almost) Everything
- By: Robert M. Hazen
- Narrated by: Paul Brion
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An enchanting biography of the most resonant - and most necessary - chemical element on Earth. Carbon. It's in the fibers in your hair, the timbers in your walls, the food that you eat, and the air that you breathe. It's worth billions as a luxury and half a trillion as a necessity, but there are still mysteries yet to be solved about the element that can be both diamond and coal. Where does it come from, what does it do, and why, above all, does life need it?
-
-
There is a Caveat
- By Joseph L Contreras on 06-26-19
By: Robert M. Hazen
-
Your Deceptive Mind: A Scientific Guide to Critical Thinking Skills
- By: Steven Novella, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Steven Novella
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
No skill is more important in today's world than being able to think about, understand, and act on information in an effective and responsible way. What's more, at no point in human history have we had access to so much information, with such relative ease, as we do in the 21st century. But because misinformation out there has increased as well, critical thinking is more important than ever. These 24 rewarding lectures equip you with the knowledge and techniques you need to become a savvier, sharper critical thinker in your professional and personal life.
-
-
Same Material Different Title
- By rkeinc on 09-21-14
By: Steven Novella, and others
-
Great Exploration Hoaxes
- By: David Roberts
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 8 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Did Peary reach the North Pole? Was Admiral Byrd the first to fly over it? Did Frederick Cook actually make the first ascent of Mt. McKinley? Spanning 450 years of history, Great Exploration Hoaxes tells the spellbinding stories of ten men who pursued glory at any cost even the truth.
-
-
Very interesting
- By Jane B Nurnberg on 07-31-23
By: David Roberts
-
The Sixth Extinction
- An Unnatural History
- By: Elizabeth Kolbert
- Narrated by: Anne Twomey
- Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A major audiobook about the future of the world, blending intellectual and natural history and field reporting into a powerful account of the mass extinction unfolding before our eyes. Over the last half a billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on Earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs.
-
-
Lifts you out of the ordinary
- By Regina on 04-28-14
-
Einstein's Shadow
- The Inside Story of Astronomers' Decades-Long Quest to Take the First Picture of a Black Hole
- By: Seth Fletcher
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Einstein’s Shadow follows a team of elite scientists on a historic mission to take the first picture of a black hole, putting Einstein’s theory of relativity to its ultimate test and helping to answer our deepest questions about space, time, the origins of the universe, and the nature of reality.
-
-
Science revealed beautifully
- By Gary on 10-30-18
By: Seth Fletcher
-
Life on a Young Planet
- The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth
- By: Andrew H. Knoll
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites - such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of a nearly four-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young planet to the incredible Cambrian explosion, presenting a compelling new explanation for the emergence of biological novelty.
-
-
The Earliest Life
- By Arden on 02-16-20
By: Andrew H. Knoll
-
Biomimicry
- Innovation Inspired by Nature
- By: Janine M. Benyus
- Narrated by: Callie Beaulieu
- Length: 14 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Biomimicry is rapidly transforming life on earth. Biomimics study nature's most successful ideas over the past 3.5 million years, and adapt them for human use. The results are revolutionizing how materials are invented and how we compute, heal ourselves, repair the environment, and feed the world. Janine Benyus takes listeners into the lab and in the field with maverick thinkers as they: discover miracle drugs by watching what chimps eat when they're sick; learn how to create by watching spiders weave fibers; and many more examples.
-
-
Dated but good
- By stephen taylor on 09-05-21
By: Janine M. Benyus
-
The Last Days of the Dinosaurs
- An Asteroid, Extinction, and the Beginning of Our World
- By: Riley Black
- Narrated by: Christina Delaine
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Picture yourself in the Cretaceous period. It’s a sunny afternoon in the Hell Creek of ancient Montana 66 million years ago. A Triceratops horridus ambles along the edge of the forest. In a matter of hours, everything here will be wiped away. Lush verdure will be replaced with fire. Tyrannosaurus rex will be toppled from their throne, along with every other species of non-avian dinosaur no matter their size, diet, or disposition. They just don’t know it yet.
-
-
One of the best
- By Amazon Customer on 05-02-22
By: Riley Black
-
The Story of Earth
- The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet
- By: Robert M. Hazen
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Earth evolves. From first atom to molecule, mineral to magma, granite crust to single cell to verdant living landscape, ours is a planet constantly in flux. In this radical new approach to Earth’s biography, senior Carnegie Institution researcher and national best-selling author Robert M. Hazen reveals how the co-evolution of the geosphere and biosphere - of rocks and living matter - has shaped our planet into the only one of its kind in the Solar System, if not the entire cosmos.
-
-
Makes minerals interesting
- By Gary on 07-31-12
By: Robert M. Hazen
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
The Story of Earth
- The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet
- By: Robert M. Hazen
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Earth evolves. From first atom to molecule, mineral to magma, granite crust to single cell to verdant living landscape, ours is a planet constantly in flux. In this radical new approach to Earth’s biography, senior Carnegie Institution researcher and national best-selling author Robert M. Hazen reveals how the co-evolution of the geosphere and biosphere - of rocks and living matter - has shaped our planet into the only one of its kind in the Solar System, if not the entire cosmos.
-
-
Makes minerals interesting
- By Gary on 07-31-12
By: Robert M. Hazen
-
Reading the Rocks
- The Autobiography of the Earth
- By: Marcia Bjornerud
- Narrated by: Alma Cuervo
- Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To many of us, the Earth's crust is a relic of ancient, unknowable history. But to a geologist, stones are richly illustrated narratives, telling gothic tales of cataclysm and reincarnation. For more than four billion years, in beach sand, granite, and garnet schists, the planet has kept a rich and idiosyncratic journal of its past. Fulbright Scholar Marcia Bjornerud takes the listener along on an eye-opening tour of Deep Time, explaining in elegant prose what we see and feel beneath our feet.
-
-
More like a whiny sermon.
- By Keith on 10-09-24
By: Marcia Bjornerud
-
Life on a Young Planet
- The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth
- By: Andrew H. Knoll
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites - such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of a nearly four-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young planet to the incredible Cambrian explosion, presenting a compelling new explanation for the emergence of biological novelty.
-
-
The Earliest Life
- By Arden on 02-16-20
By: Andrew H. Knoll
-
College Level Geology
- By: AudioLearn Content Team
- Narrated by: Kevin Charles
- Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Developed by experienced professors and professionally narrated for easy listening, this course is a great way to explore the subject of Geology. The audio is focused and high-yield, covering the most important topics you might expect to learn in a typical undergraduate course in Geology. The material is accurate, up-to-date, and broken down into bite-sized chapters. Following each chapter, there are key takeaways to drive home key points and quizzes that review commonly tested questions, ultimately concluding with a 200 question practice test.
-
-
A Fantastic Overview of Geology
- By Paige B. on 01-04-25
-
The Story of the Earth in 25 Rocks
- Tales of Important Geological Puzzles and the People Who Solved Them
- By: Donald R. Prothero
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Story of the Earth in 25 Rocks tells the fascinating stories behind the discoveries that shook the foundations of geology. In 25 chapters, Donald R. Prothero recounts the scientific detective work that shaped our understanding of geology, from the unearthing of exemplary specimens to tectonic shifts in how we view the inner workings of our planet.
-
-
More about scientists than science
- By Aunt Vee on 06-14-20
-
After the Dinosaurs
- The Age of Mammals (Life of the Past Series)
- By: Donald R. Prothero
- Narrated by: Will Tulin
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The fascinating group of animals called dinosaurs became extinct some 65 million years ago (except for their feathered descendants). In their place evolved an enormous variety of land creatures, especially mammals, which in their way were every bit as remarkable as their Mesozoic cousins. The Age of Mammals, the Cenozoic Era, has never had its Jurassic Park, but it was an amazing time in earth's history, populated by a wonderful assortment of bizarre animals. The rapid evolution of thousands of species of mammals brought forth many incredible creatures—including our own ancestors.
-
-
Mammals are immersed in minutia.
- By Bertha Watkins on 04-01-24
-
The Story of Earth
- The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet
- By: Robert M. Hazen
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Earth evolves. From first atom to molecule, mineral to magma, granite crust to single cell to verdant living landscape, ours is a planet constantly in flux. In this radical new approach to Earth’s biography, senior Carnegie Institution researcher and national best-selling author Robert M. Hazen reveals how the co-evolution of the geosphere and biosphere - of rocks and living matter - has shaped our planet into the only one of its kind in the Solar System, if not the entire cosmos.
-
-
Makes minerals interesting
- By Gary on 07-31-12
By: Robert M. Hazen
-
Reading the Rocks
- The Autobiography of the Earth
- By: Marcia Bjornerud
- Narrated by: Alma Cuervo
- Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To many of us, the Earth's crust is a relic of ancient, unknowable history. But to a geologist, stones are richly illustrated narratives, telling gothic tales of cataclysm and reincarnation. For more than four billion years, in beach sand, granite, and garnet schists, the planet has kept a rich and idiosyncratic journal of its past. Fulbright Scholar Marcia Bjornerud takes the listener along on an eye-opening tour of Deep Time, explaining in elegant prose what we see and feel beneath our feet.
-
-
More like a whiny sermon.
- By Keith on 10-09-24
By: Marcia Bjornerud
-
Life on a Young Planet
- The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth
- By: Andrew H. Knoll
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites - such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of a nearly four-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young planet to the incredible Cambrian explosion, presenting a compelling new explanation for the emergence of biological novelty.
-
-
The Earliest Life
- By Arden on 02-16-20
By: Andrew H. Knoll
-
College Level Geology
- By: AudioLearn Content Team
- Narrated by: Kevin Charles
- Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Developed by experienced professors and professionally narrated for easy listening, this course is a great way to explore the subject of Geology. The audio is focused and high-yield, covering the most important topics you might expect to learn in a typical undergraduate course in Geology. The material is accurate, up-to-date, and broken down into bite-sized chapters. Following each chapter, there are key takeaways to drive home key points and quizzes that review commonly tested questions, ultimately concluding with a 200 question practice test.
-
-
A Fantastic Overview of Geology
- By Paige B. on 01-04-25
-
The Story of the Earth in 25 Rocks
- Tales of Important Geological Puzzles and the People Who Solved Them
- By: Donald R. Prothero
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Story of the Earth in 25 Rocks tells the fascinating stories behind the discoveries that shook the foundations of geology. In 25 chapters, Donald R. Prothero recounts the scientific detective work that shaped our understanding of geology, from the unearthing of exemplary specimens to tectonic shifts in how we view the inner workings of our planet.
-
-
More about scientists than science
- By Aunt Vee on 06-14-20
-
After the Dinosaurs
- The Age of Mammals (Life of the Past Series)
- By: Donald R. Prothero
- Narrated by: Will Tulin
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The fascinating group of animals called dinosaurs became extinct some 65 million years ago (except for their feathered descendants). In their place evolved an enormous variety of land creatures, especially mammals, which in their way were every bit as remarkable as their Mesozoic cousins. The Age of Mammals, the Cenozoic Era, has never had its Jurassic Park, but it was an amazing time in earth's history, populated by a wonderful assortment of bizarre animals. The rapid evolution of thousands of species of mammals brought forth many incredible creatures—including our own ancestors.
-
-
Mammals are immersed in minutia.
- By Bertha Watkins on 04-01-24
-
The Modern Scholar: Geology
- The Story of Earth
- By: Professor Kate Zeigler
- Narrated by: Professor Kate Zeigler
- Length: 4 hrs and 49 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Geology is often thought of as simply the study of rocks. In reality, geology is the study of our planet on all scales, from microscopic to planet-wide, and ranging in time from almost instantaneous events, like earthquakes, to the glacially slow motion of the tectonic plates. Everything we know about our world from a geologic perspective is based on information locked into the rock record and the job of a geologist is to tease out that story through a wide variety of observations. This insightful course explores a range of topics that help to tell the story of Earth and to explain the discipline of Geology and the role of the geologist.
-
-
interesting, informative and well presented.
- By Steven Mark on 01-09-16
-
Origins
- How Earth's History Shaped Human History
- By: Lewis Dartnell
- Narrated by: John Sackville
- Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When we talk about human history, we often focus on great leaders, population forces, and decisive wars. But how has the earth itself determined our destiny? Our planet wobbles, driving changes in climate that forced the transition from nomadism to farming. Mountainous terrain led to the development of democracy in Greece. Atmospheric circulation patterns later on shaped the progression of global exploration, colonization, and trade. Even today, voting behavior in the southeast United States ultimately follows the underlying pattern of 75 million-year-old sediments from an ancient sea.
-
-
GREAT Book with a Narrator Who's Falling Asleep
- By aaron on 08-02-20
By: Lewis Dartnell
-
A New History of Life
- By: Stuart Sutherland, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Stuart Sutherland
- Length: 17 hrs and 46 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The story of our world and the different living things that have populated it is an amazing epic with millions of species, exotic settings, planet-wide cataclysms, and surprising plot twists. These 36 lectures tell the all-embracing story of life on Earth - its origins, extinctions, and evolutions - in a manner that assumes no background in science. At half an hour per lecture, you’ll cover the entire 4.54-billion-year history of Earth in 18 hours, averaging 70,000 years per second!
-
-
Get the video version
- By B. Bartosh on 06-17-19
By: Stuart Sutherland, and others
-
Geology
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Jan Zalasiewicz
- Narrated by: Eric Martin
- Length: 4 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this Very Short Introduction audiobook, Jan Zalasiewicz gives a brief introduction to the fascinating field of geology. Describing how the science developed from its early beginnings, he looks at some of the key discoveries that have transformed it before delving into its various subfields, such as sedimentology, tectonics, and stratigraphy.
-
-
Geology and climate change
- By Dr. Pops on 03-15-23
By: Jan Zalasiewicz
-
The Rise and Reign of the Mammals
- A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us
- By: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We humans are the inheritors of a dynasty that has reigned over the planet for nearly 66 million years, through fiery cataclysm and ice ages: the mammals. Our lineage includes saber-toothed tigers, woolly mammoths, armadillos the size of a car, cave bears three times the weight of a grizzly, clever scurriers that outlasted Tyrannosaurus rex, and even other types of humans, like Neanderthals.
-
-
Fantastic Book
- By Peter Jensen on 09-08-22
By: Steve Brusatte
-
Principles of Geology
- By: Charles Lyell
- Narrated by: Daniel Natal
- Length: 31 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Principles of Geology [1830] is a groundbreaking classic of science. Mentioned in Charles Darwin's Origin of Species, glowingly, it captivated such contemporaries as Melville, Emerson, Tennyson, and George Eliot. It is now here for a new generation interested in Earth Science, climate and sustainability.
By: Charles Lyell
-
Earth
- An Intimate History
- By: Richard Fortey
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 18 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Beginning with Mt. Vesuvius, whose eruption in Roman times helped spark the science of geology, and ending in a lab in the West of England where mathematical models and lab experiments replace direct observation, Richard Fortey tells us what the present says about ancient geologic processes. He shows how plate tectonics came to rule the geophysical landscape and how the evidence is written in the hills and in the stones. And in the process, he takes us on a wonderful journey around the globe to visit some of the most fascinating and intriguing spots on the planet.
-
-
Random Geology Verbose History Jumbled Tours
- By Herbert S. on 12-10-21
By: Richard Fortey
-
Turning to Stone
- Discovering the Subtle Wisdom of Rocks
- By: Marcia Bjornerud
- Narrated by: Rebecca Stern
- Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Earth has been reinventing itself for more than four billion years, keeping a record of its experiments in the form of rocks. Yet most of us live our lives on the planet with no idea of its extraordinary history, unable to interpret the language of the rocks that surround us. Geologist Marcia Bjornerud believes that our lives can be enriched by understanding our heritage on this old and creative planet. Contrary to their reputation, rocks have eventful lives—and they intersect with our own in surprising ways.
-
-
Very unusual book by a profound writer
- By F Shaw on 09-17-24
By: Marcia Bjornerud
-
Extinctions
- How Life Survives, Adapts and Evolves
- By: Michael J. Benton
- Narrated by: Peter Noble
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cutting-edge techniques across biology, chemistry, physics, and geology have transformed our understanding of the deep past, including the discovery of a previously unknown mass extinction. This compelling evidence, revealing a series of environmental crises resulting in the near collapse of life on Earth, illuminates our current dilemmas in exquisite detail.
-
-
Gets better as you go
- By Texas Mama on 01-31-25
-
A New History of Life
- The Radical New Discoveries About the Origins and Evolution of Life on Earth
- By: Peter Ward, Joe Kirschvink
- Narrated by: William Elsman
- Length: 14 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Charles Darwin’s theories, first published more than 150 years ago, still set the paradigm of how we understand the evolution of life—but scientific advances of recent decades have radically altered that understanding. In fact the currently accepted history of life on Earth is flawed and out of date. Now two pioneering scientists, one already an award-winning popular author, deliver an eye-opening narrative that synthesizes a generation’s worth of insights from new research.
-
-
Paleoatmospheres reveal species success or failure
- By Katibird on 11-25-23
By: Peter Ward, and others
-
Food: A Cultural Culinary History
- By: Ken Albala, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Ken Albala
- Length: 18 hrs and 22 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Eating is an indispensable human activity. As a result, whether we realize it or not, the drive to obtain food has been a major catalyst across all of history, from prehistoric times to the present. Epicure Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin said it best: "Gastronomy governs the whole life of man."
-
-
One of my top 3 favorite courses!
- By Jessica on 12-28-13
By: Ken Albala, and others
-
Humans: A Brief History of How We F*cked It All Up
- By: Tom Phillips
- Narrated by: Nish Kumar
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Modern humans have come a long way in the 70,000 years they’ve walked the earth. Art, science, culture, trade - on the evolutionary food chain, we’re true winners. But it hasn’t always been smooth sailing, and sometimes - just occasionally - we’ve managed to truly f--k things up.
-
-
if you think white men are evil
- By Victor Fiore on 12-11-20
By: Tom Phillips
What listeners say about A Brief History of Earth
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sabrina Race
- 07-22-22
Save our Planet!
Very easy to listen to, and quite fascinating! I probably took more information in about our Earth from this, more so than I ever did sitting in a classroom, ha! Recommended listen for those who dig history and science, I loved it!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- isabella
- 02-02-25
Great!
Very compelling well organized story of our earth and its evolution. Thank you Dr Knoll for a delightful informative read
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mike Fisher
- 09-26-24
A very informative book
The author gave a very comprehendable short explanation of 4 + billion years of the Earth's history.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- William A. See III
- 08-15-22
Very interesting and great writing.
The content is intriguing and well written. The narration - not so much. The narrator accent was not pleasing and his voice overly sibilant. I know the producersssss of this audiobook have accesssss to sibilancssse filtersssss. The narrator's accent was a bit annoying especially talking about "syamples from the myantle reveal a dynyamic core."
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kico M
- 10-14-23
A good one
I’m not an expert in geology, but I like the subject and already learned a few about this. For this reason, this book suited me very well. It is a beginner book, but departures from a a point where it assumes you paid attention on your science classes.
The author is very didactical and the book chronology helps the understanding. Good one, I’d recommend it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 08-10-21
Fantastic book and production
I was looking for a concise yet thorough summary of the biological and geological history of Earth. I can't imagine a better fitting book for this purpose.
Fascinating, educational, and even inspirational with the section at the end about climate change. Not necessary to have a scientific background, but if you remember a bit of high school chemistry and biology the book has so much to offer.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
8 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- kyle copeland
- 05-26-24
Big picture stuff
Knoll put this history of earth together in 8 chapters, that stand alone, and together give a wonderfully complete story of the planet and how we got here
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 11-20-23
Fascinating and Easy to Read/Listen to
The book was written so that those of us without a strong science background would enjoy it and learn a lot. It provides an updated understanding of earth’s history based on discoveries and studies in recent decades. I found it fascinating and easy to read/listen to.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ben Y.
- 01-09-25
Causes & Affects of a Changing World
A chronicle of the mysteries of our planet that stretches over billions of years. A chronicle that provide the what’s, why’s, and when’s of how we got here and where we are going! A fascinating and enjoyable tale and testimony!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- rkeinc
- 09-06-21
A lot of Earth History Briefly
Well done and fascinating information. The author is clearly deeply educated about this subject. the most interesting part of his presentation is the "differing points of view" so many scientists have about how we got to this point in time.
But most scientists agree we could be in for a rocky ( no punk intended ) future in a very short time.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
8 people found this helpful