Crossing the Craton
From Annals of the Former World
- By: John McPhee
- Narrated by: Nelson Runger
- Length: 1 hours 47 minutes
Description
With his Pulitzer Prize-winning Annals of the Former World, John McPhee explores not only the richly varied surface of the United States, but the geological wonders hidden deep beneath our feet. In this final book of the series, he embarks on a fascinating journey across the basement of the continent-the land masses forming Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and thereabouts-with a professor and geochronologist acting as a guide. Whether Randy Van Schmus is out in the field with his students, or grinding rock in the university lab, he insists the flat plains of middle America are anything but dull. He tells the story of eons of violent upheaval that is written in the features lying far below the shimmering wheat fields. As he shares how scientists are unlocking the secrets of the earth's timetable, millions of years seem but brief moments. John McPhee's enthusiasm and peerless writing style make the study of geology both accessible and entertaining. Nelson Runger's thought-provoking performance ensures you will view the earth with fresh insight.
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From Annals of the Former World Series

Basin and Range
By: John McPhee
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
Length: 7 hours 7 minutes
Abridged: No
To geologists, rocks are beautiful, roadcuts are windowpanes, and the earth is alive-a work in progress. The cataclysmic movement that gives birth to mountains and oceans is ongoing and can still be seen at certain places on our planet. One of these is the Basin and Range region centered in Nevada and Utah. In this first book of a Pulitzer... Read more »
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In Suspect Terrain
By: John McPhee
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
Length: 6 hours 40 minutes
Abridged: No
John McPhee's Pulitzer Prize-winning Annals of the Former World takes readers on mind-expanding adventures in geology. In the first book, Basin and Range, McPhee traveled to Nevada with a proponent of plate techtonics. Now, an engaging sceptic working for the United States Geological Survey is his guide to some of eastern America's most... Read more »
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Rising from the Plains
By: John McPhee
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
Length: 7 hours 28 minutes
Abridged: No
Annals of the Former World is the result of a 20-year journey. During that time, John McPhee, author of 25 books and noted writer for The New Yorker, crisscrossed the United States, roughly following the 40th parallel. The geological insights and wonderful descriptions McPhee packed into his accounts of these trips earned his remarkable book a... Read more »
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Assembling California
By: John McPhee
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
Length: 9 hours 50 minutes
Abridged: No
Thirty years ago, the theory that continents are comprised of drifting plates-plate tectonics-evoked more scorn than serious research. Today, this revolutionary theory continues to dazzle and challenge geologists and laymen alike. Assembling California explores an area uniquely demonstrative of the plate tectonic theory: California, which... Read more »
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Crossing the Craton
By: John McPhee
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
Length: 1 hours 47 minutes
Abridged: No
With his Pulitzer Prize-winning Annals of the Former World, John McPhee explores not only the richly varied surface of the United States, but the geological wonders hidden deep beneath our feet. In this final book of the series, he embarks on a fascinating journey across the basement of the continent-the land masses forming Illinois, Iowa,... Read more »
Learn more