Anthill A Novel [Paperback]

[Wilson smuggles] gems of empirical knowledge across the literary border to create fiction with unusually rewarding heft.Part epic-inspired adventure story, part philosophy-of-life, part many-layered mid-century Alabama viewed in finely observed detail, part ant life up close, part lyrical hymn to the wonders of earth&yes, all of these.One part ofWilsons foray into fiction allows him to write more expressively, psychologically, even spiritually about the great web of life, humankind included, and the irrefutable rules for ecological survival&A teacher as well as a scientist, Wilson uses the prism of fiction to cast new light on the grand unifying lesson of nature: all of us earthlings, all of lifes astonishing creations, thrive or fail together.The astute, knowledgeable, amazing structure of[A] beautifully written coming-of-age novel about a young boy in Alabama. The highly respected author and entomologist may be sneaking some science down the throats of self-respecting fiction readers everywhere with the tale of a boy-turned-environmental lawyer who tries to save wildlife, but we hardly mind.Lush with organic details, Wilsons keen eye for the natural world and his acumen for environmental science is on brilliant display in this multifaceted story about human life and its connection to nature.The savage conflicts between the Trailhead and Waterside colonies are as dramatic as any epic of Herodotus or Thucydides, histories Wilson evokes in his characterization of the tiny warriors as myrmidons and hoplites.A triumphant epic of life by the worlds greatest naturalist. This isIts slightly mysterious how E. O. Wilson manages to combine so many different talents in one personfrom close observation to grand theorizing to deep compassion to well-paced, lively writing. (If he were actually an ant, hed be the warrior and the drone and the queen and everyone else too.) This novel will remind people of all his gifts and introduce them to some new ones!TlC!