Adventures Among Ants by Mark W. Moffett

I'm currently writing while on a sugar low, so I apologize if this blog post is less exciting than I intend. I loved this book.

 Mark Moffett is great. His bug love and intelligence is equally matched by his amazing photo skills and great story telling. I will even forgive his use of split infinitives and constant changes between past and present tense. I can see why this book may be bore and intimidate a few people. It is rather long and..well..it's about ants, but once you get into it it's quite engaging. I was so interested in the marauder ant by the end of the first section, that I was a little disappointed when he moved on to talk about army ants...at first.

The more I read, the more I realized just how amazing ants are. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a good book. Did you know that weaver ants secure their tree-top nests by squeezing silk threads out of their own larvae and literally "weave" it back and forth? How bout that some ant species not only keep "cattle" like aphids, but some make slaves by raiding other colonies and raising foreign ant species as their own to do all the labor and pampering?

 Read the book. I don't care if insects gross you out. It's good stuff.

Rating - 4

Adventure Travel

Time for another travel book. This one is from the Fodor's organization, so you know it's gonna be reliable. Unlike my last travel book, Adventure Travel is a much more recent publication. The locations in it span the entire globe, and it is split into sections based on the type of activity a traveler is looking for.
One major focus in the book is ecologically responsible travel. Each excursion includes a list of green tips such as what kind of shampoo to use, how to deal with human waste, etc. It's obviously not the kind of book one would pick up just to read...besides me, but it's well laid out and includes some nice photography to motivate the adventurous souls.

Rating - 3

The Adventure of Archaeology

When I was little, I wanted to be an archaeologist. It's not the only aspiration I had. I also wanted to be a concert pianist and astronaut. But Indiana Jones inspired me, and for a while I wanted to follow in his footsteps..in a less scary way. Now the subject kind of bores me.

The Adventure of Archaeology by Brian M. Fagan is a huge book about the whole history of archaeology and where it stands today. Yes, there are plenty of photos to keep the reader entertained on the way. And I finally learned how the Parthenon was ruined and how Agatha Christie is connected to the world of archaeology.

I do wonder if archaeology is declining now that so much has already been discovered. Will it be like forensics and decline in popularity once all the available jobs have been taken? I know there are still plenty of dig sites in Israel and underwater archaeology is still going strong.

All in all, I had a hard time finishing the book because it just didn't hold my attention very well. Yes, I realize that archaeology is not all glamour and excitement like film would try to portray, but I was still disappointed.

Rating - 1