This book reads like a murder mystery, with the victim being 95% of all marine life and 70% of terrestrial vertebrates species. This crime, the Permian Extinction, occurred over 250 million years ago but still has not been solved. The author Douglas Erwin, a paleobiologist who has been working on the extinction for the past few decades, identifies identifies possible culprits and the known evidence, but ultimately comes to no conclusion. This makes the book both exciting and fresh (even three years after its initial publication).
Erwin names six possible culprits to the extinction:
1) a meteor/comet impact, similar to the one that killed the dinosaurs;
2) climatic changes from massive volcanic flood basalts in Siberia;
3) invasion of invasive species following the creation of the supercontinent Pangea;
4) glaciations causing global cooling and a fall in sea level;
5) disappearance of oxygen from the oceans (anoxia); and
6) a combination of the above.
Because the extinction happened so quickly (estimated less than 160,000 years), he suggests that explanation 3, 4, and 6 are less likely. He also isn't convinced by the evidence of a large meteor impact (1) around this time. Furthermore, explanation 5 does not account for the extinctions on land. Thus, the book tentatively concludes that the volcanic flood basalts seem to have played the largest role in the extinction, perhaps by causing runaway global warming.
This is a science book, not a book about the scientists. Too many popular books about paleontology, especially those written by journalists, seem to focus on the scientists themselves rather than the actual science. Fortunately, Erwin goes deep into the scientific evidence and presents detailed arguments for each explanation.
Perhaps more important than the hard scientific evidence (which may well become outdated by the time you read the book, if it hasn't already), Erwin does a magnificent job showing the process and reasoning that goes into collecting and interpreting the evidence. Rather than state his interpretation of the evidence, Erwin takes the reader through the existing evidence and the questions or concerns he has with it. Most of the book consists of his summary of paleobiologists' toolkit and the research on the Permian extinction. He only brings the evidence together to discuss the potential culprits in the last few chapters. However, by writing the book this way, the reader is able to assess the evidence for himself.
Erwin's style also encourages readers to keep a healthy sense of doubt, especially since more than once he admits his past positions on the extinction were probably wrong. In fact, he does suggest that more evidence regarding a meteor impact has recently emerged and may contradict his "preferred" theory.
Overall this is a very interesting book, but is a long read, especially for those readers who - like me - have no formal training in paleontology or geology. However, the books provides a great science education for those willing to put in the time.
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Top reviews from other countries
Cristiano
Thorough, rigorous and captivating.
Reviewed in Italy on January 16, 2016
Nick Candoros
Interesting but heavily technical and not very well structured
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 19, 2006