An immersive and awe-inspiring exploration of the diversity of life on earth that reveals humans are far from the only intelligent species in our restless, ever-evolving world.
What does it mean to be alive, form a consciousness, possess a soul? If the Big Bang was an effect without a discernable cause, what is the significance of creating meaning, of moving through a seemingly arbitrary world with purpose and intelligence? Do we have free will? And if so, are we the only ones?
Life Is an Act of Rebellion sets out to answer these and more fascinating questions by observing a variety of life forms-from single cells to cats, slime molds to woodpeckers-and surveying a wide range of definitions of life across cultures. Part personal essay, part natural history, part philosophy, this grounded examination of our world guides readers through the vastness of life from its emergence on a cellular level to its expansions into the realms of perception, consciousness, and agency.
Along the way, Melanie Challenger draws on the knowledge of some of the world's leading specialists, rendering in-depth research in beautifully crafted prose that sparks wonder and curiosity. The result is the remarkable assertion that intelligence is both far more common and more extraordinary than we could have ever imagined. MELANIE CHALLENGER researches environmental philosophy and the history of humanity and the natural world. She is the author of How to Be Animal and On Extinction: How We Became Estranged from Nature. She received a Darwin Now Award for her research among Canadian Inuit and the Arts Council International Fellowship with the British Antarctic Survey for her work on the history of whaling. Challenger is the host of the Enter the Psychosphere podcast, where she dives into the world of the diverse intelligences that exist on the planet in conversations with guests like Peter Godfrey Smith and Daniel Dennett. She lives with her family in England.
