School has a funny way of stamping out our love for learning. There’s the endless lecturing, the mindless busywork, and the fact that we rarely stray from a rather dull, vanilla curriculum.
But the truth is, there’s a wealth of fascinating science and history that lies just off the beaten path. So if you’re ready to reignite your love for learning, start by checking out the five remarkable books below.
How to Speak Whale: A Voyage into the Future of Animal Communication
By Tom Mustill
What if animals and humans could speak to one another? A nature documentarian—who went viral when a thirty-ton humpback whale breached onto his kayak—asks this question in his thrilling investigation into whale science and animal communication. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Tom Mustill, in the Next Big Idea App
Stories, Dice, and Rocks That Think: How Humans Learned to See the Future—and Shape It
By Byron Reese
A fresh new look at the history and destiny of humanity, readers will come away from Stories, Dice, and Rocks That Think with a new understanding of what they are—not just another animal, but a creature with a mastery of time itself. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Byron Reese, in the Next Big Idea App
Sinkable: Obsession, the Deep Sea, and the Shipwreck of the Titanic
By Daniel Stone
An acclaimed science journalist spins a fascinating tale of history, science, and obsession, uncovering the untold story of the Titanic not as a ship but as a shipwreck. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Daniel Stone, in the Next Big Idea App
Taxi from Another Planet: Conversations with Drivers About Life in the Universe
By Charles S. Cockell
Insightful, good-humored essays on the possibilities of alien life and the uses of space exploration, based on an astrobiologist’s everyday conversations with his fellow humans―taxi drivers, to be precise. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Charles S. Cockell, in the Next Big Idea App
Dancing Cockatoos and the Dead Man Test: How Behavior Evolves and Why It Matters
By Marlene Zuk
Filled with delightful anecdotes and fresh insights, Dancing Cockatoos and the Dead Man Test helps us see both other animals and ourselves more clearly, demonstrating that animal behavior can be remarkably similar to human behavior, and wonderfully complicated in its own right. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Marlene Zuk, in the Next Big Idea App
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