Second-hand book "Fish Does Not Exist" [80% new]

Introduction · · · · · ·
≈ About Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life≈

“After giving up fish, I saw the world for what it is, a place of endless possibilities.”

“All categories are false.”

★ National Public Radio Book of the Year 2020

★ The Washington Post's 2020 Best Nonfiction Book

★ Chicago Tribune Book of the Year 2020

★ Smithsonian Institution's Top Ten Science Books of 2020

★ Stanford University recommends reading for freshmen of 2022

【Content Introduction】

David Starr Jordan was a founding president of Stanford University and a taxonomist, a man obsessed with bringing order to the natural world—he discovered nearly one-fifth of the fish known to man at the time. But the more hidden blueprints of life he uncovered, the more the universe seemed to want to stop him. His collection was destroyed by lightning, fire, and finally the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, which sent nearly a thousand fragile glass jars of fish specimens crashing to the ground. In an instant, his lifelong collection was destroyed.

Others might have given up, succumbed to despair. But Jordan examined the wreckage at his feet, found the first fish he identified, and began to confidently rebuild his collection—sewed to the fish with a sewing needle. When the world fell into chaos, he used a needle to restore order.

When journalist Lulu Miller first heard this anecdote, she took it as a cautionary tale of hubris or refusal to accept reality. But as her own life slowly unravels, she begins to wonder about David. Her excavation of his life will change her understanding of history, morality, and the world beneath her feet.

A fascinating blend of biography, memoir, and scientific adventure, Fish Don’t Exist is also a heartwarming parable about how to persevere in a world where chaos always prevails.

【Media Recommendation】

Miller dives deep into the ocean and enters a school of fish…and when she surfaces, she realizes she’s in love. That’s how it felt to me: Her book took me to strange depths I never imagined, and I was hooked. —The New York Times Book Review

This unique book is a masterful celebration of biological diversity and the mysterious order behind all existence. A book that creates wonders. - Kirkus Reviews

This book is perfect. It is poetic and erudite, personal and political, small and large, eccentric and profound. —Mary Roach

I want to live where this book is: at the intersection of history and biology, miracles and failures, and sheer human stubbornness. What a gorgeous, surprising, dark delight. —Carmen Maria Machado

Fascinating, surprising, even shocking! Fish Don't Exist begins with a fascinating profile of brilliant biologist David Starr Jordan. And then, quite unexpectedly, unfolds so richly. This is a story of science and struggle, heartbreak and chaos, told in the intimate and quirky voice of Lulu Miller. This book will capture your heart, grab your imagination, shatter your preconceptions, and rock your world. --Cy Montgomery

Fish Don't Exist is a story about love lost and found, a book about how faith keeps us going, and how faith can become harmful. --Leslie Jamison

Lulu Miller may have cracked the secret of life. —Jon Moalem

A great escape...and a lesson on how to survive a storm. -Outdoors Magazine

【Editor's recommendation】

▴ A story about heartbreak and confusion: Starting from the chaos and loss of meaning in one's life, this book explores the tough life of David Starr Jordan, the founding president of Stanford University. This bizarre and tortuous journey inspired the author to finally find the meaning and sweetness of life.

▴ Poetic and erudite, personal and political, small and grand: multiple threads are cleverly interwoven, describing the life of scientist David Starr Jordan as well as describing his own life; exploring scientific knowledge and ethics, as well as the search for the meaning of life and human values;

▴The 13 precious prints in the text are unique prints created by the artist using sewing needles to echo David's use of sewing needles to resist the chaotic forces in his life;