On The Anthropocene Reviewed

It was in January this year that I came across the Anthropocene Reviewed podcast by the incomparable John Green, vlogbrother and author of books like The Fault in Our Stars and Turtles All the Way Down. The podcasts reviews different facets of Anthropocene ( a proposed geological age which starts from the impact of human beings on this planet). It covers a wide range of topics, from Halley’s comet, the hand-prints at Lascaux paintings, Rock-paper-scissors to Mortification and Plague, all reviewed in a 5-star scale.

In a smooth, slightly guarded voice, along with the history of it,John Green shares his experience with each subject too. The factual part leaves you in a strange amazement, making you focus and think about things which was earlier just there, which was a part of our lives. Such as the keyboard which I am typing on now — why it goes QWERTY rater than any other order.

It makes the listener more aware of things, and how with each act we do, we are in fact being a part of a vast human history. And when it is combined by his own experience it leaves you in a very strange place, listening to it feels like something deeply personal. It is a person sharing his thoughts, which leaves your thoughts meandering though the significance of things even in their perceived insignificance. Each of those 15–30 mins becomes a meditation on humanity itself.

And often, it leaves you with welled up eyes, such as the story of the Village of Eyam (Plague) and Auld Lang Syne. And some anecdotes makes you smile, due to its familiarity. But mostly, it grounds you to reality, the very present but still somehow manages to take you to places.

And maybe, that is exactly what our minds need right now, words of calmness delving into meanings which touches your heart, filling your thoughts with a sense of admiration to humanity and its creations and parallelly to its smallness.

The Anthropocene Reviewed has expanded into a book now. As one review of the book noted, “Green is a ravenous and tender polymath, and the tiny essays are like winding mountain passes that lead you through unexpected landscapes, both in subject and in emotion. His reviews create a collage of factoids and a window into one person’s longings, fears and loves.”

Really looking forward to reading it.

And Thank.You. to John Green.

For everything you and Hank initiated, Thank you, Thank You and Thank You.