The World In A Grain: The Story of Sand and How It Transformed Civilization

First of all -- who even thought about sand??? What an unexpected and yet essential thing to dig into (sorry). Second, the book is not only fascinating - covering sand as used in concrete, glass, technology, beach reclamation, exploring the environmental, social, economic, political impacts of this under-appreciated resource -- it's also a surprisingly fun read. The writing is engaging and crisp, and fun little interstitial factoids (how many grains of sand ARE there?) provide a nice counter-point to the well-researched longer chapters. Sand mafias? Who knew?? It's full of insightful, well analyzed, and unexpected ways we depend on what turns out to be a limited resource. Read this book and you'll be the hit of every cocktail and dinner party. You'll also find yourself thinking more about how little things matter, and more deeply about how we live in the world. I sped through it -- reading it feels like talking to your favorite interesting friend who always has great stories to tell.

It is a very nice extensive book about sand, structure and use of this material, the related industries and the enviromental impact of how sand is used today. It is based on scientific research but the language of the book is very flowing which makes digesting all this information easier. I wish there was more on desert sands but still, the bibliography is very useful and the book is a good read.As an industrial designer, I was also happy to read about some history of industrial design such as the Owen Industries, highway constructions and Miami beach replenishing. It makes a reader curious to learn more about different topics.

Detaillreich und sehr interessant, was aus Sand alles gemacht wird und welche Qualitäten dafür notwendig sind. Schade, dass Wüstensand für vieles nicht genutzt werden kann.

Such a compelling read -- surprising for nonfiction -- and fascinating subject. Beiser makes for an engaging read on an un-explored topic.

I like popular science books and found this fascinating. What's odd is it's all around us and we don't think about it at all. What's slightly worrying is we're running out of the useful stuff.