Nancy Lord writes from her home base in Homer, Alaska. Her work is informed by a deep connection to the landscape and culture of the place she calls home. As a commercial salmon fisherman for twenty-five years (now retired) and later as a naturalist and historian on adventure cruise ships, she takes a particular interest in coastal Alaska and the sustainability of its resources and communities. She served as the Alaska Writer Laureate from 2008-10 and is the author of nine books of nonfiction, short fiction, and memoir. pH is her first novel.
"Anyone interested in or concerned about climate change knows that
in many ways, Alaska is ground zero in the United States. . . The
title 'pH' refers to the focus of the science at the heart of Nancy
Lord's novel: the rapid changes in pH in our waters indicating an
increase in ocean acidification.
In case you're one of those readers, like me, whose eyes often
glaze over when there's too much science in a book, be assured that
Lord's prose is always accessible. The science is skillfully
interwoven with a compelling plot and a cast of well-wrought
characters. Complex scientific ideas are cleverly reworked into
clear dialogue between a scientist and a 'lay person'--often in
conversations between the graduate students and other characters.
Lord never 'dumbs things down' but instead puts complex ideas in
plain language, all within a compelling story.
Moments of brilliantly etched natural beauty bring the reader into
the powerful spaces and places that make up Alaska and our troubled
oceans. . . It is this ability of Lord's to draw us into both the
science and the sheer joy of witnessing the natural beauty of the
ocean that makes this novel such a powerful read.
For those concerned that pH might be far too depressing with its
dire warnings about climate change, or those perhaps not
particularly interested in the cutthroat world of academic and
scientific research funding, there is much joy to be found here,
too. . . Lord gives us all hope: hope in the future and hope in our
children to do a better job as caretakers of our world and our
oceans than we have done.
Let us all hope that our children will get to write the next
chapter in a world that still includes the tiny pteropods."
--Yvonne C. Garrett, The Brooklyn Rail
"Sometimes it takes fiction, more than facts, to hear the hard
truth. In Nancy Lord's pH, a cli-fi (climate fiction) novel about
climate change and its evil cousin, ocean acidification, we met
likeable and quirky characters dedicated to science and art while
trapped in a system seduced by money. I learned a lot from this
daring novel. And I laughed. Not a bad way to spend one's time:
buried in creativity, learning and laughing." --Kim Heacox, author
of Jimmy Bluefeather and John Muir and the Ice That Started a
Fire
"The lives of a group of scientists--and one artist--are altered by
an oceanography research trip in Nancy Lord's insightful novel, pH.
Stubborn minds begin to appreciate the beauty that lies outside
their comfort zones, and those who find their patience tested learn
to balance logic with creativity. Whether approached with or
without a science background, pH offers wisdom on how we learn and
grow as people.
Upon returning from a weeks-long marine expedition, Ray Berringer,
his grad-student team, and environmental artist Annabel begin the
process of analyzing and interpreting their findings.
Ray, who researches pteropods (sea snails), resents his co-leader,
Jackson Oakley, for his success in presenting his climate change
discoveries; meanwhile, chemistry student Helen sees Oakley, her
secret lover, distancing himself as his fame grows. Ray's flaws
work against him to amp up both the suspense of the story and the
realism of its progression.
When Helen and Ray stumble upon evidence that the elusive chemistry
professor has betrayed his work, the team (including Annabel)
unites in the name of loyalty to science, working against a hidden
trend of academic corruption that extends beyond just Oakley.
The multilayered plot and myriad characters converge on the
important themes of integrity and collaboration. Lord's dynamic
language does it all. From fishermen-crowded bars to Helen's Inuit
heritage, she brings alive the Alaskan setting within each
character's arc of emotional development. Her writing reveals
thorough research and literary skill.
Both art and science require 'creative minds, speculation and
hypothesizing, experimenting, sometimes tedious detail work, a
willingness to fail and try again, ' Annabel discerns. The
characters in this novel exhibit all of these traits, making pH a
wonderful success." --Foreword Reviews / AIMEE JODOIN
(September/October 2017)
"Very few novelists remember that we live on an ocean planet, and
none, as far as I know, have tracked the emerging science of ocean
acidification, a threat of almost unparalleled dimension. That
Nancy Lord does all that and still provides a superb story is
testament to her great powers as a writer!" --Bill McKibben, author
Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet
"Widely respected and beloved Alaskan essayist Nancy Lord has
written a dazzling novel, filled with wry, sly humor, wondrous
science, and intriguing characters -- all driven by some of the
most significant questions of our time. How can scientists defend
the truth in a university corrupted by petrochemical profiteers?
How can the lovely, life-sustaining creatures of the seas survive
the corporate plunder of the planet? And this -- how can a book
this important be such a joy to read?" -- Kathleen Dean Moore,
author of Great Tide Rising and Piano Tide
Praise for Beluga Days: "With skillful writing and respect for all
her subjects, Lord presents some of the agonizing scientific and
cultural dilemmas of saving these animals." --Publishers Weekly
Praise for Early Warming: "Lord summons facts, art, literature,
philosophy, science, legend, memory, hearsay and pure emotional and
aesthetic response in the service of a deeper idea of Alaska. . . .
[A] wholly worthwhile journey." --Newsday
Praise for Early Warming: "Though [Lord] deftly weaves pertinent
scientific and political information throughout, her account's
power stems from her on-site observations, lyrical descriptions of
the land and sea, and sensitive interviews of local officials and
natives whose insight and experience humanize an otherwise vast and
arcane subject . . . An eloquent and important dispatch." --Kirkus
Reviews
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