The Sound Atlas - by Michaela Vieser & Isaac Yuen (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Mapping the acoustic onto the human soul, moving meditations on the power and meaning of sound.

Nature writers Michaela Vieser and Isaac Yuen set out in search of sounds beautiful and loathsome, melodious and disturbing, healing, strange, and intimate. The phenomena of sound may be fleeting and evanescent, but the memory of it can open a window into the soul, deepening our connections with time, the environment, and each other. From the edge of the solar system to the crackle of arctic sea ice, from the ancient oracle site of Dodona to the singing pillars of Hampi, each of these thirty-six essays explores stories of sound through the lens of history, science, and culture, stylishly blending fantastical facts and unique anecdotes to create a compelling narrative.

Review Quotes

"The Sound Atlas is an open invitation to see the world in a new way, by listening to it. Vieser and Yuen invite you to imagine a new map of the world that cannot be seen. This book entertains a delightful contradiction: that it might be best read with eyes closed and only ears open. It contains sonic images of real and remarkable places, imagined spaces and moments in past, present and future time, as well as richly colored evocations of natural phenomena and acoustic artiacts, unheard places of transience and memory and man-made worlds, built from some forgotten, ephemeral auditive substance. All you need to do once you've read this book is close your eyes so that you can hear it all, and experience the sensory world anew."--Tim Hinman, soundmaker and podcaster

"This globe- and cosmos-spanning immersion in sonic oddities, sacred musics, slender silences, and singing stones inspires appreciation for the resonance of places, creaturely language, and what exists beyond earshot at frequencies not often considered. Vieser and Yuen are excellent aural tour guides on this journey, linking together different geographies and historical moments in unexpected and thoughtful ways. Their words vibrate, reminding us not only of the ways our bodies respond to sound but of how we might be more responsive and responsible for human contributions to a wild planetary soundscape."--Gavin Van Horn, author of "The Way of Coyote" and coeditor of the anthologies Kinship and Elementals

"I've always thought that music has nurtured me more than literature or art, but I never realized that there was such a rich soundscape outside of music! This book taught me that to 'see' sound is to touch life."--Kyoichi Tsuzuki, photographer and journalist

"The world is full of noises, and The Sound Atlas is a fascinating and resonant guide to many of its most extraordinary and beautiful ones."--Caspar Henderson, author of "A Book of Noises: Notes on the Auraculous"

About the Author

Michaela Vieser is a writer based in Berlin. Her books include the German bestseller Tee mit Buddha. Isaac Yuen is a Hong Kong-Canadian writer. His books include Utter, Earth: Advice on Living in a More-than-Human World.