Is a River Alive?

De: Robert Macfarlane

Narrado por: Robert Macfarlane

From the bestselling author of Underland and "the great nature writer . . . of this generation" (Wall Street Journal), a revelatory book that transforms how we imagine rivers—and life itself.

Hailed in the New York Times as "a naturalist who can unfurl a sentence with the breathless ease of a master angler," Robert Macfarlane brings his glittering style to a profound work of travel writing, reportage, and natural history. Is a River Alive? is a joyful, mind-expanding exploration of an ancient, urgent idea: that rivers are living beings who should be recognized as such in imagination and law.

Macfarlane takes listeners on three unforgettable journeys teeming with extraordinary people, stories, and places: to the miraculous cloud-forests and mountain streams of Ecuador, to the wounded creeks and lagoons of India, and to the spectacular wild rivers of Canada―imperiled respectively by mining, pollution, and dams. Braiding these journeys is the life story of the fragile chalk stream a mile from Macfarlane's house, a stream who flows through his own years and days. Powered by dazzling prose and lit throughout by other minds and voices, Is a River Alive? will open hearts, challenge perspectives, and remind us that our fate flows with that of rivers―and always has.

©2025 Robert Macfarlane (P)2025 Penguin Audio

Wonderous in scope and imagination!

Macfarlane’s writing is absolutely superb. He weaves words and emotions into a lovely tapestry and his ability to grab and keep your attention is what separates this book from most others. I couldn’t recommend it more!

Beautiful

Loved the language and the narration. The search for an answer was a moving and immersive experience.

Visceral pain and beauty in teaching us.

Authenticity and true passion and knowledge of water & rivers history, geography, culture, climate awareness and significant naturalist, eco legal rights activists. This is a profoundly impactful message for all of us.

outstanding

I am a big fan of Robert McFarlane and this recording stands out among his works because of the cadence and feeling in the author's reading. MacFarlane reads beautifully and powerfully, and the stories and revelations herein describe modern humanity's reawakening to proper respect for our animated world with ferocious depth and clarity. Even for me - who answers the title's question with "D'uh, OF COURSE River is alive!" - I found new ways to feel into my animist faith, and new hope that more humans are also feeling and following powers older and wiser than greed or fear. May this book River everyone who needs it.

The beauty of his prose

The richness of his words enhanced the magic of nature’s majesty. From the macro to the micro his observations were awesome.

Animating and Hopeful Narrative

The author narrates his own account of travels to explore rivers around the world in various states: alive, dying, dead, and reviving, while asking the central question which is also the title of the book. In doing so, he encounters an incredible cast of characters with deep care for one another and the places they visit or call home. In exploring the rights of nature, the author invites the reader to contemplate a different reality in which humanity is not separate from the living planet we inhabit and what it might mean for the rivers, forests, and other living systems if we could bring that reality to fruition, noting where and how that has already happened. Not only is the writing superb, but the narration calls the listener in to experience the utter exuberance of these experiences. We done - flows as the river would intend!

Must listen!!!

Profoundly moving call to action to protect rivers and in turn, our Earth, our home. Eloquent writing often moved me to tears and merited a second listen.

Powerful Voice for Nature

A thoroughly engaging poetic voice for the rights of nature in a rapidly changing world. The author's personal stories and interactions with nature are thoroughly engaging and riveting in their vivid clarity and imagery. A new and powerful voice that is needed (among many others) trying to understand the role of humans in and with the natural world.

This book helps a reader understand the relationship between humans and the non-human world we inhabit.

One of the best Humanists

Your narration moved me. Your words rooted me. The balance of knowledge and whimsy is unmatched.

Every living thing on the Earth must needs read this book.

It’s not just about absorbing this information, which is not easily available, but it’s also about the story McFarlane tells that is so provocative.
He is a master story-teller of nonfiction stories. I listened to the audio book and I would recommend doing that you do that too because his voice tells the story too, maybe more than his words. And it’s a story we all need to hear and to then take action.