Review by Choice Review
In this day and age, we hear and read much about how humans alter their surroundings and shape them to their wants and needs. Less is made of how our immediate environment, or the conditions in which we find ourselves, molds and modifies our physiological and psychosocial status. The Power of Place addresses the influence of such external factors. Gallagher, a journalist, writes in a style that will be understood by general audiences. However, she has also relied on the support of scientific investigation, rather than hearsay and speculation, so the book provides a good review for an academic audience as well. The first part, "Outside In," contains six chapters and describes the effects of physical location on human physiological and mental being. The second, "Inside Out," considers the individual as a place and the influence that such a concept has on emotional well-being and the choice of physical location. The third, "Synchrony," puts it all together: in describing human interactions, for good or ill, with fellow humans and with the planet on which all live. There is a list of from 6 to 12 suggested readings for each chapter. A readable, entertaining, and informative book for a wide range of readers. General; community college; undergraduate through faculty. L. A. Meserve; Bowling Green State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
There's nothing more fascinating than explanations for our often puzzling behavior, but physiological theories are particularly compelling. Gallagher presents an excellent synthesis of the current research about our interaction with our environment and the strong connection between physiological and psychological responses. Through a myriad of vivid examples, Gallagher describes how certain environmental factors, including light, temperature variance, noise, and electromagnetic fields, relate to moodiness, fatigue, creativity, allergies, and mother-infant bonds. Her broad and dynamic definition of place includes mountaintops and the womb, Alaska's hinterlands and city streets. A discussion of the ways people adapt to climatic extremes leads to an analysis of how urbanization has weakened our connection to the natural rhythms of dark and light and the cycle of the seasons. These fluctuations regulate the pineal gland, which, in turn, controls a number of key physical and emotional processes. Gallagher also summarizes some engrossing theories about the physical reality behind perceived phenomena such as a sense of sacredness in certain geographical locations or the experiences associated with UFO sightings. An entertaining and convincing look at the role of place in activities as miraculous as the development of sensory and cognitive abilities and as prosaic as struggling out of bed on a dark winter morning. ~--Donna Seaman
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In this intriguing but somewhat diffuse look at the impact of physical surroundings on individual behavior, freelance journalist Gallagher ranges from wintry Alaska to a neonatal intensive care unit to diverse neighborhoods in Manhattan. Drawing on interviews with scientists as well as her own observations, she shows that academia has promoted a ``false dichotomy'' between the influences of biology and of environment. For example, Eskimos may have genetically eliminated seasonal mood disorders from their gene pool. And to overcome grief or kick drug addictions, people require new stimuli and ``environmental deconditioning.'' Inner-city residents, having invested their neighborhoods with hope, often resist being moved from what others would consider a slum, the author notes. She also looks skeptically at such folk wisdom as the purported role of hot weather in fostering crime and romance. QPB alternate. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The concept of place has been given relatively short shrift since the overthrow of environmental determinism. In this open, thoroughgoing, effective study, however, freelance journalist Gallagher (The Atlantic, etc.) restores place to its proper niche in the big picture. Gallagher takes a long, hard look at how place--our physical setting--delights us, confounds us, affects our moods and alters our behavior, influences us from every angle. She has drunk deeply from current scientific literature and seeds her text with references to the pineal gland, the hypothalamus, and the limbic system. But she wears her erudition lightly, making the most obscure material natural, meaningful, and unthreatening. Gallagher is as comfortable discussing geomagnetic fields, extreme environments, and circadian rhythms as she is with psychobiological research, and her willingness to be influenced by a wide variety of sources and schools gives her work a richly textured quality. While the land itself comes in for intense scrutiny, the author doesn't stop at purple mountains majesty but explores a pleasingly broad sense of place. Place, she notes, is anywhere you are: in utero, on a Denali glacier, inside a sensory deprivation tank, or within the environment connecting mother and child. Gallagher also takes time to explore geophysical mysteries and marvels, from ghost lights to sacred spots, although the process of demystification--explaining a vision away as a geomagnetic disturbance, for instance--lacks a certain poetry. An intriguing examination of an elusive topic, with a depth and range that go beyond predictable terrain.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Review by Kirkus Book Review
