"[ An] elegant history." * New Yorker * "As the historian Caroline Winterer shows in her new book How the New World Became Old: The Deep Time Revolution in America, [ geology] can shape how an entire nation sees itself. . . . [ A] knotty, complex history of a previous intellectual transformation."---Jacob Mikanowski, Chronicle Review "A fascinating and extremely well written book that helps understand not only the facts but also the cultural roots and dimensions of the still fascinating mystery of deep time. . . . Winterers book is a jewel, an awesome, jargon free, often witty, perfectly documented and suggestively illustrated synthesis of what remains one of the most powerful enigmas to the human brain."---Jan Baetens, Leonardo "Fascinating. . . . How the New World Became Old intertwines science, politics, culture and ideas to reveal a history of intellectual nationalism that fleshes out and raises up the story of nineteenth-century America."---Michael Taylor, Times Literary Supplement "Powerful. . . . A richly detailed and indispensable exposition of how American geology found its place commensurate with the Old World and became a partner in a truly global science."---Markes E. Johnson, H-Net Reviews "Winterer not only skillfully weaves together the discourses that professionalized the disciplines of archaeology, anthropology, paleontology, and geology; she also demonstrates how these same developments were deployed to effect a reality that would benefit the United States economically, politically, culturally and spiritually. . . . [ A] major accomplishment."---Emmanuel Ramos-Barajas, Hemisphere "Recommended." * Choice * "[ How the New World Became Old] remind[ s] us that scientific truth isnt transcendent but, as historians of science have long argued, emerges from and reflects specific social circumstances."---Andrew Katzenstein, The Nation "[ Winterers] book is primarily concerned by the way these geologists read Gods handiwork into these unexpected discoveries. She captures this labor beautifully, pinpointing how faith in a God-centered natural order, unfolding over previously unfathomable units of time, deepened as biblical literalism eroded. . . . [ How the New World Became Old] is thought-provoking from start to finish."---Ryan Irwin, H-Diplo "Caroline Winterers sophistication as an intellectual historian shines throughout this book. . . . [ How the New World Became Old] will inspire and challenge historians of science and early Americanists alike. "---Cameron B. Strang, Journal of Southern History "In How the New World Became Old, Caroline Winterer tells the story of the discovery of American deep time as a story of intellectual nationalism and a rather halting advance of secularization."---Felix Lüttge, Berlin Review "How the New World Became Old . . . promotes a series of intellectually ambitious claims about the cultural and political contexts of 'the Deep Time Revolution in America.' . . . An invigorating and informative exploration into the history of American geology."---David Spanagel, Earth Sciences History
