1 00:00:07,133 --> 00:00:10,453 Speaker 1: You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Teams podcast 2 00:00:10,613 --> 00:00:11,453 Speaker 1: from News Talks. 3 00:00:11,453 --> 00:00:14,213 Speaker 2: That'd be okay When I say this, it's going to 4 00:00:14,253 --> 00:00:17,813 Speaker 2: sound boring, right. It is the story of Wind, the 5 00:00:17,853 --> 00:00:22,893 Speaker 2: story of the remarkable role that wind plays in our life. 6 00:00:22,933 --> 00:00:24,373 Speaker 2: If I give you the title of the book, it 7 00:00:24,373 --> 00:00:28,213 Speaker 2: sounds a bit more dramatic, The Breath of God's by 8 00:00:28,293 --> 00:00:31,173 Speaker 2: Simon Winchester. But Catherine Rains, our book reviewer, has read 9 00:00:31,173 --> 00:00:35,613 Speaker 2: it and reckons it is pretty damn interesting. Good morning, Catherine. 10 00:00:36,133 --> 00:00:39,053 Speaker 3: I do. You're quite right, And yes, but it wasn't 11 00:00:39,333 --> 00:00:41,213 Speaker 3: a topic that I thought that I would pick up 12 00:00:41,213 --> 00:00:44,093 Speaker 3: a book and read about. But I very much enjoy 13 00:00:44,173 --> 00:00:46,453 Speaker 3: Simon Winchester's writing and that was why I picked it up. 14 00:00:46,973 --> 00:00:49,733 Speaker 3: And in this he explains how wind plays a part 15 00:00:49,733 --> 00:00:52,573 Speaker 3: in our everyday lives, from airplane and car travel to 16 00:00:52,773 --> 00:00:57,253 Speaker 3: natural disasters that seem to be becoming more frequent and regular. 17 00:00:57,493 --> 00:00:59,693 Speaker 3: And you know, he sort of says Wind as this 18 00:00:59,973 --> 00:01:02,933 Speaker 3: force of course, and it doesn't respect any national borders 19 00:01:03,053 --> 00:01:06,053 Speaker 3: or any vessel or structure in its path and winches 20 00:01:06,093 --> 00:01:08,493 Speaker 3: to read and the story takes you on this journey 21 00:01:08,533 --> 00:01:11,413 Speaker 3: around the world, and he stops in places and he 22 00:01:11,453 --> 00:01:15,173 Speaker 3: talks about, you know, wind driven tumuil weed, and how 23 00:01:16,333 --> 00:01:20,973 Speaker 3: maately clever ancient mariners were, and the technology behind wind 24 00:01:21,053 --> 00:01:24,973 Speaker 3: turbines and the firestorms that are generated, and then what 25 00:01:25,053 --> 00:01:28,013 Speaker 3: happened during the Allied bombings of places like Tokyo and Dresden. 26 00:01:28,573 --> 00:01:31,493 Speaker 3: And he also considers when he stops along the way, 27 00:01:31,693 --> 00:01:35,533 Speaker 3: how different things might have been had wind blown different directions. So, 28 00:01:35,653 --> 00:01:39,173 Speaker 3: for example, during the Chernobyl disaster, it was a prevailing 29 00:01:39,173 --> 00:01:43,133 Speaker 3: southeasterly wind and its effects were immediately detectable in Scandinavia, 30 00:01:43,533 --> 00:01:45,493 Speaker 3: But if it was during the spring and the westerlies 31 00:01:45,493 --> 00:01:48,493 Speaker 3: were there it would have spread over Soviet territory instead, 32 00:01:48,973 --> 00:01:52,293 Speaker 3: and potentially might have been concealed from the world. And 33 00:01:52,333 --> 00:01:55,293 Speaker 3: when Chester starts in the beginning is kind of defining 34 00:01:55,613 --> 00:01:58,213 Speaker 3: wind in its consequences. And he also talks about this 35 00:01:58,253 --> 00:02:01,813 Speaker 3: really interesting event during the nineteen seventies through to the 36 00:02:01,853 --> 00:02:06,613 Speaker 3: twenty tenish time, about the global stilling to rest. Jill 37 00:02:06,653 --> 00:02:09,973 Speaker 3: Stilling and meteorologists and others could not work out why 38 00:02:10,373 --> 00:02:12,933 Speaker 3: the average speeds of the winds planet's dropped more than 39 00:02:12,973 --> 00:02:15,933 Speaker 3: two percent during these decades, and he offers a really 40 00:02:16,333 --> 00:02:18,973 Speaker 3: reasoned and compelling way of why they occurred and the 41 00:02:19,093 --> 00:02:22,453 Speaker 3: causes and the connections to climate change. And you know 42 00:02:22,493 --> 00:02:24,653 Speaker 3: what sounds like, as we talked about in the beginning, 43 00:02:24,653 --> 00:02:27,173 Speaker 3: a really strange subject to write a book on. It's 44 00:02:27,533 --> 00:02:30,533 Speaker 3: really fascinating. And he mixes in these personal stories and 45 00:02:30,613 --> 00:02:33,733 Speaker 3: interesting people and places, and he writes in such an 46 00:02:33,773 --> 00:02:37,213 Speaker 3: engaging style. I can guarantee you will be hooked and 47 00:02:37,253 --> 00:02:39,413 Speaker 3: you will find yourself reading this book because he just 48 00:02:39,573 --> 00:02:41,373 Speaker 3: he tells it in such an interesting way. 49 00:02:41,453 --> 00:02:44,573 Speaker 2: It does. You've sold me. You've sold me, and I'm glad. 50 00:02:44,613 --> 00:02:46,133 Speaker 2: I'm glad that you have because I'm sure there'll be 51 00:02:46,173 --> 00:02:48,413 Speaker 2: some people who say, oh wow, really a story about wind, 52 00:02:48,453 --> 00:02:50,533 Speaker 2: But no, it does sound amazing. Okay. So that's The 53 00:02:50,573 --> 00:02:54,493 Speaker 2: Breath of God by Simon Winchester. Next up The Detective 54 00:02:54,573 --> 00:02:55,613 Speaker 2: by Matthew Riley. 55 00:02:56,413 --> 00:03:00,893 Speaker 3: So for something completely different. This is a contemporary crime 56 00:03:00,933 --> 00:03:03,733 Speaker 3: novel and it's set in the deep South of the US. 57 00:03:04,213 --> 00:03:06,213 Speaker 3: And you meet this This guy is not your sort 58 00:03:06,213 --> 00:03:08,693 Speaker 3: of typical hero. Is a guy called Sam Speedman, and 59 00:03:08,733 --> 00:03:11,853 Speaker 3: he's a private detective. But he was also autistic. But 60 00:03:11,893 --> 00:03:15,973 Speaker 3: he uses those unique attributes to his complete advantage. His 61 00:03:16,093 --> 00:03:19,933 Speaker 3: obsessive behaviors, the deep concentration, the problem solving, and the 62 00:03:20,133 --> 00:03:23,413 Speaker 3: immense patience he has to crack cases. And when we 63 00:03:23,453 --> 00:03:25,813 Speaker 3: meet Sam, he's he's focused on one of these old 64 00:03:25,893 --> 00:03:28,213 Speaker 3: unsolved cases. And it comes to like in this quite 65 00:03:28,293 --> 00:03:30,933 Speaker 3: gruesome manner, and for one hundred and fifty years, women 66 00:03:30,933 --> 00:03:34,293 Speaker 3: have been disappearing, and all of the investigators who when 67 00:03:34,333 --> 00:03:36,893 Speaker 3: in search of them from eighteen seventy seven to now 68 00:03:37,253 --> 00:03:40,893 Speaker 3: have also disappeared. And Sam just starts to uncover one 69 00:03:41,013 --> 00:03:44,013 Speaker 3: dark it's secret after another, and each kind of more 70 00:03:44,053 --> 00:03:46,333 Speaker 3: harrowing than the last. And you find yourself in the 71 00:03:46,333 --> 00:03:49,053 Speaker 3: plains of Texas and in the middle of Louisiana and 72 00:03:49,053 --> 00:03:52,413 Speaker 3: in Florida and back again, and you're these unspeakable crimes 73 00:03:52,493 --> 00:03:55,573 Speaker 3: and some of the worst people imaginable, and it gets 74 00:03:55,733 --> 00:03:59,573 Speaker 3: deep into that those worst bits of southern politics. And 75 00:03:59,653 --> 00:04:03,213 Speaker 3: Sam's character is really unconventional, as I said, and it 76 00:04:03,453 --> 00:04:06,213 Speaker 3: just in it, but it's told in his perspective, which 77 00:04:06,813 --> 00:04:09,613 Speaker 3: helps you understand of his character and the perception of 78 00:04:10,173 --> 00:04:12,493 Speaker 3: what he's thinking, because he's directly speaking to you. And 79 00:04:12,533 --> 00:04:15,013 Speaker 3: then add in that airiness of the swamp country and 80 00:04:15,053 --> 00:04:17,533 Speaker 3: the world of the rich and famous and there's this 81 00:04:17,653 --> 00:04:21,333 Speaker 3: conspiracy involving politicians and judges and police and the megal 82 00:04:21,333 --> 00:04:23,253 Speaker 3: wealthy at the center of the book, and it seems 83 00:04:23,333 --> 00:04:26,573 Speaker 3: really outlandish when you're kind of first reading it. You know, 84 00:04:26,733 --> 00:04:29,453 Speaker 3: recent events kind of give things a little bit more credibility, 85 00:04:29,533 --> 00:04:32,333 Speaker 3: and he pulls in references to actual events and real 86 00:04:32,373 --> 00:04:35,933 Speaker 3: press conferences. So every now and again you find yourself thinking, oh, yeah, okay, 87 00:04:36,293 --> 00:04:39,853 Speaker 3: but it's a really page turning read, and the social 88 00:04:39,893 --> 00:04:43,933 Speaker 3: commentary about the US is really really interesting from Matthew 89 00:04:43,973 --> 00:04:44,733 Speaker 3: Riley's perspective. 90 00:04:44,853 --> 00:04:47,933 Speaker 2: Yeah, nice, okay, great. So that is The Detective by 91 00:04:47,973 --> 00:04:51,213 Speaker 2: Matthew Riley. The Breath of Gods by Simon Winchester is 92 00:04:51,253 --> 00:04:53,813 Speaker 2: Catherine's first book. All of the details for both of 93 00:04:53,853 --> 00:04:57,093 Speaker 2: those will be on the news Talks he'db website. 94 00:04:56,933 --> 00:05:00,053 Speaker 1: For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame. Listen live 95 00:05:00,133 --> 00:05:02,973 Speaker 1: to news Talks that'd be from nine am Saturday, or 96 00:05:03,013 --> 00:05:04,933 Speaker 1: follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.