Dr. Anjana Khatwa at the Cambridge Public Library

Harvard Book Store, the Harvard University Division of Science, the Harvard Library, and the Cambridge Public Library welcome Dr. Anjana Khatwa—award-winning earth scientist, TV presenter, and advocate for diversity in the geosciences and nature—for a discussion of her book The Whispers of Rock: The Stories That Stone Tells About Our World and Our Lives, a 2025 New Scientist Best Book of the Year.

RSVP for free to this event or choose the "Book-Included" ticket to reserve a copy of The Whispers of Rock and pick it up at the event. Following the presentation will be a book signing.

Note: Books bundled with tickets may only be picked up at the venue the night of the event, and cannot be picked up in-store beforehand. Ticket holders who purchased a book-included ticket and are unable to attend the event will be able to pick up their book at Harvard Book Store up to 30 days following the event. This offer expires after 30 days. Please note we cannot guarantee signed copies will be available to ticket holders who do not attend the event.

A geologist’s revelatory account of how our planet’s seemingly inert bones pulse with unexpected vitality.
If you listen, can you hear the stones speak? The question seems absurd. After all, rocks are lifeless, inert, and silent.
In The Whispers of Rock, earth scientist Anjana Khatwa asks us to think again and listen to their stories. Boldly alternating between modern science and ancient wisdom, Khatwa takes us on an exhilarating journey through deep time, from origins of the green pounamu that courses down New Zealand rivers to the wonder of the bluestone megaliths of Stonehenge, from the tuff-hewn churches of Lalibela, Ethiopia, to Manhattan’s bedrock of schist. In unearthing those stories and more, Khatwa shows how rocks have always spoken to us, and we humans to them. She delicately intertwines Indigenous stories of Earth’s creation with our scientific understanding of its development, deftly showing how our lives are intimately connected to time’s ancient storytellers.
Through tales of planetary change, ancient wisdom, and contemporary creativity, The Whispers of Rock offers the hope of reconnection with Earth. With Khatwa as your guide, you won’t simply hear rocks speak--you, too, will feel the magic of deep time seep into your bones.

Dr. Anjana Khatwa is an award-winning earth scientist, TV presenter, and advocate for diversity in the geosciences and nature. She holds a PhD from the University of Southampton, and she won the Geographical Award from the Royal Geographical Society. She is a presenter for the BBC and other networks. She lives by the Jurassic Coast in Dorset, UK.

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