Earth in Upheaval [Paperback]

Immanuel velikovsky (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 1978

In this epochal book, Immanuel Velikovsky, one of the great scientists of modern times, puts the complete histories of our Earth and of humanity on a new basis. He presents the results of his 10-year-long interdisciplinary research in an easily understandable, even entertaining manner. Inspite - or even because - of the disgraceful hostility, provoked by his theories, this book keeps being of ardent topicality, which in the light of recent scientific research is even growing. Earth in Upheaval - a very exactly investigated and easily understandable book - contains material that completely revolutionizes our view of the history of the earth. For all those who have ever wondered about the evolution of the earth, the formation of mountains and oceans, the origin of coal or fossils, the question of the ice ages and the history of animal and plant species, Earth in Upheaval is a MUST-READ!

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Excellent! Fascinating Reading! --Library Journal --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

When a book is republished after half a century at first you certainly think of antiquarian, maybe literary, or perhaps historical interest. With the books of Immanuel Velikovsky it is a different case. Their topicality and explosiveness has rather increased since their first publication - in disciplines diverse as geology, anthropology, archaeology, paleontology, astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology, classical studies, Egyptology, theology, psychology and also in theory of science. Because in all these disciplines the first publication of his books provoked controversies unprecedented in the history of science since Galileo. At the same time recent findings mainly in earth and planetary sciences have confirmed his results and conclusions in a really impressive manner.

There are only a few books which - like the present one - preserve their topicality even after half a century without any changes in its text. We consider it all the more important to let the works of Immanuel Velikovsky speak for themselves and to republish them without any omissions or additions. In this way the original work with its revolutionizing contents and its unique style will be made available to the interested readers - scientists and laymen alike - and so hopefully the unbiased interdisciplinary scientific discussion about Velikovsky's theories will be supported after being long overdue.

Science should increase our knowledge. In the first place this includes the open and serious discussion of facts and theories, their study, research and - if necessary - the adjustment of the methods and paradigms to the facts, not vice versa. In this respect the study of Velikovsky's works, and above all the history of their acceptance in academic circles, can teach us a lot about our understanding of science and from a psychological point of view about our understanding of ourselves.

Summing up, we are convinced that the republication of the complete works of Immanuel Velikovsky can give fundamental impulses for numerous, very diverse fields of knowledge, for science in general as well as for the view of the world of our society - and at the same time lead to a proper appreciation of the life's work of a man who, searching for knowledge and enlightenment, was personally as well as professionally confronted with the most devastating reactions. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 284 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (April 3, 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671823396
• ISBN-13: 978-0349135892
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,855,849 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still Unanswered, December 29, 2000

By 

Holy Olio "holy_olio" (Grand Rapids, MI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Earth in Upheaval (Hardcover)

Velikovsky compiled this huge list of catastrophic data in answer to one of the foolish criticisms of 1950's "Worlds In Collision" -- that it relied on 'tales and stories'. Catastrophists often rely on bits and pieces from this book, perhaps indirectly, but nowhere else can they all be found, except perhaps for William Corliss' catalogs and sourcebooks.

The only thing that has happened since "Earth In Upheaval" was published in 1955 is that even more evidence has emerged along with even more outlandish rationalizations and apologia for uniform "explanations". While this 19th century delusional system perishes, its grip on power has slipped away. Catastrophism triumphs everywhere, even in the consideration of celestial disasters in historical times.

In 1960 the Chicxulub crater was discovered by PEMEX. In 1970 someone first suggested that the dinosaurs went extinct due to an impact. In 1972 impact was shown to be the dominant force on the lunar surface. In 1980 the Alvarez team suggested it again, supporting their view with the iridium found at the K-T boundary layer. Others found similar iridium in other boundary layers. By 1990 the Chicxulub crater finally came to the attention of the impact theorists. Impact wasn't the fully accepted consensus until the 1994 impacts of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9's fragments into Jupiter.

The text has the same ease and command of Velikovsky's other books, and I found it to be a pleasure to read 20 plus years ago. I highly recommend it, particularly for those considering other books. There is still a great deal of ill-temper, hostility, and ignorance regarding Velikovsky's works, and these often take the form of a single dismissive sentence or paragraph. Living writers seem to go out of their way to dump on him, and this is particularly true among fringe authors.

See also Velikovsky's other works (new and used), David Rohl's "Pharaohs and Kings", Peter James' "Centuries of Darkness", Ryan and Pitman's "Noah's Flood", Mary Settegast's "Plato Prehistorian", and Robert Schoch's "Voices of the Rocks".

31 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So many answers, so little recognition, July 16, 2000

By 

ltp - See all my reviews

This review is from: Earth in Upheaval (Hardcover)

I first read this book perhaps 15 years ago, and I still remember the impact it had on me. Everything clicked in place, and so many questions were answered and substantiated, and so many predictions have been validated as our knowledge of the solar system increases.

Despite the fact that the author has been proven right in so many of his theories, recognition from the academic community is still not forthcoming. What is even more ironic is that the majority of his detractors, then and now, have not even read his books!

Due to the competition for grants and the decrease in available funds for pure research many scientists relegated new or contradictory ideas to the closet. No one wanted to rock the boat. Now, thanks to space exploration, our discoveries often outpace our theories. Hopefully this will open the door that was shut on a brilliant man years ago. Hopefully, the fact that many of our new discoveries were predicted and substantiated by a man who truly deserves the recognition so deliberately denied him, will be bought to light.

In an age when our very existence may well depend on our ability to understand science, as well as understand ourselves, the need for an open mind has never been more important.

Sadly, I lost my copy of this book and would be grateful to know where I can find another.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Viva Velikovsky, April 21, 2005

By 

Philip Neri Lyons "goodoldphil" (Annapolis, Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Earth in Upheaval (Paperback)

As I reread "Earth In Upheaval" I am struck anew by Velikovsky's disciplined scholasticism and breadth of source material, by his compunction to always include other points of view (and flaws therein), and by his clear writing style.

It is understandable why Einstein had "Worlds In Collision" open on his desk when he died, why Clifton Fadiman, who was for many years editor-in-chief of the Reader's Digest, said that Velikovsky wrote about 50 times better than most of his critics, and why it was predicted that 99% of the books on geology, archeology and ancient history would have to be rewritten.

I suggest serious Philalethists (lovers of truth) read Velikovsky in his entirety. His day is approaching.

Just one question: How can we get some new editions published, maybe on the internet, so students can see for themselves for a change why Velikovsky may well be the (persecuted) Copernicus or Gallileo of the 20th century?

A final point: although I had read "Earth In Upheaval" 30 years ago, and I've glanced at it again several times since before my recent re-read, one particular factoid stikes me hard with it's import...Velikovsky refers to beaches and fossils hundreds of feet up off the coast of South America along with aerial views of settlements, untolled numbers of them, UP TO AND EVEN INTO THE PERENNIAL SNOW LINE!!! Now how can you explain that without a catastrophic theory?

Philip Neri Lyons

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