...Here is a lucid, up-to-date survey of these heated issues [the new catastrophism of meteorite impacts and the 'resulting' mass extinctions and other catastrophe scenarios], aimed at undergraduates and the many others who are equally bewildered...Albritton finally puts the new catastrophism into proper perspective and explains recent ideas which led to it and to dinosaurmania. He takes a sensible, on the fence stance as to possible causes of mass extinctions. - Nature; His smoothly written and tellingly illustrated text is a cheerful, open account of the history of certain ideas of geological change...A fairer and simpler account you will not find. - Scientific American; The book under review makes fascinating reading. It is recommended as a remarkably good and readable summary of a vast amount of recent research on catastrophism and its role in mass extinction - Journal Geological Society of India
