Traversal

In Traversal, Maria Popova journeys across the border between life and death, chance and choice, chemistry and consciousness, asking: What makes a body a person? A planet a world? How do we protect our love of truth from the lure of power? What redeems loss and satisfies longing?

Through the lives, loves, and legacies of visionaries—Mary Shelley, Walt Whitman, Frederick Douglass, Dorothy Hodgkin, Margaret Mead, and others—Popova explores the instruments we use to understand the world: telescopes and treatises, postulates and poems. Interwoven with stories of scientific discovery, historical upheaval, and the everyday marvels of nature, the book builds a rich tapestry that illuminates what makes life alive and meaningful.

Epic yet intimate, Traversal examines the forces binding atoms, people, and societies alike, offering a profound reflection on the universe—and our place within it.