Living in Berlin, Humboldt is omnipresent. I vaguely knew he was a scientist, maybe an early ecologist, but that was about it. Having read this book, I not only know who he was and what he did, but I also have a very strong sense of what he was like as a person. I enjoyed that I got a sense of how he fit together with other historical figures, too - Goethe, Napolean, de Bolivar, Jefferson. The last few chapters about the people he influenced were pretty great, as well - Darwin, Thoreau, Haeckel, Muir. His way of seeing the world has been passed down to me, it seems so obvious, like the air I breathe. Everything is connected. I had never really considered reading his books before, now I would like to.