Nature and the natural world: general interest Books

Book SynopsisRSPB Spotlight: Swifts and Swallows is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist.People all over Britain and Europe have long welcomed the arrival of swifts and swallows as a promise of summer being just around the corner. And with their similar long wings and dashing flight, it is perhaps understandable that we often confuse the two birds. After all, they have much in common: both feed on flying insects, both breed around buildings, and both are long-distance migrants that spend winter in Africa. But appearances can be deceptive. Swifts and swallows are completely unrelated birds that have adapted through evolution to survive in similar ways. In Spotlight: Swifts and Swallows, Mike Unwin reveals their fascinating lifestyles, explains how and why they have acquired their similarities, and ways in which we can help protect them. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the livesTable of ContentsMeet the Swift and the Swallow Ancestors and Relatives Built for Flight An Airborne Menu Born in a Tower Born in a Barn Globetrotters Life and Death Icons of Summer Protecting Swifts and Swallows Glossary Further Reading and Resources Acknowledgements Image Credits Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn pursuit of a connection to Britain''s captivating natural world, Jini Reddy searches for the magic in our landscape.A London journalist with multicultural roots and a perennial outsider, she determinedly sets off on an unorthodox path through the wanderlands of Britain. Serendipity and her inner compass guide her around the country: Where might this lead? And if you know what it is to be Othered yourself, how might this color your experiences? And what if, in invoking the spirit of the land, it decides to make its presence felt?Whether following a cult map to a hidden well that refuses to reveal itself, attempting to persuade a labyrinth to spill its secrets, embarking on a coast-to-coast pilgrimage or searching for a mystical land temple, Jini depicts a whimsical, natural Britain. Along the way, she tracks down ephemeral wild art, encounters women who worship The Goddess, and falls deeper in love with her birth land. Throughout, she rejoices in the wildneTrade ReviewWhat a wonderful book Wanderland is! A witty, gentle, original and very modern quest for the magical (not the mythical) in Britain's landscape, which both made me laugh and moved me. I wish Roger Deakin could have read this book, for he would surely have recognised a kindred spirit in Jini Reddy. -- Robert MacfarlaneA breath of fresh air. * Observer *[An] effervescent exploration… Reddy’s engaging narrative has an assurance and humour which both charm and convince. -- Elizabeth Dearnley * The Times Literary Supplement *Witty and engaging. -- Tom Robbins * Financial Times, Best mid-year reads of 2020 *An honest, contradictory and refreshing take on nature writing. * Conde Nast Traveller *Funny and touching. * The Mail on Sunday *Candid, soulful and uplifting search for natural magic. * The Lady *Warm, open-minded and endlessly curious, Jini is an ideal guide to Britain’s more unusual places and people. Wanderland is a truly engaging exploration, full of heart and soul. -- Melissa HarrisonA page turner. * Sunday Express ‘S’ Magazine *Wanderland is extraordinary, unique even, standing apart from recent books about the British countryside….. She is, she declares, lovesick: at times her prose has a dreamy, almost erotic charge. -- Ben Hoare * Countryfile *She rejects the stereotypes placed on people of colour, and crafts a beautiful story of self-discovery and exploration of the natural world. * Brown Girl magazine *Curious and tenacious, Jini learns to accommodate both solitude and the gifts of chance, discovering at last a new way of being, a new way of seeing, a new way of listening to the complex voices of this archipelago – animal, aerial, human and other-than-human. -- Katharine NorburyWith an unusual but timely eco-spiritual edge, and an alluring blend of memoir and nature-writing this touches on themes of identity and belonging as it charts how a restless spirit fell in love with her native land. -- Caroline Sanderson, Editor at The Bookseller (Editor’s choice in the Bookseller)Wanderland is a skilfully crafted and touching memoir of self-discovery inspired by Britain's wild places. -- Mark Whitley * The Countryman *A joyous celebration of the beauty we can see and the magic we can't. -- Tay Aziz * BBC Wildlife *…doesn’t just open your eyes to the Isles’ mystical history, but also your mind to the possibilities of what spirits may be lurking there. * Wanderlust magazine *In this funny, touching book…we are left with a sense that Reddy really has made contact with something deep within herself that feels entirely new and special. -- Kathryn Hughes * Mail on Sunday *Her easy style, genuinely questioning approach and willingness to take a wry look at her own self all carry the reader along in an engaging and often delightful tale. -- Stephen Moss * Resurgence & Ecologist *Table of ContentsWhat Happens Up the Mountain Doesn’t Always Stay Up the Mountain Beginnings To the Oracle on the Sea The Lost Spring Walking through Woods and Pain A Woman of the Old Ways The Secret Place of the Wild Strawberries – Part I The Tree Whisperer A Pilgrimage Walk in a Land of Giants Lost in Glastonbury A Temple in the Land When You Can See Neither Wood Nor Trees In Search of Ash Dome and Maidens of Mud and Oak The Secret Place of the Wild Strawberries – Part II Acknowledgements Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisRSPB Spotlight: Frogs and Toads is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct and detailed text written by an expert on these amphibians.They were bestowed with magical properties in folklore, they were sought after as ingredients of witches' broth, and they are comic characters that have invaded popular culture, from Kermit the Frog to Toad of Toad Hall. Frogs and toads are charismatic members of Britain's wildlife. But what do you really know about them?Scratch beneath the surface, and you will discover some of nature's weirdest creatures, amphibians whose ecology we are only now coming to understand. Spotlight Frogs and Toads is a compelling account of Britain's four native amphibian species: the Common Frog, the Pool Frog, the Common Toad and the rare and secretive Natterjack Toad. New research suggests that, in the next ten years, three out of four UK species are likely to be listed as threatened. Revealing a host of secrets, inTable of ContentsAmphibian Apparel Meet the Residents Life on Land Reproduction The Life Cycle Under Threat Frogs and Toads in Culture A Future for Frogs and Toads Glossary Further Reading and Resources Acknowledgements Image Credits Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisRSPB Spotlight: Sparrows is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist.Sparrows are often considered familiar to the point of invisibility, but the recent steep decline in numbers of both native British species is a reminder that these unassuming chatterboxes deserve a little more attention. Of all the true sparrow species found worldwide, only two occur in the British Isles. Globally, the story of the House Sparrow is one of dramatic expansion: from humble origins in the Middle East where they spread, along with agriculture, to become the most widely distributed bird on the planet. The smaller, more active Tree Sparrow has also spread extensively, following the domestication of rice rather than wheat, and both species have been heavily persecuted in recent years.In Spotlight Sparrows, Amy-Jane Beer examines the causes behind the decline of these familiar species, and exploTable of ContentsMeet the Sparrows Global Citizens Sparrow Bodies Daily Dramas It Takes Two Circle of Life Sparrows in Culture From Persecution to Conservation

Read more less

Book SynopsisRSPB Spotlight: Ospreys is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist.A hunting Osprey is one of the great sights of the natural world, and its fishing prowess is admired and revered around the globe. However, its penchant for taking fish from trout ponds resulted in a drastic decline in the UK with the species wiped out by human persecution and habitat loss.Thanks to concerted conservation efforts, it has made an encouraging comeback in recent decades, giving people across the country the chance to see this majestic hunter in action once again. This easy-to-read text explores all aspects of the Osprey's biology and ecology, including a detailed overview of the adaptations that make it such a skilled and proficient hunter. There is also a chapter dedicated to Osprey migration with a summary of the findings of groundbreaking satellite tracking research. Tim Mackrill also explores the relatTable of ContentsMeet the Osprey Diet and Feeding Behaviour Breeding Migration A History of Ospreys in Great Britain Osprey Conservation Ospreys in Culture Watching Ospreys Glossary Further Reading and Resources Acknowledgements Image Credits Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisBrilliant colour art and concise identification text make this the definitive field guide to snakes of this region, and a crucial addition to any naturalist''s backpack.Arabia and the Middle East have an unusually rich herpetofauna, and this is exemplified by the region's snakes. There are almost 190 species, and this new field guide offers a way to identify them. Written by expert Damien Egan and illustrated with his brilliant digital imagery, the book consists of 87 plates, each containing two or three species, with the snakes illustrated along with comparison species and diagnostic features in detail, such as head and keel scales.A concise species text accompanies each plate, highlighting ID, ecology, habitat and prey, along with notes on venom. Introductory text covers the snakes of the region more widely, with a discussion on how and where to find them and how to study them safely. Ambitious in scope, this book will be of great interest to all herpetophiles living in or vTable of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements Introduction The Middle East Geography: The Lay of the Land Snake Behaviour and Morphology Venom and Snakebites How to Use this Book Glossary Snake Families of the Middle East Species Accounts and Plates (1-87) Select Bibliography Appendix Quick Index

Read more less

Book Synopsis From the bestselling author of One Hundred Ways For a Cat To Train Its Human comes a new guide on how to improve your own life by learning from your cat. Content, living in the moment, finding pleasure in small things - your cat knows exactly how to get the best out of life. So let your cat be your guru as Celia Haddon shows in 100 ways how adopting their outlook can lead to our own happiness. Stretch out, relax, find a warm spot - and enjoy purrfection.

Read more less

Book SynopsisHow deep do sharks swim? Have more people been into space then the deep ocean? And what effect are we having on the health of our seas? Ask An Ocean Explorer answers these questions and more!

Read more less

Book SynopsisUncovers alternative ways of seeing the environment from the Romantic period.Trade Review"Romantic Environmental Sensibility: Nature, Class and Empire offers a boldly revisionary reading of environmental texts from the British Romantic period. The essays in this collection are profoundly concerned with questions of environmental justice and social class as manifested in the work of English aristocrats and working-class writers and in the perspectives of colonial overlords and local inhabitants throughout the British Empire. This book makes a vitally important contribution to the emerging discipline of ecocriticism." -James C. McKusick, University of Missouri-Kansas City, author of Green Writing: Romanticism and Ecology and coeditor of Literature and Nature: Four Centuries of Nature Writing.

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisA beautifully written, moving memoir about how the diagnosis of a terminal illness led to a perilous journey of self-awareness that not only restored the author's health but also taught her the healing power of love and of our connection to the natural woTable of Contents Acknowledgments Chapter One. Orion Chapter Two. Aries Chapter Three. Virgo Chapter Four. Cancer Chapter Five. The Big Dipper Chapter Six. The Pleiades Chapter Seven. Leo Chapter Eight. The Milky Way Chapter Nine. Orion Again Notes, Inspiration, and Resources Other Sources

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis resource guide is the only color-illustrated work devoted to polypores of eastern and central North American--the first of its kind to be published since Gilbertson & Ryvarden’s 1987 North American Polypores.Table of Contents Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Geographic Area Covered by This Book What Is a Polypore? Macrocharacteristics of Polypores Microcharacteristics of Polypores: Hyphal Systems Polypore Nomenclature and Taxonomy: A Brief History Historical and Contemporary Uses of Polypores Evolution of Polypores and Their Host Trees Forest Regions of the Eastern and Central United States and Canada Types of Fungal Decay Guidelines for Collecting and Preserving Polypores The Identification Process: How to Identify Polypores Using This Book Explanation and Use of the Keys Keys to Polypores and Similar Fungi Species Descriptions and Illustrations Appendixes A. Microscopic Examination of Polypores B. Chemical Reagents for Polypore Identification C. How to Make a Spore Deposit D. The Medicinal Uses of Polypores: A Brief History and Summaries of Current Research E. Polypores Organized by Order, Family, Genus, and Species Glossary Bibliography and Resources About the Authors Illustration and Photography Credits Index to Common Names Index to Scientific Names

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisTrade ReviewClickard employs rhyming nonfiction to recount Thomas Jefferson’s search for mammoth bones in the newly formed United States. . . . Carpenter’s digitally rendered illustrations are full of playful soupçons—Jefferson measures mouse holes and moose antlers in one series of vignettes—complementing the jaunty verse. -- Publishers WeeklyClickard narrates the tale in rhymed verse whose gleefulness is highly enjoyable. . . . Carpenter’s digital artwork matches the breathless take on oneupmanship with appropriately histrionic scenes of founding fathers. -- BCCB

Read more less

Book SynopsisJacalyn Duffin's History of Medicine is one of the leading texts used to teach the history of the medical profession. Emphasizing broad concepts rather than names and dates, it has also been widely appreciated by general readers for more than twenty years. Based on sound scholarship and meticulous research, History of Medicine incorporates pithy examples from a range of periods and places and is infused with the author’s characteristic wit.The third edition has been completely revised to highlight new scholarship on the past and incorporate significant medical events of the most recent decade – including new technologies, drug shortages, medical assistance in dying, and recent outbreaks of infectious diseases such as Ebola, H1N1, Zika, and COVID-19. The book is organized around themes of scientific and clinical interest, such as anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, surgery, obstetrics, medical education, health-care delivery, and public health. It inTrade Review"The facts are often fascinating and the prose is lively and accessible, guaranteeing interesting reading even for those on the receiving end of the stethoscope." -- Debby Waldman * Quill and Quire *"The first readers of this History of Medicine should be medical students. As the director of a history of medicine program I welcome this book, for at last I have a good textbook to recommend ... It should be bought by, or better still, presented to each Canadian medical student as a reward for acceptance into medical school." -- Peter Warren * Canadian Medical Association Journal *"A rollicking ride through the history of medicine ... Each chapter represents the tried-and-true teaching methods of the author ... [these], combined with the author's lucid writing style and often humorous approach, made me envious of Duffin's students." -- Hughes Evans * Isis *"Duffin's book is not only concise but also entertaining and enlightening ... a valuable, good-natured overview of a large topic that challenges everyone who teaches the history of medicine to do a better job." -- Barron H. Lerner * Journal of the History of Medicine *"This book is a superbly crafted volume readily accessible to the medical students for whom it was intended but equally rewarding to historians of all stripes for its wide-ranging and insightful discussions of the development of medicine from antiquity to Ebola and AIDS ... a reminder of the splendor and fascination of healing and its lengthy and compelling history." -- Susan E. Lederer * Canadian Bulletin of Medical History *"As a textbook it is not scandalously short, but great, concise, and straightforward. Recommended!" -- Charlotte Haug * Journal of Norwegian Medical Association *Table of ContentsIllustrations Tables Acknowledgments Preface to the Second Edition 1. Introduction: Heroes and Villains in the History of Medicine 2. The Fabricated Body: History of Anatomy 3. Interrogating Life: History of Physiology 4. Science of Suffering: History of Pathology 5. First Do No Harm: History of Treatment, Pharmacology, and Pharmaceuticals 6. On Becoming and Being a Doctor: Education, Licensing, and Payment 7. Plagues and Peoples: Epidemic Diseases in History 8. Why Is Blood Special? Changing Concepts of a Vital Humour 9. Technology and Disease: Stethoscopes, Hospitals, and Other Gadgets 10. Work of the Hand: History of Surgery 11. Women’s Medicine and Medicine’s Women: History of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women 12. Wrestling with Demons: History of Psychiatry 13. No Baby, No Nation: History of Pediatrics 14. A Many-Faceted Gem: The Decline and Rebirth of Family Medicine 15. When the Patient Is Plural: Public and International Health 16. “Slow as a glacier, equally relentless”: Patient-Centred Medicine 17. Sleuthing and Science: How to Research a Question in Medical History Appendix Learning Objectives Suggestions for Further Reading Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn Common Things explores the implacable agency of common substances in the life and literature of the Romantic period.Table of ContentsIntroduction: In Common Things 1. “The Bones of the World”: Mary Wollstonecraft’s Social Geology 2. “Broken Arbour”: The Ruined Cottage and Deforestation 3. “Strange Look’d it There!”: The Paradox of the Palm in the Poetry of Felicia Hemans 4. Preserver and Destroyer: Salt in The History of Mary Prince 5. “Lin’d with Moss”: John Clare’s Rhizomatic Poetics

Read more less

Book SynopsisTrade Review"An enjoyable back-to-the land memoir. " - Library Journal"An easy read with a warm tone, like hearing from an old friend, McGaha's memoir is touching, funny, and hard to put down." - Booklist"Flat Broke with Two Goats is a funny, moving and unflinchingly honest reckoning. Reduced by desperate circumstances, Jennifer and her husband find themselves living a life that echoes the hardscrabble Appalachian ways of their grandparents. This sweet miracle of a memoir tells the story of a struggling couple who have to lose their house, and just about everything else, to find home." - Tommy Hays, author of The Pleasure Was Mine"You'll be alarmed, breathless, and ultimately charmed by "Flat Broke with Two Goats" because yes, it could happen to you..." - Terri Schlichenmeyer, Bookworm Sez"Flat Broke with Two Goats is a brave book written in beautifully unflinching detail. McGaha lays bare the flaws in her marriage, the poor choices that led them to rock bottom and how they found their way to a new definition of home." - BookPage

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisUpon the 100th anniversary of the most terrifying stretch of shark attacks in American history--a wave said to have been the inspiration for Jaws--comes a reissue of the classic Lyons Press account and investigation. In July 1916, a time when World War I loomed over America and New York City was in the midst of a deadly polio epidemic, the tri-state area sought relief at the Jersey shore. The Atlantic's refreshing waters proved to be utterly inhospitable, however. In just twelve days, four swimmers were violently and fatally mauled in separate shark attacks, and a fifth swimmer escaped an attack within inches of his life. In this thoroughly researched account, Dr. Richard Fernicola, the leading expert on the attacks, presents a riveting portrait, investigation, and scientific analysis of the terrifying days against the colorful backdrop of America in 1916 in Twelve Days of Terror.Trade Review“Natural history, animal behavior, American history, and pure detective work. The research and sourcing are monumental...makes a fine summer beach read.” -- Chicago Tribune"Twelve Days of Terror is better (than Close to the Shore) at conveying the historical context framing the (shark) attacks. Fernicola is (also) better with the attacks in Matawan Creek.--Baltimore SunHas the edge over "Close to Shore" by being better-sourced and packed with photographs, diagrams, newspaper clippings, and death certificates. -- Boston Globe“Blood in the water, terror on the shore. What could make for a better beach book?” –USA Today“Immersed in the details of these attacks, but . . . also move[s] to the shore to reconstruct the culture of fear that swelled up in pre-war America.” –Christian Science Monitor“Packed with photographs, diagrams, newspaper clippings, and death certificates.” —Boston Globe“Truly chilling without being sensational.” –Library Journal

Read more less

Book SynopsisA completely updated and revised edition brimming with advice on collecting and preparing gems and minerals .

Read more less

Book SynopsisRivers and the ecosystems they support have always captivated humans, leading curious scientists to broaden our understanding with ongoing research. In Explorer's Guide to Rivers and Streams, Dr. Ryan Utz (Chatham University) presents a broad scientific understanding of rivers, streams, and the animals that reside within them, written accessibly for a general audience. Topics range from what causes river flows to rise and fall to the ecology of riverine fishes. Kayakers, anglers, and hikers alike will find many tools within Explorer's Guide to Rivers and Streams to deepen their understanding of their favorite waterway.

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisSince its founding four hundred years ago, New England has been a vital source of nature writing. Maybe it's the diversity of landscapes huddled so close together or the marriage of nature and culture in a relatively small, six-state region. Maybe it's the regenerative powers of the ecosystem in a place of repeated exploitations. Or maybe we have simply been thinking about our relationship with the natural world longer than everyone.If all successive nature writing is a footnote to Henry David Thoreau, then New England has a strong claim to being the birthplace of the genre. But there are, as the sixty entries in this anthology demonstrate, many other regional voices that extol the wonders and beauty of the outdoors, explore local ecology, and call for environmental sustainability. Between these covers, Noah Webster calls for our stewardship of nature and Lydia Sigourney finds sublime pleasure in it. Jonathan Edwards and Helen Keller both find miracles, while Samuel Peters

Read more less

Book SynopsisPart love letter, part invitation, 1,001 Ways Nature Makes You Smile is an informative celebration of the outdoors in simple, classic, fun, illustrated list-style chapters. This overview invites readers to celebrate nature while emphasizing its value for all. Enjoying the outdoors is not exclusive to the wealthy, the athletic, or the experienced; it's inclusive, gratifying, and it makes us smile!

Read more less

Book Synopsis2022 Oregon Book Award Finalist A vivid journey through California's vast rural interior, The Heart of California weaves the story of historian Frank Latta's forgotten 1938 boat trip from Bakersfield to San Francisco with Aaron Gilbreath's trip retracing Latta's route by car during the 2014 drought. Latta embarked on his journey to publicize the need for dams and levees to improve flood control. Gilbreath made his own trip to profile Latta and the productive agricultural world that damming has created in the San Joaquin Valley, to describe the region's nearly lost indigenous culture and ecosystems, and to bring this complex yet largely ignored landscape to life. The Valley is home to some of California's fastest growing cities and, by some estimates, produces 25 percent of America's food. The Valley feeds too many people, and is too unique, to be ignored. To understand California, you have to understand the Valley. Mixing travel writing, historical recreations, western history, natuTrade Review"In this captivating memoir, author Aaron Gilbreath takes us along on a journey through the vast interior of California, sandwiched between the mountains of the Sierra Nevada and the Pacific Coast Range. Inspired by the 1938 boat trip from Bakersfield to San Francisco of historian Frank Latta, Gilbreath retraces the trip by car during the drought of 2014, weaving in Latta’s fascinating narrative with his own. . . . A must-read in order to fully grasp the California experience."—Melanie Dragger, Literary West Review“Aaron Gilbreath uses his keen eye and environmental consciousness, historical records, and the occasional imaginative flight to give us an invaluable portrait of an overlooked place.”—Thomas Swick, author of A Way to See the World“The Heart of California is a quickly moving history with unexpected adventure. There’s a little Joan Didion, James D. Houston, Gerald Haslam, Kevin Starr, and Mark Arax in these pages. Aaron Gilbreath’s observations are an extension of these writers and, I could argue, their equal.”—Gary Soto, author of The Elements of San Joaquin“This is what the San Joaquin Valley looks and sounds like and how it feels.”—Don Thompson, native Valley poet and author of Back Roads“Without question, riding downriver through the San Joaquin Valley’s past and present with Aaron Gilbreath is one of the greatest and most unexpected journeys I’ve taken in a long, long time.”—Joe Donnelly, author of L.A. Man: Profiles from a Big City and a Small World“Add The Heart of California to your list of essential reading, for it expands and deepens the Golden State’s image to include gritty realities and small triumphs too often ignored. There’s no understanding the state without also understanding the sometimes remote, but essential realities Gilbreath explores. Organized around Frank F. Latta’s 1938 rowboat trip up the San Joaquin Valley to San Francisco Bay, this book recounts an adventure writ small but with large implications. Welcome to a new regional classic.”—Gerald W. Haslam, editor of Many Californias: Literature from the Golden State Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Down the Kern River 2. On Tulare Lake 3. Hanford, the Other California Dream 4. Uncle Jeff's Cabin 5. Through the Swampy Center 6. Nocturnal Life 7. The End of the Road, San Francisco Further Reading Bibliography

Read more less

Book SynopsisAmerican Scientist Recommended Read Historical narratives often concentrate on wars and politics while omitting the central role and influence of the physical stage on which history is carried out. In Losing Eden award-winning historian Sara Dant debunks the myth of the American West as “Eden” and instead embraces a more realistic and complex understanding of a region that has been inhabited and altered by people for tens of thousands of years. In this lively narrative Dant discusses the key events and topics in the environmental history of the American West, from the Beringia migration, Columbian Exchange, and federal territorial acquisition to post–World War II expansion, resource exploitation, and current climate change issues. Losing Eden is structured around three important themes: balancing economic success and ecological destruction, creating and protecting public lands, and achieving sustainability. This reviseTrade Review"This updated and revised edition of the book brings more multicultural history, incorporates current events, and has a new chapter on climate change, along with new maps and illustrations."—Jaime Herndon, American Scientist"This is a penetrating take on the complicated ways that humans impact their environs."—Publishers Weekly"Compelling and accessible to a broad audience. . . . [Demonstrates] why understanding the environmental history of the US West is as pressing now as ever."—Jacey Anderson, H-Environment"An updated version of the original 2017 publication, Losing Eden is a classic in the environmental history of the American West."—Harlan Hague, Roundup Magazine"In writing such an accessible book for general readers and scholars alike, Dant successfully manages to create a space for everyone to feel a sense of responsibility for the future of the West."—Georgianna Karahalis, Annals of Wyoming"[Dant] is especially skilled at presenting complex, sometimes controversial topics in an engaging and fun-to-learn manner."—Ed Roberson, mountainandprairie.com"A clarion call for sustainability."—Kim Jackson, Nevada Historical Quarterly“Everyone should take a look at Sara Dant’s book Losing Eden. It’s a history of something bigger than us and an essential read for anyone who cares about the past and future American West.”—Ken Burns, filmmaker“Sara Dant has created something seemingly unattainable: a one-volume book—full of incisive analysis, wrapped in unforgettable storytelling—that covers the deep environmental history of the American West from twenty-five thousand years ago to today. She delivers an important cautionary tale about the relationship between people and nature, always asking a simple question: ‘At what cost?’ I learned something on every page.”—Dayton Duncan, author of The National Parks: America’s Best Idea“Sara Dant’s Losing Eden is an environmental masterpiece about the American region she holds near and dear to her heart. Whether Dant tackles the problems of aridity, massive wildfires, or climate change, she hits all the right notes. . . . This is a brilliant book, learned to its core, that will stand the test of time. Environmental history at its absolute finest. Highly recommended!”—Douglas Brinkley, Katherine Tsanoff Brown Chair in Humanities and professor of history at Rice University

Read more less

Book SynopsisPreserving Yellowstone’s Natural Conditions describes in fascinating detail the historical origins and development of wildlife management in Yellowstone National Park, alongside shifting understandings of nature in science and culture. James A. Pritchard traces the idea of “natural conditions” through time, from the introduction of this concept by early ecologists in the 1930s. He tells several overlooked stories of Yellowstone wildlife, including a sensational scientific hunt for bears with bow and arrow, and the episode of the predator pelicans, which facilitated a fundamental shift toward protection of all wildlife in Yellowstone, and for the National Park Service as a whole. A prolonged debate regarding the elk herd on Yellowstone’s northern range is addressed, along with the origins of the notion of natural regulation, and the reasons for ending direct reductions of elk. This story emphasizes how ecological science came to Yellowstone and to the NatiTrade Review“This is one of the five most important books ever written about Yellowstone, and perhaps the most important one about ecological management of the park.”—Lee Whittlesey, retired historian for Yellowstone National Park“James Pritchard’s book is a milestone in Yellowstone historical research. It is also essential reading for anyone who wants to understand how we got the magnificent park that we enjoy, celebrate, and constantly argue over today. For the sake of Yellowstone and your own clear thinking, don’t deny yourself this vital and challenging perspective.”—Paul Schullery, author of Searching for Yellowstone and Past and Future Yellowstones“A model of thoughtful, responsible storytelling; attentive to nuance, careful in its claims, judicious in its judgments. It’s a refreshing antidote to the tsunami of poorly informed, ideologically driven analyses all too common today.”—Paul Hirt, professor emeritus, School of Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies, Arizona State University“This is a complicated story, dispassionately told and meticulously documented.”—Choice“A must-read for anyone interested in Yellowstone. It articulates the history, traces the evolution, and, by extension, anticipates the future of resource management in the park. It perfectly captures the messy world of science, policy, and public expectations that Yellowstone shoulders.”—Tom Olliff, ecologist for the National Park Service and former chief of resources at Yellowstone National Park“Having stood the test of time, Pritchard has updated his groundbreaking chronicle of nature preservation policy in Yellowstone with an insightful epilogue that brings the book forward into the new era of climate change, hyper-visitation, digital technology, state-managed wolves, migration corridors, and landscape-scale conservation.”—Robert B. Keiter, author of To Conserve Unimpaired: The Evolution of the National Park Idea“Yellowstone, the first national park in world history, is synonymous with charismatic wild animals and wild landscapes. Here is where, over the past century and a half, people have developed cultural attitudes toward wildness and tried to mitigate the damage that our species has done to the natural order. And the best guide to that learning is historian James Pritchard. No one has matched his richly detailed, comprehensive understanding of the meaning of Yellowstone and of the ways Americans have tried to protect it. This updated edition adds valuable new material on the changes of the past two decades. Highly recommended for historians, ecologists, park employees, and general readers.”—Donald Worster, author of A Passion for Nature: The Life of John Muir“Perhaps the single most important book describing how the National Park Service developed its policy on preservation and what are ‘natural’ conditions. With so much to read I rarely read anything twice, but this one I did and I am considering a third.”—Douglas W. Smith, senior wildlife biologist for Yellowstone National Park“As Yellowstone National Park celebrates its 150th birthday and park wildlife faces increasing pressure on all fronts, the reissue of James Pritchard’s engaging history, with a new, comprehensive afterword, could not be more timely. As Pritchard demonstrates so well, we ‘cannot understand the management of our parks or hope for enlightened park management if we fail to see our parks in a historical context.’”—Diane Smith, author of Yellowstone and the Smithsonian: Centers of Wildlife Conservation “The historical tension between active management and natural regulation was brilliantly laid out in the 1999 edition. Here, Pritchard fast-forwards to the present day and asks us to consider wicked new challenges—delisting, climate change, skyrocketing visitation—facing America’s first national park.”—Cathy Whitlock, Regents Professor Emerita, Montana State UniversityTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction 1. A Preservationist Yellowstone, 1872–1915 2. Conservationist Thought and Yellowstone, 1916–1930 3. The Wildlife Division and the Ecology of Intervention 4. Managing the Natural During the Postwar Era 5. A Natural Yellowstone, 1963–1974 6. A Greater Yellowstone, 1975–1995 Epilogue Afterword Notes Sources Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe lower Mississippi River winds past the city of New Orleans between enormous levees and a rim of sand, mud, and trees called ‘the batture’. Down on the Batture describes a life, pastoral, at times marginal, but remarkably fecund and surprising.

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisMeet Boris, the chimp who took a bite out of the Big Appleand wished it had been a banana: No one concerned with either apes or people should miss it. Peter S.Beagle, award-winning author of The Last Unicorn This book answers the question that is on everybody's mind: What's it like to raise a chimpanzee in Manhattan? Hester Mundis's hilarious memoir No He's Not a Monkey, He's an Ape and He's My Son is the complete guide to raising a chimp in the heart of urban America. Join Hester, her husband, their terrifying attack dog Ahab, and the funniest monkeyexcuse us, apeever to occupy an apartment on the Upper West Side of New York City in this true adventure of woman versus beast.

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn August 1858, William James Stillman, a painter and founding editor of the acclaimed but short-lived art journal The Crayon, organized a camping expedition for some of America''s preeminent intellectuals to Follensby Pond in the Adirondacks. Dubbed the Philosophers' Camp, the trip included the Swiss American scientist and Harvard College professor Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz, the Republican lawyer and future U.S. attorney general Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar, the Cambridge poet James Russell Lowell, and the transcendental philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, who would later pen a poem about the experience. News that these cultured men were living like Sacs and Sioux in the wilderness appeared in newspapers across the nation and helped fuel a widespread interest in exploring the Adirondacks.In this book, James Schlett recounts the story of the Philosophers' Camp, from the lives and careers ofand friendships and frictions amongthe participants to the extensive preparations for the expedition Trade ReviewOther scholars have paid glancing notice at this event but have confused its details or missed its importance. The most thorough scholarly account remains Paul Jamieson's "Emerson in the Adirondacks," published in New York History over a half-century ago and largely overlooked ever since.Until now.... Focusing primarily on the Follensby Pond expedition, Schlett uses it to develop a series of linked themes. The response of Stillman, Emerson, and others to the untouched wilderness of the central Adirondacks invites an assessment of how American culture was coping with the dramatic and often traumatic move away from its rural past and into an urban, industrial future. This is both an American and an Adirondack story (neither urban nor industrial, the Adirondacks is nonetheless what it is today because the rest of New York was becoming both), and Schlett employs it well. -- Philip Terrie * Adirondack Explorer *In his meticulous new history of the Philosophers' Camp,... the first book to focus exclusively on the event, Schlett tackles the subject with serious diligence, lending it a new kind of weight.... As readers will likely learn with some regret, Follensby Pond remains inaccessible to the public. In 2008, the Nature Conservancy purchased the 14,600-acre tract that includes the lake for $16 million from a private landowner. But after several unsuccessful attempts, Follensby has still not entered the state forest preserve, at which time the public will be permitted to visit. Neither is it a high priority. Nevertheless, it could be that Schlett's book redoubles those efforts. That is not something he intended with the book, yet he certainly wouldn't mind it either. -- James H. Miller * The Lake George Mirror *Many of us have heard the story of the Adirondacks' Philosophers' Camp near Follensby Pond that legendary getaway attended by such 19th-century dignitaries as Ralph Waldo Emerson and James Russell Lowell. But it’s always remained just that: the stuff of lore and legend rather than real tangible history. Until now. Award-winning reporter James Schlett... has shined a journalist’s spotlight on this excursion. -- Susan Arbetter * Capital Pressroom *This book offers considerable depth on an important event. Devotees of Adirondack history will find it well worth their effort. -- Richard Frost * Adirondack Daily Enterprise *Schlett makes a convincing argument for its significance. His archival detective work illuminates how widespread the interest in the event was at the time and beyond and contributes to an understanding of its importance in the biographies of the participants, as well as telling a history of the Adirondacks. * New York History *Modern visitors who find retreat and rejuvenation in the Adirondacks will likely enjoy knowing a bit about the people who blazed the trail. But I think that the book will be even more valuable for people living inside the Adirondacks. This is a region whose economic fate depends on outside people and their capital—either visitors or, tragically, prisoners. And to move forward as a region, it is important for locals to learn the cultural history and vocabulary of "the philosophers," even if the favor is not always returned. * Environmental history *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Amid the RuinsPart I. Nature and Society 1. Path to the Adirondacks 2. Turning Points 3. The Crayon 4. "Adieu to the World" 5. The Artist Reborn 6. Trial Run 7. The Procession to the PinesPart II. The Camp and Club 8. Acclimating to the Wild 9. The Worthy Crew Chaucer Never Had 10. Ampersand [Color Plates] 11. The Inaugural MeetingPart III. Campfire Lore 12. War 13. Peace 14. The Ravages of Modern Improvement 15. The Old America and the NewConclusion: The Story RebornPostscriptNotes Select Bibliography Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn The Eye of the Sandpiper, Brandon Keim pairs cutting-edge science with a deep love of nature, conveying his insights in prose that is both accessible and beautiful. In an elegant, thoughtful tour of nature in the twenty-first century, Keim continues in the tradition of Lewis Thomas, Stephen Jay Gould, and David Quammen, reporting from the frontiers of science while celebrating the natural world's wonders and posing new questions about our relationship to the rest of life on Earth. The stories in The Eye of the Sandpiper are arranged in four thematic sections. Each addresses nature through a different lens. The first is evolutionary and ecological dynamics, from how patterns form on butterfly wings to the ecological importance of oft-reviled lampreys. The second section explores the inner lives of animals, which science has only recently embraced: empathy in rats, emotions in honeybees, spirituality in chimpanzees. The third section contains stories of people Trade ReviewProvides accessible and beautifully written food for thought for ecologists. * The Quarterly Review of Biology *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Trees of LifePart I. DynamicsOrganized Chaos Makes the Beauty of a ButterflyChickadees, Mutations, and the Thermodynamics of LifeThe Photosynthetic SalamanderHuman Evolution Enters an Exciting New Phase"Parallel Universe" of Life Described Far beneath the Bottom of the SeaAt the Edge of Invasion, Possible New Rules for EvolutionA Mud-Loving, Iron-Lunged, Jelly-Eating Ecosystem SaviorRedeeming the LampreyDecoding Nature's SoundtrackPart II. Inner LivesBeing a SandpiperMonogamy Helps Geese Reduce StressWhat Pigeons Teach Us about LoveChimps and the Zen of Falling WaterHow City Living Is Reshaping the Brains and Behavior of Urban AnimalsReconsider the Rat: The New Science of a Reviled RodentMonkeys See Selves in Mirror, Open a Barrel of QuestionsThe New AnthropomorphismHoneybees Might Have EmotionsPart III. IntersectionsA Day in the Life of NYC’s Hospital for Wild BirdsNew Yorkers in Uproar over Planned Mass Killing of SwansAn Eel Swims in the BronxOn Waldman’s PondThe Return of the RiverA Chimp’s Day in Court: Inside the Historic Demand for Nonhuman RightsChimpanzee Rights Get a Day in CourtMedical Experimentation on Chimps Is Nearing an End. But What about Monkeys?I, CockroachPart IV. EthicsThe Improbable BeeThe Ethics of Urban BeekeepingThe Wild, Secret Life of New York CityEarth Is Not a GardenAdd a Few Species. Pull Down the Fences. Step Back.Feral Cats vs. Conservation: A TruceShould Animals Have a Right to Privacy?When Climate Change Blinds UsTo Bring Back Extinct Species, We’ll Need to Change Our OwnSeptember 11, Fall Migration, and Occupy Wall StreetMaking Sense of 7 Billion People

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe Comstocks of Cornell is the autobiography written by the naturalist educator Anna Botsford Comstock about her life and that of her husband, the entomologist John Henry Comstockboth prominent figures in the scientific community and in Cornell University history. A first edition was published in 1953, but it omitted key Cornellians, historical anecdotes, and personal insights. In this twenty-first-century edition, Karen Penders St. Clair restores the author''s voice by reconstructing the entire manuscript as Anna Comstock wrote itand thereby preserves Comstock''s memories of the personal and professional lives of the couple as she originally intended. The book includes an epilogue documenting the Comstocks'' last years and fills in gaps from the 1953 edition. Described as serious legacy work, this book is an essential part of the history of both Cornell University and its press.Trade ReviewCurrently an independent scholar based in Rochester, New York, St. Clair hopes the upcoming volume will give readers a better sense of what Anna was truly like, beyond the familiar tropes of her status as Cornell's first female professor, a leading scientific illustrator, and an early advocate of nature education. * Cornell Alumni Magazine *Table of Contents1. The Boyhood of John Henry Comstock, 1849-1865 2. A Sailor and a Scholar 3. Undergraduate Days at Cornell, 1870-1874 4. Anna Botsford-Childhood and Girlhood 5. A University Professorship and Marriage, 1876-1879 6. Entomologist to U.S. Department of Agriculture (Life in Washington as United States Entomologist, 1879-1881) 7. Return to Cornell 8. The Year 1888-1889; With a Winter in Germany 9. California and Stanford University 10. The Nature Study Movement at Cornell University; A Journey South to Study Spiders 11. "How to Know Butterflies" and the "Confessions to a Heathen Idol" 12. A Sabbatical Year Abroad-Egypt and Greece 13. Italy, Switzerland, and Home 14. Chapter 15: 1908-1912, Cornell's New Quarters for Entomology and Nature Study 15. The Two hundred and Fiftieth-anniversary Celebration of the Royal Society and The International Entomological Congress 16. The 65th Milestone and Retirement 17. Florida and Retirement 18. The Toronto Meeting of the A.A.A.S. 1922. A surprising election and voyage westward. 19. Honolulu and Happiness, A Voyage to Europe 20. Mentone Editor's Epilogue

Read more less

Book SynopsisCosta Rica is much more than a verdant paradise. It''s a land of diverse landscapes and cultures. This collection of regional guides reveals unknown facets of Costa Rica and helps travelers understand what makes this country so unique.This volume introduces the Caribbean coast, which offers an embarrassment of riches. Pristine rainforests, waterways, and turtle nesting sites attract tourists to Tortuguero in the north, while tropical waters, charming hotels, and Afro-Caribbean culture draw visitors to the south.Includes a colorful fold-out map of key tourist destinations.Table of ContentsBetween Two Waters The Land of Sibö The Railroad Index Credits

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis fully updated second edition of the best-selling Weeds of the Northeast provides lavish illustrations for ready identification of more than 500 common and economically important weeds in the Northeast and in the Upper Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states. This new edition covers the region south to North Carolina, north to Maine and southern Canada, and west to Wisconsin. This practical guide includes descriptions and photos of floral and vegetative characteristics, giving anyone who works with plants the ability to identify weeds before they flower. A broadened range and prevalence of important weeds in the Northeast, as well as the Upper Midwest and Mid-Atlantic United States Standardized species descriptions with a wealth of information in a condensed and comprehensive formatmore than 200 new species accounts Easy identification through a dichotomous key, detailed descriptions, and images Comparison tables make it easy to diffTrade ReviewA detailed and user-friendly guide. * The American Gardener *Highly recommend. * Horticulture *Lavishly illustrated and exceptionally well-done. * Taxon 47 *This distinctive book will be welcomed in a library, school, garden club, as a gift for friends, and definitely as a copy for yourself. * News of the Federated Garden Clubs of New York State *

Read more less

Book SynopsisLives of Weeds explores the tangled history of weeds and their relationship to humans. Through eight interwoven stories, John Cardina offers a fresh perspective on how these tenacious plants came about, why they are both inevitable and essential, and how their ecological success is ensured by determined efforts to eradicate them. Linking botany, history, ecology, and evolutionary biology to the social dimensions of humanity's ancient struggle with feral flora, Cardina shows how weeds have shaped-and are shaped by-the way we live in the natural world. Weeds and attempts to control them drove nomads toward settled communities, encouraged social stratification, caused environmental disruptions, and have motivated the development of GMO crops. They have snared us in social inequality and economic instability, infested social norms of suburbia, caused rage in the American heartland, and played a part in perpetuating pesticide use worldwide. Lives of Weeds reveals how the technologies directed against weeds underlie ethical questions about agriculture and the environment, and leaves readers with a deeper understanding of how the weeds around us are entangled in our daily choices.Trade ReviewIn this expert debut, Cardina explores humans' 'long and ongoing relationship with weedy plants.' Focused and fascinating. * Publisher's Weekly *[John Cardina's] penetrating analysis disentangles botany from history by offering eight interwoven stories, each focused on one weed, some familiar, others less so. * Nature *Cardina weaves together autobiographical and historical anecdotes, precise explanations of plant biology, and speculative but startlingly plausible evolutionary scenarios involving human agency and facilitation for eight common plant species currently considered weeds, or "plants of disrepute." The result is a series of highly readable vignettes about agricultural weeds and their interaction with human culture. Students and researchers in agriculture and ecology will likely enjoy reading Cardina's witty natural history of weedy plants and should consider his suggestions for how and why to treat them with greater respect. * Choice *Blending personal anecdotes of eight weedy plants with research from a broad range of disciplines, Cardina covers a diversity of topics in a remarkably fluid and comprehensive manner. Drawing upon such fields as botany, ecology, evolutionary biology, conservation, and agriculture, the book is a captivating and accessible narrative of humanity's complex and intermingled relationship with the "botanical misfits" commonly referred to as weeds. * Economic Botany *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Clearing a Path 1. Dandelion 2. Florida Beggarweed 3. Velvetleaf 4. Nutsedge 5. Marestail 6. Pigweed 7. Ragweed 8. Foxtail Epilogue: What's 'Round the Bend

Read more less

Book SynopsisTable of ContentsIntroduction Setting Out Part I: Stone, Water, Fire Granite Obsidian Roof Pendants Brokenness Clouds Snow Glacier River Forest Fire Part II: Range of Life Bighorn Aspen Paintbrush Whitebark Pine and Clark's Nutcracker Pileated Woodpecker Belding's Ground Squirrel Mountain Chickadee Mountain Yellow-Legged Frog Western Tanager Sierra Nevada Parnassian Wolf Lichen Epilogue

Read more less

Book SynopsisA whimsical, humorous imagining of what unicorns really think and what they truly love—including recipes for unicorn food, crafts, and the history of these mythical creatures.Glitter. Sparkles. Rainbows and shimmering manes. Sure, unicorns are magical, and their reputations have taken the world by storm, but how much do we know about what unicorns really think? What’s their favorite cookie? What about their favorite color? Would they really drink that pastel milkshake you found on Pinterest? They sure would! In Stuff Unicorns Love, you’ll get a guided tour of unicorns’ most treasured things straight from a unicorn’s mouth—from food recipes and crafts to beauty tips and their favorite activities. Learn the truth about these adorable (and painfully honest) creatures, as well as the facts behind their origins. With illustrations and tons of fascinating unicorn facts throughout, this is a perfect gift for unicorn lovers of all ages.Trade Review"Our society is a bit unicorn obsessed at the moment. But have you ever stopped and wondered what unicorns themselves love? This book contains a unicorn’s favorite recipes, beauty tips, favorite things, and more. What we’re saying is the unicorn-obsessed person in your life NEEDS it." * HelloGiggles *"Cleanse that palate—and your brain—while Jessie Oleson Moore drops some unicorn knowledge on you. Enough sly humor to keep you turning through pages of basic facts, recipes, and “unicorn-y jokes.” Stuff Unicorns Love is a comprehensive unicorn encyclopedia. If you want to attract unicorns or embrace the unicorn mindset in your own life, this book has the answers. Oleson Moore is a talent, who pulls off a pretty great feat with this one: engaging both a third-grader who loves glitter and tired 44-year-old who does not." * That’s Normal *"This delightfully fun read is perfect for younger readers as well as anyone who is young at heart, and wants to enjoy a bit of whimsy in their day. Stuff Unicorns Love is an adorable read that shares fun fictional facts about unicorns that will make you smile alongside perfect illustrations. The perfect way to add a bit of fun to your day. I can’t recommend it enough to anyone looking for a perfectly cute read." * The Nerdy Girl Express *"This comprehensive look at a wide range of things that interest unicorns is filled with everything tweens love--cartoon illustrations, bright colors, and lots of rainbows. A great handbook for friends to pore over on a rainy day and use to inform their own illustrations. A light hearted and entertaining romp through all the sugary sweet sparkly goodness that makes unicorns ‘tick.’ Unicorn hoodie optional while reading this, but highly encouraged!" * YA Books Central *"Even as an adult, I loved this book!" * SoCal City Kids *

Read more less

Book SynopsisInteract with nature—both inside your home and out—with this beautifully illustrated, inspirational, and interactive journal to help you reconnect with the great outdoors.Contact with nature is good for our psychological and physical health and has been proven to reduce stress, restore attention fatigue, ease depression and anxiety, and foster creativity. Interacting with the outdoors can ground us, offer us a sense of security, deepen the roots of resilience, and enhance our sensory awareness that contributes to feeling fully alive. Grounded is an interactive journal full of calming art, photography, and inspirational quotes, offering prompts and activities that deepen your experience with nature. Engaging all five senses, this guide journal encourages you to bring the outdoors in, including displaying a collection of found objects such as shells and rocks, creating a simple leaf press to preserve fallen leaves, and growing low-maintenance house plants and edible herbs that perfume the air. Whether you live in a city or a wide-open space, this journal is perfect for anyone looking to make the most of what the world has to offer.Trade Review“Patricia Hasbach has invested the time and care over her career to now harvest well-crafted ingredients and applications, to prepare and distill them to their essence; a guide, which allows for meaningful and reciprocally rewarding nature experiences. Answering distress calls from Rachel Carson to the Lorax, the activities and meditations throughout this book offer you, the participant in life, a chance to explore and re-engage in being fully human—that is, a part of, and not separate from, nature. Follow along, discover with interest and awe the expansion of your ecological self, and breathe it in deeply. This is a self-study course in nature connection, facilitated by one of ecotherapy’s leading voices and practitioners, and a real treat to follow! Well done, Patricia.” —Nevin J. Harper, PhD, RCC, professor at the University of Victoria, coauthor of Nature-Based Therapy, and co-editor of Outdoor Therapies“Pat Hasbach is one of America’s—and the world’s—leading voices in ecopsychology. Her prescriptions here, delivered with kindness, are as ancient as they are new, and filled with the spirit of rebirth.” —Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods, Vitamin N, and Our Wild Calling“What a beautiful and wonderful book! Ecotherapist Dr. Patricia Hasbach gifts us with a lovely treasure trove of doable daily practices to help us include essential nature connection activities in our everyday lives. Flip it open to a fresh page each morning, and awaken your senses to intimate, embodied awareness of our oneness with Earth and the cosmos.” —Linda Buzzell, coeditor of Ecotherapy: Healing with Nature in Mind “As I read Patricia Hasbach’s Grounded, I thought, ‘What if the ideas in Grounded became standard procedure for all legislators? What if they were required to spend as much time outside watching clouds as in dark wood–lined rooms; what if they all had plants on their desks, small altars made from meaningful natural objects? Imagine if they only met lobbyists outside while sitting around a fire. The result? Only life-affirming decisions.’ As Hasbach points out, these ideas have been around for our entire evolutionary history. I daresay our ability to thrive in the future is proportional to the number of people—legislators and otherwise—who incorporate into their lives the habits outlined in Grounded.” —Brooke Williams, author of Mary Jane Wild: Two Walks & a Rant“Dr. Hasbach’s gorgeous, easy-to-use journal helps all of us—no matter where we are—connect with the beauty and solace of nature and deepen our sense of calm, open-hearted belonging.” —Mary DeMocker, author of The Parents’ Guide to Climate Revolution"[A] rad new mindfulness journal." —TerraDrift

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe poems in Poems on Nature are divided into spring, summer, autumn and winter to reflect in verse the changes of the seasons and the passing of time.Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library, a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold-foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition features an introduction by Helen Macdonald, author of the international bestseller, H is for Hawk.Since poetry began, there have been poems about nature; it’s a complex subject which has inspired some of the most beautiful poetry ever written. Poets from Andrew Marvell to W. B. Yeats to Emily Brontë have sought to describe the natural environment and our relationship with it. There is also a rich tradition of songs and rhymes, such as ’Scarborough Fair’, that hark back to a rural way of life which may now be lost, but is brought back to life in the lyrical verses included in this collection.Table of ContentsIntroduction - i: Introduction Unit - 1: Spring Poem - 1: ‘The year’s at the spring’ - Robert Browning Poem - 2: I so liked Spring - Charlotte Mew Poem - 3: There Will Come Soft Rains - Sara Teasdale Poem - 4: To a Snowdrop - William Wordsworth Poem - 5: February Twilight - Sara Teasdale Poem - 6: Spring - William Blake Poem - 7: Thaw - Edward Thomas Poem - 8: Spring - Christina Rossetti Poem - 9: Her Anxiety - W. B. Yeats Poem - 10: Invitation to the Country - George Meredith Poem - 11: To my Sister - William Wordsworth Poem - 12: ‘Dear March – Come In –’ - Emily Dickinson Poem - 13: The Lamb - William Blake Poem - 14: March - Anon Poem - 15: I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud - William Wordsworth Poem - 16: To Daffodils - Robert Herrick Poem - 17: Mothering Sunday - George Hare Leonard Poem - 18: I Watched a Blackbird - Thomas Hardy Poem - 19: Loveliest of trees - A. E. Houseman Poem - 20: The Cuckoo - Anon Poem - 21: The Cuckoo - Anon Poem - 22: The Woods and Banks - W. H. Davies Poem - 23: Little Trotty Wagtail - John Clare Poem - 24: Home Thoughts from Abroad - Robert Browning Poem - 25: On a Lane in Spring John Clare Poem - 26: Spring - Gerard Manley Hopkins Poem - 27: The Starlight Night - Gerard Manley Hopkins Poem - 28: Tall Nettles - Edward Thomas Poem - 29: ‘When that I was and a little tiny boy’ - William Shakespeare Poem - 30: Sonnet 98 - William Shakespeare Poem - 31: But These Things Also - Edward Thomas Poem - 32: The Argument of His Book Robert Herrick Poem - 33: The Song of Wandering Aengus - W. B. Yeats Poem - 34: A Brilliant Day - Charles Tennyson Turner Unit - 2: Summer Poem - 1: Summer - Christina Rossetti Poem - 2: The Happy Countryman - Nicholas Breton Poem - 3: A Day - Emily Dickinson Poem - 4: My Heart Leaps Up - William Wordsworth Poem - 5: The Merry Month of May - Thomas Dekker Poem - 6: ‘Sumer is icumen in’ - Anon Poem - 7: The Throstle - Alfred, Lord Tennyson Poem - 8: The Landrail - John Clare Poem - 9: The Lake Isle of Innisfree - W. B. Yeats Poem - 10: Seven Times One: Exultation - Jean Ingelow Poem - 11: This Lime-tree Bower my Prison - Samuel Taylor Coleridge Poem - 12: The Cow - Robert Louis Stevenson Poem - 13: The Frog - Anon. Poem - 14: Little Fish - D. H. Lawrence Poem - 15: Heaven - Rupert Brooke Poem - 16: To Make a Prairie - Emily Dickinson Poem - 17: The Unknown Bird - Edward Thomas Poem - 18: To a Skylark - Percy Bysshe Shelley Poem - 19: Trees - Joyce Kilmer Poem - 20: The Sweet o’ the Year - George Meredith Poem - 21: Ladybird! Ladybird! - Emily Brontë Poem - 22: Daisies - Christina Rossetti Poem - 23: Where the Bee Sucks - William Shakespeare Poem - 24: The Gardener - Anon Poem - 25: The Cries of London - Anon Poem - 26: Scarborough Fair - Anon Poem - 27: from A Midsummer Night’s Dream - William Shakespeare Poem - 28: Summer Dawn - William Morris Poem - 29: Careless Rambles - John Clare Poem - 30: A Green Cornfield - Christina Rossetti Poem - 31: The Caterpillar - Christina Rossetti Poem - 32: To a Butterfly - William Wordsworth Poem - 33: Adlestrop - Edward Thomas Poem - 34: Fly Away, Fly Away Over the Sea - Christina Rossetti Poem - 35: Epitaph on a Hare - William Cowper Poem - 36: A London Plane-Tree - Amy Levy Poem - 37: In the Fields - Charlotte Mew Poem - 38: Meeting at Night - Robert Browning Unit - 3: Autumn Poem - 1: To Autumn - John Keats Poem - 2: Leisure - W. H. Davies Poem - 3: from Give me the Splendid, Silent Sun - Walt Whitman Poem - 4: Pied Beauty - Gerard Manley Hopkins Poem - 5: The Glory - Edward Thomas Poem - 6: The Rainy Day - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Poem - 7: Autumn Rain - D. H. Lawrence Poem - 8: Digging - Edward Thomas Poem - 9: Autumn Fires - Robert Louis Stevenson Poem - 10: Now is the Time for the Burning of the Leaves - Laurence Binyon Poem - 11: Moonlit Apples - John Drinkwater Poem - 12: The Lane - Edward Thomas Poem - 13: The Wild Swans at Coole - W. B. Yeats Poem - 14: ‘Western wind, when wilt thou blow?’ - Anon. Poem - 15: Who Has Seen the Wind? - Christina Rossetti Poem - 16: from The Garden - Andrew Marvell Poem - 17: Autumn Birds - John Clare Poem - 18: The Windhover - Gerard Manley Hopkins Poem - 19: The Owl - Alfred, Lord Tennyson Poem - 20: Sweet Suffolke Owle - Anon Poem - 21: Rural Evening - Lord De Tabley Poem - 22: The Hayloft - Robert Louis Stevenson Poem - 23: The Solitary Reaper - William Wordsworth Poem - 24: To a Squirrel at Kyle-Na-No- W. B. Yeats Poem - 25: The Way through the Woods - Rudyard Kipling Poem - 26: The Fisherman’s Wife - Amy Lowell Poem - 27: Sign of the Times - Paul Laurence Dunbar Poem - 28: Fall, Leaves, Fall - Emily Brontë Poem - 29: Pleasant Sounds - John Clare Poem - 30: A Noiseless, Patient Spider - Walt Whitman Poem - 31: Something Told the Wild Geese - Rachel Field Unit - 4: Winter Poem - 1: To a Mouse - Robert Burns Poem - 2: Spellbound - Emily Brontë Poem - 3: Winter-Time - Robert Louis Stevenson Poem - 4: Winter - Gerard Manley Hopkins Poem - 5: A Winter Night - William Barnes Poem - 6: Snow Storm - John Clare Poem - 7: No! - Thomas Hood Poem - 8: Sheep in Winter - John Clare Poem - 9: Snow - Edward Thomas Poem - 10: Out in the Dark - Edward Thomas Poem - 11: The Fallow Deer at the Lonely House - Thomas Hardy Poem - 12: from As You Like It - William Shakespeare Poem - 13: A Winter Bluejay - Sara Teasdale Poem - 14: Birds at Winter Nightfall - Thomas Hardy Poem - 15: The Darkling Thrush - Thomas Hardy Poem - 16: Little Robin Redbreast - Anon. Poem - 17: Frost at Midnight - Samuel Taylor Coleridge Poem - 18: Up in the Morning Early - Robert Burns Poem - 19: In Tenebris - Ford Madox Ford Poem - 20: The Holly and the Ivy - Anon. Poem - 21: The First Tree in the Greenwood - Anon. Poem - 22: The Oxen - Thomas Hardy Index - ii: Index of Poets Index - iii: Index of Titles Index - iv: Index of First Lines

Read more less