A very well written and colorful book with detailed yet easily understandable diagrams and figures. The text is written for those with little background in ecology yet is detailed enough not to be vague for those familiar with the science and with Minnesota. It was required reading in some ecology classes at the Univ. of Minnesota, yet is sits well as a coffee table book.

A very well-written colorful book with detailed yet easily understandable diagrams and figures. The text is balanced for those who know little of ecology yet provides enough detail to not be vague for those familiar with the science and with Minnesota. A darn good book for those wanting to know about the natural history of Minnesota. Big pictures. Was required reading in some ecology classes at the University of Minnesota, yet sits well as a coffee table book.

Some say this is Muir's finest work. As the only other Muir book I've read (at this writing) is Travels in Alaska, I cannot comment on this, other than to say that I enjoyed this book a great deal.
From almost any vantage point in California, whether near or on a distant horizon, there are mountains. A fact not lost on Muir, whose sense of wonder and love of life endear him to his readers.
"God's glacial-mills grind slowly, but they have been kept in motion long enough in California to grind sufficient soil for a glorious abundance of life ... In so wild and so beautiful a region [was spent my day], every sight and sound inspiring, leading one far out of himself, yet feeding and building up his individuality."
Muir was the consummate man in nature. Anyone who is indifferent to Muir's writing may simply be indifferent to wonderment itself. I have no doubt that if Muir were placed in a room with the great kings and generals and tycoons and empire builders of history, he would appear singularly as a man among men. Unimpressed with their pomp and bluster over rotting empire, he might soon command more attention than they, and many would be happily listening to Muir in spite of their self importance. Why? He would have the most interesting insights, offered poetically and in a most humble and charming way. ... (in fact Muir was sought out by the great politicians and philosophers of his day).
If you like mountains, if you like California, if you like trees and glacier-fed streams, you will like this book.

muir describes the sierras with detail and love. he is one of the few authors who is content just to be in and describe a landscape. and what a description!. he describes the evolution of glaciaral lakes to the hights of mount ritter and the migrations of deer and native peoples. a great book i recoment it to anyone who loves the outdoors.

If you are at all interested in conservation, then you have to read this book. John Oates shows how the modern concept of community based conservation that looks so good on paper, in reality has been a dismal failure in West Africa. He provieds several examples from his 30 year long career in West Africa. He shows that you have to be realistic when designing conservation programs, and that many people making conservation decisions are more interested in prestige and money than they are in preserving natural ecosystems. It is sad when you read that the World Wildlife Fund conservation planners are not interested to even go see the areas that they are supposed to protect. The intrinsic value of nature is a hard sell, but finally the utilitarian view of nature seems to always lead to exploitation, and increased pressure on the areas that are supposed to be protected. He also very clearly demonstrates that the idea of using zoos for conservation is a bad one. Zoos are probabally the best way to educate the public about conservation, but are very poor ways to protect species, in fact zoos can even do more harm that good. This book really open your eyes, the situation isn't hopeless, but if conservation projects in Africa are going to work, then it has to be done with a realistic approach and the intrinsic value of nature needs to be on the fore front of the effort.

This is a must read for environmentalist, conservationists and everyone who donates money to the cause of saving endangered species. From Oates own experiences in Africa and Asia, Oates tells us how the myth of sustainable development is failing to protect species and parks. He informs us about that what is needed is a return to protecting nature for its own sake. It is a well written book that weaves personal history with the history of the conservation organizations that are telling us they are "saving life on earth." The reality is they are failing and they must change tactics and soon.

The original edition of this book was out of print for some years and it is delightful to see it out again, and expanded no less. It combines 2 great virtues: highly readable and informative text with illustrations of a quality that are "suitable for framing." It is a great book for anyone who takes an interest in botany, cooking, or gardening and you couldn't go wrong giving it as a gift to one of these types. It's also great for reference. If you're getting it as a gift I suggest ordering 2, because you'll want one for yourself when you see it.

This book is great for learning to identify food plants from all over the world. The illustrations are realistic and each plant is described. I use it to help my 4-H horticulture judging team prepare for the national judging contest. The plants and illustrations in this new edition are the same as in the original book, however the 1998 edition has an excellent section on phytonutrients.

This book has received an Award of Excellence from the 2001 Southern Books Competition. "You could not find a lovelier title page spread than that in Of Birds and Texas. The sensitive calligraphy and the well-designed two-column text pages support the stunning bird prints." Congratulations to the authors, designer Ellen McKie and the University of Texas Press.

When Of Birds and Texas was first published in 1986 it was quickly deemed the most magnificent book in the history of Texas publishing. Consisting of 40 exquisitely detailed bird portraits and ten Texas landscape scenes, the volume was enhanced with accompanying commentary by the Gentling brothers and a personal essay by John Graves.

Yet the 23" by 29 ½" outsize folio which weighed 46 pounds was beyond the reach and shelf space of many. Thus, it was printed as a limited edition. Now, for the first time, this unparalleled volume is available to a mass audience at an affordable price and manageable size while retaining the original 50 color plates as well as 28 remarques. Retaining the integrity of the original folio, this is truly a work of estimable quality and a collector's item.

In addition, the recent edition offers a new essay by Stuart Gentling, "Of Birds and Texas, Audubon and Us," in which he relates how the brothers' profound respect for the famed ornithologist/artist paved the way for them to create this book, which is inspired by Audubon's work.

The Gentlings are twin brothers, artists, authors, and lecturers based in Fort Worth. Having discovered at an early age the print edition of John James Audubon's Birds of America, they now share a passion for art, world culture and wildlife.

His keen interest in wildlife, particularly birds, led Stuart to learn taxidermy. Both brothers began a serious study of art when they were 14. Their awards are numerous; their paintings may be found in museums and libraries throughout Texas and the United States. This year Scott received a commission to paint a portrait of President George Bush for the Texas State Capitol dome.

Artwork in Of Birds and Texas is created collaboratively by the Gentlings. In the original folio are reproductions of watercolor paintings with the color, blend and atmosphere attributed to Stuart, while the line and small strokes were contributed by Scott.

Getting the first volume published proved to be a formidable task. Plans reached a standstill when it was discovered that the actual production of the folio would cost more than double the estimates. What rescued the project was a lucky find by Stuart in the Philadelphia Print Shop catalog: a listing of Audubon's "The Great Crow Blackbird." The brothers were able to purchase the Audubon for $18,000. After its authentication as an original Audubon, it was sold at Sotheby's for $253,000. Thus, the completion of the original Of Birds and Texas was made possible.

Our loss would be great had this not been so. More than just a work of incredible visual beauty Of Birds and Texas is a joy to read as each color plate is partnered with a bird tale by the Gentlings.

A treasure in itself, the essay by beloved Texas author John Graves is as gracefully written as the classic works for which he is known, From A Limestone Ledge: Some Essays and Other Ruminations About Country Life In Texas, and Goodbye To A River. Once again, Mr. Graves writes with trenchant luminosity.

This landmark volume is dedicated to John James Audubon. It is now recreated for all to enjoy.

- Gail Cooke

Countries have a long history of ingratitude towards those who save them from peril. This book, in fictional form, was the first part of a planned trilogy detailing how the Polish army under King Jan Sobieski rescued the Western world from the encroachment of the Turks, by relieving the siege of Vienna in 1683. Without that victory, our entire history would probably have changed. What thanks did Poland receive for this tremendous accomplishment? It was dismembered by the very countries it had saved!
Sienkiewicz was a fine writer, unfortunately nearly unknown in these times. This is a robust work, but there is a dominant theme of patriotism infusing his characters. Rarely is love of country shown so clearly as in this work. It is also a love story, and a well-told one at that. The book has Sienkiewicz's usual elements: star-crossed lovers, strudy and loyal heroes, hissable villans, and characters who offer welcome comic relief. The writing is a bit old fashioned at times, but the patriotic feeling with which it was written practically leaps off the page at you. This book is much shorter than Sienkiewicz's other works that I have read, but its brevity does not diminish its impact.

First of all, as much as I love this book, I'd suggest that the first Henryk Sienkiewicz book a person should read be either Quo Vadis or With Fire and Sword. They are long but worth it. This book - incredible as it is - is almost just a fragment compared with the giant scale and spirit of his other books that I've read. Even so, it is head and shoulders above most literature in so many ways.

You really get a sense of the times from Sienkiewicz, and this book is no exception. The descriptions of the armies and the countryside and the people in them establish a very concrete setting. Even so, Sienkiewicz infuses everything in the book with thematic relevance, but it is all done so very subtly that only gradually does the reader cumulatively percieve what the author wants him to understand. This must have been very difficult to accomplish, but he makes it seem effortless.

All the characterizations are centered on ideals and you come to know the people in the story through what they stand for and do. It hardly matters what any character's goal is. What's important here is the idealism and purity - or lack thereof - with which they pursue those goals. The heroes are extremely idealized, and the villians are predatory and evil. The "damsel in distress" is not typecast as a ditz. She is a full participant in the action - almost the main character - and her nobility is played off to great advantage against the trials she goes through. It's hard to resist such larger than life portrayals. Plus, the action is fast paced and always interesting.

Admitedly, this novel was the first of a planned trilogy that Sienkiewicz never completed and it shows a little. On the Field of Glory stands on its own, but it is still just a first act. Jacek's character is probably developed more fully in what would have been book two. In On the Field of Glory, we see powerful, passionate people who are being swept up into a greater conflict, but we do not get to see that greater conflict.

An excellent book that stands on its own, but it's a great loss to world literature that Sienkiewicz couldn't complete the trilogy!

It takes a certain amount of moxie to publish a memoir about yourself as you lapse into fogeville. I wouldn't have the nerve, fearing not so much that I would bore my readers, but that I would reveal the poverty of my mind for all the world to see. Two hundred and fifty pages, perhaps 75,000 words of, by and about myself! Now that's a little scary.

So it was with some misgivings that I picked up this handsome book by John Jerome, professional writer, editor and (I could quickly see) prose stylist extraordinary. Well, I'm glad I did. He did a lot of research on aging and it shows. That knowledge, along with his observations on the experience of aging, is what makes this book so interesting. We geezers like to compare notes, and with Jerome we have someone who likes to share. I'm sure by now he wishes that he HAD taken out all the "embarrassing stuff," but we, John, are glad you left it in!

Jerome gives us a little of what he likes to do, satisfying work, canoeing, gin and tonic in the evenings. He recalls his neck surgery and a canoeing trip, why he cuts the grape vines and why he chased the beaver from his pond. He makes me jealous as hell with his idyllic New England lifestyle and his beautifully rendered prose. He makes sharp observations (One of the benefits of aging: "...no one's looking. You're invisible when you're old" p. 237; "Most men bore each other stiff" p. 242), and tosses out witty asides ("I am in favor of sensation for the aging...Let us celebrate our nerve endings while we can" p. 238) like there's nothing to this writing gig. That's one of the beautiful things about being a writer: you can still make those words dance when you're sixty-five. (The Beatles lyric from a few decades back, "Will you still need me/Will you still heed me...when I'm sixty-four?" is jumping through my head. Stop it!) Or at least John Jerome can make those words dance. His self-deprecating, yet self-affirming style reads as easy as shucked oysters going down. I'll whisper this since I'm sure it's a heresy, but I find him a lot more interesting than that Thoreau guy he keeps quoting.

He waits until the latter chapters to talk about suicide and sex. For me he could have waited a little longer with the sex. As he notes, referencing writer Tim Cahill, "Nobody, ever, is interested in your bowel movement" p. 102. Amen, I say and add the sex life of old men. But Jerome knows this. I think he felt, after having scolded Thoreau for leaving sex out of his journals, that he ought to fess up. He sees suicide as "An option, that's all. If and when." (Although he reports on having tried it when he was ten.) And then there is this profound insight on page 250: "Kevorkian, I now realize, serves a level of despair much deeper than I can quite conceive."

The book ends with these memorable words (as Jerome joyously contemplates a task that needs doing yet again): "After all, as Camus pointed out, Sisyphus was essentially a happy man."

Thanks, John, for sharing, and for expressing it all so well.

I just turned 62 and my parents are 82 and 85!!! So this book covered all bases. I really need all the info this book provides. Along with being informative, it is entertaining. So glad I came across this book. Easy reading but I'm reading it slowly to make it last! P.S. Wonderful picture on the cover, however, I wish the title was something different. I read it between a brown paper bag! Ok, so, don't you glance at the title of the book that folks read in public...and rush to judgement? Heavens forbid that someone would think I was approaching 65!

The software that comes with this book couples perfectly with Stanford's GSLIB (geostatistical software). Worth the money.

This book is an excellent overview on said topic. Clean, concise, and practical, it's often referenced.

This very technical guide will reach beyond the arts to any involved in color photography or the science of reproduction: Principles Of Color Reproduction covers the underlying principles of successful color reproduction, masking methods, tone reproduction and influences on color results, with many formulas covering densities, color separation and balance, and calculations for reflection. Very technical and perfect for the college-level art school library.

I can't believe this is only just now in its second edition -- my 20 year-old copy seemed like ancient wisdom at the time I got it... Back then, scanners were new and very expensive technology, so the book focused on the theory applicable to photography-based techniques. One needed to be well-versed in the science of photography (knowing physics helped) and human color vision to follow the book, but what it dealt with was great. All relevant aspects of color reproduction systems (esp. halftone systems based in inks) were dealt with in some detail, so for the very technically inclined the book was a goldmine of solid thinking and information -- even if many of the literature references were even then several decades old. Though the basic principles never change, I'll be interested to see whether the new edition has been sufficiently updated and revised to keep up with the revolution in the field the last two decades as things have moved over increasingly to electronic/digital ways of doing things.

This is a marvellously well-done little book whose only (minor) fault is that it skimps a bit on information about the animals themselves; facts about their diet, reproduction and behaviour are condensed into a paragraph each. Instead, we have a field guide worthy of the name that tells you where and how to find reptiles in northwestern North America and how to identify them, and that provides very good subspecies data (a rare thing nowadays), excellent range maps, and beautiful photography. Most enjoyable are the field notes at the end of each species description, in which the author tells a story about finding the animal in question in the wild (often so that it could be photographed for this book). This feature alone makes this book one of the most unique field guides I have encountered in years, and reminds us that a field guide is really about encountering and interacting with animals in the field -- and this point is ably illustrated by the often-funny photos of snakes dangling off someone's ear or lizards biting someone's hand. Highly recommended.

Reptiles are one of the most successful classes of animal that inhabit the earth. They occur in almost every climate and it should be no surprise that the Pacific Northwest has its share of fascinating reptiles. There are 42 species of reptile found from British Columbia to Northern California and Reptiles of the Northwest by Alan St. John is the guide to them. Comprehensive, with brilliant photographs, it is simply a must-own for not only budding herpetologists but naturalists and outdoor enthusiasts of all ages. Reptiles of the Northwest by Alan St. John has an easy to access and understand quick reference guide and detailed introduction to reptiles and herpetology. Each species of Northwest reptile is given a complete introduction with detailed description and information on its distribution, habitat and behaviour. What sets Reptiles of the Northwest by Alan St. John apart from other field guides are the 6 beautiful and informative color photos of each species and the informative and whimsical field notes describing each reptile. These are accounts of encounters Alan St. John has had with these reptiles and they give the reader experiences that you don't find in the average field guide. They are filled with the author's wonder and joy in these creatures, written with humour and warmth in a casual biographical style.
This is a special field guide. Its soft cover allows for ease of slipping into any backpack enabling one to take advantage of the great inclusion of the Northwest Reptile Life list note pages. Reptiles of the Northwest by Alan St. John is definitive and comprehensive It is a unique field guide to unique animals.