This title is actually one of the earliest in a very successful list of Golden Guides. It quickly brings the reader up to speed on the subject of insects in general and proceeds to lure him onward with fascinating information about each of the referenced insects in turn. When I arrived in New England, after an early childhood of city dwelling, my forays into woods and field, guidebook in hand, were some of the most educational times of my young life. I still have my original, ragged, copy of "American Insects" and treasure it.

This book, deservedly, is a classic. Although relatively short, it is chock-full of insights -- many of which anticipate the important work decades later by F.A. Hayek. Spencer's passion for freedom, and his understanding of the nature of politicized and depoliticized societies, was deep. This is an inspiring work.

This book is recommended to dispel two longstanding, pernicious myths. The 19th century sociologist and philosopher, Herbert Spencer, has long been the bete noir of progressives and socialists for supporting an allegedly anarchic laissez faire policy of government non-intervention and social Darwinism. The odd thing about today's Republicans, "conservatives" or "right-wingers" is the way they seem to join with the left in denouncing Spencer and laissez faire. For instance, many Republicans staunchly defend the Democrat party's largest government programs as if they were defending their own mother: Most Republican politicians today not only refrain from attempts to abolish the New Deal Social Security program but actually express eagerness to save and preserve this Democrat expansion of the welfare state, and in doing so often reject the alleged laissez faire policies of the 1930-40s conservatives who opposed the New Deal . The mystery grows deeper when we actually read the 1930-40s opponents of the New Deal such as Ogden Mills in his anti-New Deal manifesto, The Seventeen Million, and find that this Depression-era conservative also distanced himself from laissez faire in favor of some level of intervention (Mills 1937 p.40). Even Hayek, who apparently knows the true meaning of laissez faire (Hayek 1994 p.89-90), spends some ink denouncing certain "wooden" or "dogmatic" laissez faire attitudes (p.21,41).

What might, but should not, surprise modern readers is that Spencer supported government intervention because laissez faire does not reject all intervention (1981 p.21). Indeed, laissez faire requires government intervention. Laissez faire is not anarchy because we already have a word for anarchy called "anarchy." Laissez faire is the exact opposite of anarchy because laissez faire is the rule of law. The premise of laissez faire is to establish the framework in which individuals may freely allocate resources, a legal framework established by government intervention to secure defense, fair trial and property rights (guaranteed process). Thus, a laissez faire government does not order what contract you must sign but, once you freely contract with someone, the laissez faire government is pledged to intervene to enforce your contract rights if the other party defrauds or reneges. This is opposed to the central planning of socialism which prevents individuals' free allocation of resources and freedom to contract in order to engineer some pre-ordained social goal (guaranteed result). Social democrats oppose many market results which occur when laissez faire "only" guarantees process-- although it is not quite clear how government central planning is more democratic than the market result from the aggregate preferences of millions of free-choosing consumers.

The other longstanding myth, which even modern conservatives propagate, is the false caricature of Spencer as a callous, social Darwinist and classic, Victorian scrooge. First, it is important to understand Spencer's argument that certain imperfections and undesirable results hardly invalidate laissez faire, because "it is not a question of absolute evils; it is a question of relative evils-- whether the evils at present suffered are or are not less than the evils which would be suffered under another system" (8). Although Spencer opposed the socialism of many "progressives," it is clear that Spencer was a progressive who desired the amelioration of the common man and working poor-- improvements most likely gained by laissez faire, according to Spencer. In this 1891 book, Spencer took pains to avoid any misunderstanding on this crucial point, although his ideological enemies and history seemed happy to ignore his efforts: "Let me again repudiate any erroneous inference. Any one who supposes that the foregoing argument implies contentment with things as they are, makes a profound mistake. ... My opposition to socialism results from the belief that it would stop the progress to such a higher state and bring back a lower state. ... It is not then, chiefly in the interests of the employing classes that socialism is to be resisted, but much more in the interests of the employed classes" (p.29-32). Thus, the other benefit of this book is to indicate the humane compassion of this poor, traduced, laissez faire advocate.

This is the advantage of primary sources; to read not what others wrote about Spencer's thoughts and writing but to read what the man actually wrote. A greater effort to verify claims by primary sources would redress a legion of falsehoods. This book provides not just the original writings of Spencer but those of numerous, able thinkers of the Victorian era.

This little guide is the best choice for beginners and children. Book gives the reader an idea about what rocks and minerals are, where and how they can be found, and some information about major minerals and rocks. All the pictures are hand drawn illustrations, so that they are not very detailed but still OK for kids and beginners. (I liked it when I was young!)

Yes it's way out of date. Yes the super rare shells listed in the book are often no longer even mildly rare. Yes it is drawings only. Sigh. But this is the book that got me and all too many others hooked into this area. 30 years later I still love the hobby. Give it to a child and watch him/her grow.

This was one of the original Golden Guides done back in the 50's, along with The Stars, Rocks and Minerals, Birds, North American Trees, and some others. I collected and read just about all of these and it's surprising how much info they got into these little books. Each book is exactly 160 pages, if I remember right. Thus, they have a fixed format, so they have to be very careful about what they select for material since it all has to fit.

These books sold for 75 cents or 95 cents originally. They were great little educational tools when I was a schoolboy, and I could still read them with profit many years later.

The more specialized ones, such as Pond Life, Structural Geology, The Heart, Insect Pests, Spiders and Their Kin, Mushrooms and Non-Vascular plants, were also very good.

It is small. It is well illustrated. It is simple. It is comprehensive. It is correct, almost no errors and no "over simplifications." If you are a CEO, a student, or a child over 10 and interested in understanding weather, this well organized and concise book is a good place to start.

Golden Guides are often described as books for children just discovering the natural world. While the series is eminently usable by young naturalists, Golden Guides are solid introductory field guides.

The strong point of "Butterflies and Moths" is its extensive coverage of butterfly larvae and pupae. A common complaint about many if not all more advanced field guides for laypeople is that they fail to include illustrations for te identification of caterpillars. The Golden Guide remedies this shortcoming and includes solid coverage of moths as well, whose less-glamorous condition excludes them from other butterflies-only guides (the Peterson Guide is a notable exception). In terms of weaknesses, the illustrations of adult butterflies have, in my experience, not been detailed or accurate enough to positively identify some species.

I carried an earlier edition of "Butterflies and Moths" around with my as I traipsed about fields near my home, butterfly hunting. I'd find a butterfly (or moth, as the case may be) and approximate which one it was through this guide.

The pictures are accurate. Not only will you see the butterfly, but a close up of various parts. There are maps showing where it can be found, a very useful tool when the picture doesn't seem to match. It can help you determine if you have a certain variation, or a very lost butterfly.

Though a picture is worth a thousand words, the text found here is equally helpful. There are Latin names, pupae descriptions, eating habits and more. They've been careful not to overwhelm the reader, but there's plenty to whet the reading appetite of any young butterfly hunter.

It isn't just for children. Anyone with a garden would be happy to have this as a reference or as curious reading to learn just who has been munching the lettuce.

I fully recommend "Butterflies and Moths" by Robert T. Mitchell.

Anthony Trendl

I recently purchased my second copy of this classic field guide. I still have my originial after thirty-six years (it sold for $1.00 back then). It is loaded with just enough useful information to help you identify many of the most common North American species. What I like most about this guide is the convenient small size.

I've had this field guide in my possession for quite a while. While it does have some good features, I still don't take it along with me into the field. The reason is that I don't have complete confidence in the full-color illustrations. I don't think that any of the illustrations are bad; however, I do find some of them to be fuzzy and unclear. That aside, there are other aspects of this field guide that I like better. This field guide covers all of the birds of North America--regular, casual, and accidental visitors are also included. There's also an informative introduction and a nice section on how to use the field guide. There's an illustration of the topography of a bird with its various parts pointed out. There are two other illustrations detailing the parts of a duck wing. The text information and range maps are on the left page, while the illustrations are on the right page. Habitat backgrounds are used in combination with the illustrations, too, while individual species in varying plumages are also represented. The length of the particular species of bird is shown next to the illustration. The average wingspan of larger flying or soaring birds is also included next to the illustration. Most birds normally seen in flight are illustrated in a flying position. The text information includes the common name, scientific name, abundance, habitat, description, behavior, and vocalizations. Besides the verbal descriptions of songs in the text, songs or calls of many birds are pictured by Sonagrams. There are separate sections that display illustrations of female ducks in flight, hawks in flight, winter plumage of smaller shorebirds, immature gulls, and immature terns. There are also two other separate sections dealing with warblers: one section shows illustrations of only the heads of spring male warblers with and without wing bars, and the other section displays illustrations of fall warblers. Also, another section shows sparrows with and without streaked breasts. This field guide also includes a bibliography and an index. The index of bird species can be used as a checklist for the species identified. A check-off box is situated next to each common-name entry for this purpose. Even though I don't take this field guide with me whenever I go birdwatching, I still find it to be a helpful back-up reference at home when I need to gather some additional information.

I have carried the older edition of this bird book for a number of years, and purchased this new one as the old one had become so dog eared as to be embarassing. Also we knew that many species ranges were changing, and wanted to be up to date on that information. The new edition has the same format (down to the exact page) as the previous, and same illustrations. The many advantages of this guide include:

1) It has every bird you are likely to see in North America 2) Everything about a species is on one page, including illustration, description, range map, and sonogram of song (for many species) 3) Nice comparison charts of similar and confusing species 4) Range maps include migration date lines 5) True pocket size -- you will carry this book with you in the field!

The new edition also has updated nomenclature for species that the bird expert powers-that-be keep changing on us. It also has updated range maps for those species whose ranges are changing. It is printed on a slicker stock than the previous (only time will tell if this is better). It also has a new "quick" index which is handy for locating birds by generic name (crows).

But there are some disappointments.

1) It is probably 95% a reprint of the previous edition, both with respect to descriptions and (particularly) illustrations 2) The little check boxes to mark off birds you have seen are missing from the new edition -- surely that was an oversight(?) 3) They did not correct the one thing that was a true weakness of the previous edition, that the range maps are small and rather difficult to interpret. How much easier it would be if the US state borders were overprinted on these little range maps (or for that matter Canadian provinces and Mexican states)???

But of course, it is still our favorite -- if you have only one bird book, and you want to carry it in your pocket, this is the one to buy.

"Birds of North America" is a truly excellent guide. It may not be the most comprehensive, but it certainly is the most useful. It's probably the all-around greatest birding field guide out there. The illustrations are very well done, and the size of the book is easily manageable. This book is detailed enough to accomodate all but the most demanding and professional birders, but user-friendly enough to not overwhelm the amateur.

Pond Life is like a general biology introduction to life found in ponds. All types of life are covered, albeit in very brief introductions. Plants and animals (microscopic to mammals to birds) each receive tertiary coverage. The book does not get into specifics on how wetlands function relation to other ecosystems, and such coverage would have been useful, but the overall emphasis is still relevant.

The book is likely not intended to be read from cover to cover, as it is a field guide. Field guides are really meant to be brought along in a pocket for easy reference when making field identifications. In this respect, I am a big fan of other field guides in the series.

This volume and its companions should be readily available at nature centers, but the price is low enough for people to purchase it for their own libraries. What it lacks in detail it makes up for in compactness and readability.

Golden Guides are often described as books for children just discovering the natural world. While the series is eminently usable by young naturalists, Golden Guides are solid introductory field guides. One of the strengths of "Pond Life" is its comprehensive scope covering everything from protozoa to plants to mammals. Indeed, it provides more good basic information on identifying types of water plants than any other source I know complete with measurements and color illustrations. The same applies to its coverage of invertebrates as well, though the minor objection of the previous reviewer concerning its scanty treatment of protozoa is a valid one. I would add to the strength of "Pond Life" its portability, which packs a plethora of information into a small package. Another weakness (of the Golden Guides in general) is its datedness to the 1950's and 60's. This does not affect its basic science in most cases, though it is strange (albeit nostalgic for some) to see the equipment suggested for pond watching.

E.O. Wilson, in his beautiful and brilliant autobiography, has stated that if he could live his life again, he would do so as a microbiologist who would dedicate himself to the study of a single tree and the area immediately surrounding it. He would investigate the organisms and the ecology of that small space, finding enough there to occupy his interest for a lifetime of exploration and research.

Given the same choice, I would choose a pond as my area of study, and this book would be one of the first field guides I would use. It is a basic introduction to the study of small bodies of fresh water: their defining characteristics, the forms they take through the seasons, the cycle of their lives, and the distinct forms they take throughout the United States. It also touches on the physical and chemical characteristics of water, and the importance these have for the organisms that live in or near the pond. The book introduces the concept of food webs and the multiple habitats of lakes and ponds, and also lists and describes some of the basic collecting tools of the limnologist (one who studies bodies of fresh water). The majority of the book is dedicated to the plants and animals which are frequently found near ponds. As one would expect, the emphasis is on how these organisms relate to the others in this environment, whether they are full or part time denizens, and in what types of ponds they can be found. More than merely a book about creatures found in ponds, it presents information about the pond itself and how its many inhabitants and visitors relate to one another there.

The book has two small weaknesses. The first is a slight bias towards organisms found only east of the Mississippi. There is enough information about ponds in general, however, to make this guide useful for any budding limnologist. The second flaw is that the sections on the protozoa and other microscopic organisms are far too short, but as a protozoologist I am perhaps biased. Still, I think that even a few more pages would have added to the value of this section by demonstrating the amazing complexity of these phyla.

As it is, however, the book functions admirably as an introduction to the study of ponds: it will lead beginners into the natural world, and to help them identify what they find there. It is suited for older children and adolescents, and will still be of some use at the college level, if only because it includes a list of more technical reference books. I recommend it for anyone who wants to "take the plunge" into the study of this fascinating environment!