Compiled by an ardent bibliophile, this week's report features five titles, including an art book, Britain's freshwater fishes and one Briton's search for the goshawk; all of which were recently published in North America and the UK.
Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them.
~ Arnold Lobel [1933-1987] author of many popular children's books.
Compiled by Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, the Birdbooker Report is a weekly report that has been published online for years, listing the wide variety of nature, natural history, ecology, animal behaviour, science and history books that have been newly released or republished in North America and in the UK. The books listed here were received by Ian during the previous week, courtesy of various publishing houses.
*New and Recent Titles:*
· Macnamara, Peggy with John Bates and James H. Boone. The Art of Migration: Birds, Insects, and the Changing Seasons in Chicagoland. 2013. The University of Chicago Press. Hardbound: 203 pages. Price: $25.00 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Tiny ruby-throated hummingbirds weighing less than a nickel fly from the upper Midwest to Costa Rica every fall, crossing the six-hundred-mile Gulf of Mexico without a single stop. One of the many creatures that commute on the Mississippi Flyway as part of an annual migration, they pass along Chicago's lakefront and through midwestern backyards on a path used by their species for millennia. This magnificent migrational dance takes place every year in Chicagoland, yet it is often missed by the region's two-legged residents. The Art of Migration uncovers these extraordinary patterns that play out over the seasons. Readers are introduced to over two hundred of the birds and insects that traverse regions from the edge of Lake Superior to Lake Michigan and to the rivers that flow into the Mississippi.
As the only artist in residence at the Field Museum, Peggy Macnamara has a unique vantage point for studying these patterns and capturing their distinctive traits. Her magnificent watercolor illustrations capture flocks, movement, and species-specific details. The illustrations are accompanied by text from museum staff and include details such as natural histories, notable features for identification, behavior, and how species have adapted to environmental changes. The book follows a gentle seasonal sequence and includes chapters on studying migration, artist's notes on illustrating wildlife, and tips on the best ways to watch for birds and insects in the Chicago area.
A perfect balance of science and art, The Art of Migration will prompt us to marvel anew at the remarkable spectacle going on around us.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: If you liked Macnamara's Architecture by Birds and Insects you'll like this book.
· Jameson, Conor Mark. Looking for the Goshawk. 2013. Bloomsbury. Hardbound: $28.95 U.S./£18.99. [Guardian bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US/kindle US].
SUMMARY: The book traces Conor Jameson's travels in search of the Goshawk, a magnificent yet rarely seen (in Britain at least) raptor. Each episode of the narrative arises from personal experience, investigation, and the unearthing of information from research, exploration and conversations.
The journey takes him from an encounter with a stuffed Goshawk in a glass case, through travels into supposed Goshawk territories in Britain, to Berlin - where he finds the bird at ease in the city. Why, he wants to know, is the bird so rarely seen in Britain? He explores the politics of birdwatching, the sport of falconry and the impact of persecution on the recent history of the bird in Britain and travels the length of Britain, through central Europe and the USA in search of answers to the goshawk mystery. Throughout his journey he is inspired by the writings of T H White who told of his attempts to tame a Goshawk in his much-loved book.
It's a gripping tale on the trail of a most mysterious and charismatic bird.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: More of a travelogue than a book about Goshawk biology.
· Everard, Mark. Britain's Freshwater Fishes. 2013. Princeton University Press. Paperback: 144 pages. Price: $27.95 U.S./£17.95. [Guardian bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Britain hosts a diversity of freshwater environments, from torrential hill streams and lowland rivers to lakes, reservoirs, ponds, canals, ditches, and upper reaches of estuaries. Britain's Freshwater Fishes covers the 53 species of freshwater and brackish water fishes that are native or have been introduced and become naturalized. This beautifully illustrated guide features high-quality in-the-water or on-the-bank photographs throughout. Detailed species accounts describe the key identification features and provide information on status, size and weight, habitat, ecology, and conservation. Written in an accessible style, the book also contains introductory sections on fish biology, fish habitats, how to identify fishes, and conservation and legislation.
This book features:
· Covers all of Britain's freshwater fishes
· Features beautiful photos throughout
· Includes detailed information on 53 species, the places they inhabit, and their roles in Britain's ecosystems
· Attractively designed and easy to use
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: A well illustrated guide to the freshwater fishes of the region.
These titles are the first two volumes in the Animalibus: Of Animals and Cultures series:
· Landes, Joan B., Paula Young Lee, and Paul Youngquist (editors). Gorgeous Beasts: Animal Bodies in Historical Perspective. 2012. The Pennsylvania State University Press. Hardbound: 231 pages. Price: $49.95 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Gorgeous Beasts takes a fresh look at the place of animals in history and art. Refusing the traditional subordination of animals to humans, the essays gathered here examine a rich variety of ways animals contribute to culture: as living things, as scientific specimens, as food, weapons, tropes, and occasions for thought and creativity. History and culture set the terms for this inquiry. As history changes, so do the ways animals participate in culture. Gorgeous Beasts offers a series of discontinuous but probing studies of the forms their participation takes.
This collection presents the work of a wide range of scholars, critics, and thinkers from diverse disciplines: philosophy, literature, history, geography, economics, art history, cultural studies, and the visual arts. By approaching animals from such different perspectives, these essays broaden the scope of animal studies to include specialists and nonspecialists alike, inviting readers from all backgrounds to consider the place of animals in history and art. Combining provocative critical insights with arresting visual imagery, Gorgeous Beasts advances a challenging new appreciation of animals as co-inhabitants and co-creators of culture.
Aside from the editors, the contributors are Dean Bavington, Ron Broglio, Mark Dion, Erica Fudge, Cecilia Novero, Harriet Ritvo, Nigel Rothfels, Sajay Samuel, and Pierre Serna.
· Poliquin, Rachael. The Breathless Zoo: Taxidermy and the Cultures of Longing. 2012. The Pennsylvania State Unviersity Press. Paperback: 259 pages. Price: $29.95 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US/kindle US].
SUMMARY: From sixteenth-century cabinets of wonders to contemporary animal art, The Breathless Zoo: Taxidermy and the Cultures of Longing examines the cultural and poetic history of preserving animals in lively postures. But why would anyone want to preserve an animal, and what is this animal-thing now? Rachel Poliquin suggests that taxidermy is entwined with the enduring human longing to find meaning with and within the natural world. Her study draws out the longings at the heart of taxidermy—the longing for wonder, beauty, spectacle, order, narrative, allegory, and remembrance. In so doing, The Breathless Zoo explores the animal spectacles desired by particular communities, human assumptions of superiority, the yearnings for hidden truths within animal form, and the loneliness and longing that haunt our strange human existence, being both within and apart from nature.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
This invited guest piece was assembled by Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen and formatted by GrrlScientist.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen is an avid book collector who is especially well-known to the publishing world. Mr Paulsen collects newly-published books about nature, animals and birds, science, and history, and he also collects children's books on these topics. Mr Paulsen writes brief synopses about these books on his website, The Birdbooker Report.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
Grrlscientist can also be found here: Maniraptora. She also lurks on social media: facebook, G+, LinkedIn, Pinterest and of course, twitter: @GrrlScientist
GrrlScientist
guardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Reported by guardian.co.uk 14 hours ago.
Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them.
~ Arnold Lobel [1933-1987] author of many popular children's books.
Compiled by Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, the Birdbooker Report is a weekly report that has been published online for years, listing the wide variety of nature, natural history, ecology, animal behaviour, science and history books that have been newly released or republished in North America and in the UK. The books listed here were received by Ian during the previous week, courtesy of various publishing houses.
*New and Recent Titles:*
· Macnamara, Peggy with John Bates and James H. Boone. The Art of Migration: Birds, Insects, and the Changing Seasons in Chicagoland. 2013. The University of Chicago Press. Hardbound: 203 pages. Price: $25.00 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Tiny ruby-throated hummingbirds weighing less than a nickel fly from the upper Midwest to Costa Rica every fall, crossing the six-hundred-mile Gulf of Mexico without a single stop. One of the many creatures that commute on the Mississippi Flyway as part of an annual migration, they pass along Chicago's lakefront and through midwestern backyards on a path used by their species for millennia. This magnificent migrational dance takes place every year in Chicagoland, yet it is often missed by the region's two-legged residents. The Art of Migration uncovers these extraordinary patterns that play out over the seasons. Readers are introduced to over two hundred of the birds and insects that traverse regions from the edge of Lake Superior to Lake Michigan and to the rivers that flow into the Mississippi.
As the only artist in residence at the Field Museum, Peggy Macnamara has a unique vantage point for studying these patterns and capturing their distinctive traits. Her magnificent watercolor illustrations capture flocks, movement, and species-specific details. The illustrations are accompanied by text from museum staff and include details such as natural histories, notable features for identification, behavior, and how species have adapted to environmental changes. The book follows a gentle seasonal sequence and includes chapters on studying migration, artist's notes on illustrating wildlife, and tips on the best ways to watch for birds and insects in the Chicago area.
A perfect balance of science and art, The Art of Migration will prompt us to marvel anew at the remarkable spectacle going on around us.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: If you liked Macnamara's Architecture by Birds and Insects you'll like this book.
· Jameson, Conor Mark. Looking for the Goshawk. 2013. Bloomsbury. Hardbound: $28.95 U.S./£18.99. [Guardian bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US/kindle US].
SUMMARY: The book traces Conor Jameson's travels in search of the Goshawk, a magnificent yet rarely seen (in Britain at least) raptor. Each episode of the narrative arises from personal experience, investigation, and the unearthing of information from research, exploration and conversations.
The journey takes him from an encounter with a stuffed Goshawk in a glass case, through travels into supposed Goshawk territories in Britain, to Berlin - where he finds the bird at ease in the city. Why, he wants to know, is the bird so rarely seen in Britain? He explores the politics of birdwatching, the sport of falconry and the impact of persecution on the recent history of the bird in Britain and travels the length of Britain, through central Europe and the USA in search of answers to the goshawk mystery. Throughout his journey he is inspired by the writings of T H White who told of his attempts to tame a Goshawk in his much-loved book.
It's a gripping tale on the trail of a most mysterious and charismatic bird.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: More of a travelogue than a book about Goshawk biology.
· Everard, Mark. Britain's Freshwater Fishes. 2013. Princeton University Press. Paperback: 144 pages. Price: $27.95 U.S./£17.95. [Guardian bookshop; Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Britain hosts a diversity of freshwater environments, from torrential hill streams and lowland rivers to lakes, reservoirs, ponds, canals, ditches, and upper reaches of estuaries. Britain's Freshwater Fishes covers the 53 species of freshwater and brackish water fishes that are native or have been introduced and become naturalized. This beautifully illustrated guide features high-quality in-the-water or on-the-bank photographs throughout. Detailed species accounts describe the key identification features and provide information on status, size and weight, habitat, ecology, and conservation. Written in an accessible style, the book also contains introductory sections on fish biology, fish habitats, how to identify fishes, and conservation and legislation.
This book features:
· Covers all of Britain's freshwater fishes
· Features beautiful photos throughout
· Includes detailed information on 53 species, the places they inhabit, and their roles in Britain's ecosystems
· Attractively designed and easy to use
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: A well illustrated guide to the freshwater fishes of the region.
These titles are the first two volumes in the Animalibus: Of Animals and Cultures series:
· Landes, Joan B., Paula Young Lee, and Paul Youngquist (editors). Gorgeous Beasts: Animal Bodies in Historical Perspective. 2012. The Pennsylvania State University Press. Hardbound: 231 pages. Price: $49.95 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Gorgeous Beasts takes a fresh look at the place of animals in history and art. Refusing the traditional subordination of animals to humans, the essays gathered here examine a rich variety of ways animals contribute to culture: as living things, as scientific specimens, as food, weapons, tropes, and occasions for thought and creativity. History and culture set the terms for this inquiry. As history changes, so do the ways animals participate in culture. Gorgeous Beasts offers a series of discontinuous but probing studies of the forms their participation takes.
This collection presents the work of a wide range of scholars, critics, and thinkers from diverse disciplines: philosophy, literature, history, geography, economics, art history, cultural studies, and the visual arts. By approaching animals from such different perspectives, these essays broaden the scope of animal studies to include specialists and nonspecialists alike, inviting readers from all backgrounds to consider the place of animals in history and art. Combining provocative critical insights with arresting visual imagery, Gorgeous Beasts advances a challenging new appreciation of animals as co-inhabitants and co-creators of culture.
Aside from the editors, the contributors are Dean Bavington, Ron Broglio, Mark Dion, Erica Fudge, Cecilia Novero, Harriet Ritvo, Nigel Rothfels, Sajay Samuel, and Pierre Serna.
· Poliquin, Rachael. The Breathless Zoo: Taxidermy and the Cultures of Longing. 2012. The Pennsylvania State Unviersity Press. Paperback: 259 pages. Price: $29.95 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US/kindle US].
SUMMARY: From sixteenth-century cabinets of wonders to contemporary animal art, The Breathless Zoo: Taxidermy and the Cultures of Longing examines the cultural and poetic history of preserving animals in lively postures. But why would anyone want to preserve an animal, and what is this animal-thing now? Rachel Poliquin suggests that taxidermy is entwined with the enduring human longing to find meaning with and within the natural world. Her study draws out the longings at the heart of taxidermy—the longing for wonder, beauty, spectacle, order, narrative, allegory, and remembrance. In so doing, The Breathless Zoo explores the animal spectacles desired by particular communities, human assumptions of superiority, the yearnings for hidden truths within animal form, and the loneliness and longing that haunt our strange human existence, being both within and apart from nature.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
This invited guest piece was assembled by Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen and formatted by GrrlScientist.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen is an avid book collector who is especially well-known to the publishing world. Mr Paulsen collects newly-published books about nature, animals and birds, science, and history, and he also collects children's books on these topics. Mr Paulsen writes brief synopses about these books on his website, The Birdbooker Report.
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
Grrlscientist can also be found here: Maniraptora. She also lurks on social media: facebook, G+, LinkedIn, Pinterest and of course, twitter: @GrrlScientist
GrrlScientist
guardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Reported by guardian.co.uk 14 hours ago.