Field guides are wonderful things – particularly those that feature top-quality photographs or illustrations of their subjects. But sometimes, high quality as they may be, it’s simply difficult to get a sense of the animal, plant, or what-have-you as it is in life without being able to see it life-size. Which is why so many naturalists have been praising University of Chicago’s “Six Hundred Life-Size” books; they present their subjects, just as the title says, in life-size.
When it comes to people from history about whom I never tire of reading, Theodore Roosevelt is right up at the top of my list. Whether it be his self-development from a sickly boy into the famously robust man he became, his fascinating and unconventional political life, or his many and varied outdoor adventures, T.R. was a boundless source of interesting material for authors. Which is why my interest was immediately piqued by word of a new book from University of Chicago Press by Michael R. Canfield titled Theodore Roosevelt in the Field.
Each time the second day of February comes around, I am reminded of a question that first entered my mind many years ago, “Just what in the name of John James Audubon does whether or not a particular groundhog in Pennsylvania sees its own shadow on this day have to do with the weather?” Then, last month, whilst perusing the most recent catalog from Penn State University Press, I happened upon the listing for William W. Donner’s new book Serious Nonsense;
Groundhog Lodges, Versammlinge, and Pennsylvania German Heritage.
If there was ever a geographic location that needed a comprehensive reference guide to its amphibians and reptiles, the border states between the United States and Mexico is it. And not only a comprehensive reference guide, but a bilingual one. Therefore its exceptionally fortunate that Texas A&M University Press has recently published Amphibians and Reptiles of the US – Mexico Border States/Anfibios y reptiles de los estados de la frontera México – Estados Unidos.