Reference Books - Page 5

Remarkable Trees of Virginia

Nancy Ross Hugo

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

This stunning collaboration between the noted garden writer Nancy Ross Hugo and the photographer Robert Llewellyn showcases the fruits of an effort begun in 2004 to research, locate, and photograph Virginia's most remarkable trees. Four years later, more than one thousand trees had been officially nominated to the project and many others suggested for possible inclusion. The results, presented in this elegant, four-color volume, are astounding. Hugo and Kirwan, the project coordinators, have selected a sample of trees and "tree places" that illustrate the enormous variety, startling beauty, and fascinating history of Virginia's trees. Here you will see, through Llewellyn's incomparable lens, not only some of Virginia's largest trees, including a newly discovered national champion overcup oak in Isle of Wight County, but also some of the state's oldest, including baldcypress trees over 800 years old in Southampton County and red cedars over 450 years old in Giles. You will find unique trees like a willow oak in which a tricycle is embedded, fine specimens like the massive American beech in front of Sleepy Hollow Methodist Church in Falls Church, and outrageously shaped trees, like the water tupelos in the Cypress Bridge area of Southampton County. You will find trees associated with famous people and events as well as trees associated with ordinary people in extraordinary ways. Perhaps best of all, you will learn about communities that have gone to great lengths to protect their trees and about places where the public can visit some of the best trees and "treescapes" in the state.

Remarkable Trees of Virginia is a celebration of trees, but it doesn't dodge hard issues. In a section on urban forests, the authors describe the major problems facing trees in urban areas and point out strategies urban foresters are using to solve them. They describe the ecological services trees provide and issue a call for action both to protect trees in their existing habitats and to find more places where trees can "grow large and long."

Hugo, Kirwan, and Llewellyn present a treasury of Virginia's trees that is, indeed, remarkable.

The Sibley Guide to Birds

David Allen Sibley

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 121 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

David Allen Sibley, America's most gifted contemporary painter of birds, is the author and illustrator of this comprehensive guide. His beautifully detailed illustrations—more than 6,600 in all—and descriptions of 810 species and 350 regional populations will enrich every birder's experience.

The Sibley Guide's innovative design makes it entirely user friendly. The illustrations are arranged to facilitate comparison, yet still capture the unique character of each species.

The Sibley Guide to Birds provides a wealth of new information:
—Captioned illustrations show many previously unpublished field marks and revisions of known marks
—Nearly every species is shown in flight
—Measurements include length, wingspan, and weight for every species
—Subspecies and geographic varients are covered thoroughly
—Complete voice descriptions are included for every species
—Maps show the complete distribution of every species: summer and winter ranges, migration routes, and rare occurrences

Both novice and experienced birders will appreciate these and other innovative features:
—An introductory page for each family or group of related families makes comparisons simple
—Clear and concise labels with pointers identify field marks directly
—Birds are illustrated in similar poses to make comparisons between species quick and easy
—Illustrations emphasize the way birds look in the field

With The Sibley Guide to Birds, the National Audubon Society makes the art and expertise of David Sibley available to the world in a comprehensive, handsome, easy-to-use volume that will be the indispensable identification guide every birder must own.

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees--W: Western Region (National Audubon Society Field Guides)

Elbert L. Little

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 43 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A few comments 4 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

This is the companion volume to the western trees edition. Having been able to spend some time on the east coast for the first time since I was a boy, I found I could only identify a handful of species, so I bought this book to see what I could identify, being familiar mostly with the west coast.

The Audubon books main strengths are in combining excellent photos of the main parts of the tree, the flowers or cones, branches, and bark, to aid in identifying the tree. Curiously, the book doesn't include photos of the entire tree, but in the text section there are drawings next to the description. This is okay too, and an expert dendrologist can often simply ID a tree from its "stature type." With a little experience with the trees in your area, you'll soon be doing the same.

I've found the Audubon books on plant identification very helpful, but I have to say I have some formal training in botany, mainly in plant taxonomy, which is a big help. The only real sure way to ID a plant is by using the formal key, but in an area where the species are limited, which is usually the case with trees in temperate zones, a picture type book can often do the trick. Just be aware that there are many pitfalls in not using the actual botanical key. (If this were the Amazon rainforest, there can be 400 species of trees in a few acres, so this approach wouldn't work).

This book uses a leaf classification key mainly, and has 10 pages devoted to flowering plants and conifers at the beginning of the book to point to the the relevant section. From there you basically leaf through that section to ID the tree. For the flowering trees, color information is provided too.

The text descriptions are brief but well done, and includes information on range, ecology, height and diameter, size of cones, leaves, and flowers, color, and uses. Overall, it's another useful and informative guide from Audobon done in the style which many people are familiar with for naturalist use, or just your casual cursiosity seeker who wants to learn more about these important plants.

By the way, for some excellent and brief key books for the west coast, look for Glen Keator's little books, which are available at bookstores and also at the Strybing Auboretum in Golden Gate Park. Glen had a Ph.D. in taxonomic botany and was the trainer for the docents in the park, also, if I remember right, and I have fond memories of spending many hours hiking while using his books, which became an invaluable aid in my undergraduate and graduate botanical education.

Editorial Review:

All 933 identification pictures are full-color photos of significant details of virtually all native trees and many cultivated species as you see them in their natural habitat.

Walden

Henry David Thoreau

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 94 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

In 1845 Henry David Thoreau left his pencil-manufacturing business and began building a cabin on the shore of Walden Pond near Concord, Massachusetts. This lyrical yet practical-minded book is at once a record of the 26 months Thoreau spent in withdrawal from society -- an account of the daily minutiae of building, planting, hunting, cooking, and, always, observing nature -- and a declaration of independence from the oppressive mores of the world he left behind. Elegant, witty, and quietly searching, Walden remains the most persuasive American argument for simplicity of life clarity of conscience.

For the first time, the authoritative editions of works by major American novelists, poets, scholars, and essayists collected in the hardcover volumes of The Library of America are being published singly in a series of handsome paperback books. A distinguished writer has contributed an introduction for each volume, which also includes a chronology of the author's life and career, an essay on the text, and notes.

Worldchanging: A User's Guide for the 21st Century

Alex Steffen

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 50 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Worldchanging is packed with information, resources, reviews, and ideas that give readers access to the tools they need to build a better future. Written by a diverse collaborative of innovators, Worldchanging demonstrates that the means for making a difference lie all around us.

This team of top-notch writers, brought together by Worldchanging.com founder Alex Steffen, includes Cameron Sinclair, founder of Architecture for Humanity, Geekcore founder Ethan Zuckerman, and sustainable food expert Anne Lappé, among many others.

Each chapter offers practical answers to important questions, such as: Why does buying locally produced food make sense? What steps can we take to influence our workplace toward sustainability? How can we travel, live, work, and learn in world-changing ways? How, in short, can we participate in building a better future locally and globally?

Worldchanging proves that a life that is sustainably prosperous, thoughtful and democratic, dynamic and peaceful, is not just possible, it’s here.

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms (National Audubon Society Field Guides)

Gary H. Lincoff

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 29 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Worst mushroom book ever seen 1 out of 5 stars.
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Don't buy it, it's a useless book, why a book without scientific names can work, the paper look like a pocket bible, amazon put this book as it were important but shouldn't be there.

These things are addictive. 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I love these field guides! The photographs are fantastic, and are easy to navigate for quick identification. We enjoy looking at these books even when we aren't out scouting for new things to identify.

Editorial Review:

With more than 700 mushrooms detailed with color photographs and descriptive text, this is the most comprehensive photographic field guide to the mushrooms of North America. The 762 full-color identification photographs show the mushrooms as they appear in natural habitats. Organized visually, the book groups all mushrooms by color and shape to make identification simple and accurate in the field, while the text account for each species includes a detailed physical description, information on edibility, season, habitat, range, look-alikes, alternative names, and facts on edible and poisonous species, uses, and folklore. A supplementary section on cooking and eating wild mushrooms, and illustrations identifying the parts of a mushroom, round out this essential guide.

The Backyard Birdsong Guide: Western North America (Backyard Birdsong Guide)

Donald Kroodsma

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

ENJOYABLE TEACHING TOOL 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

My grandson received this book as a gift and I had to have one. We recently moved to a home with a yard full of trees and bushes, a great habitat to attract and feed birds. I have been able to identify some of them by their song and the gorgeous pictures displayed in this book. I believe I have just developed a new and enjoyable hobby.

Editorial Review:

Building on the tremendous success of Bird Songs (250,000 copies sold), The Backyard Birdsong Guides are regional, interactive handbooks of birds and their songs for beginning bird-watchers. With a touch-button electronic module housing common vocalizations of 75 species from across Western North America, this volume offers a truly sensory way to identify and get to know local birds. Crisply detailed and scientifically accurate illustrations accompany each entry, and up-to-date range maps from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology provide clear geographical reference points. Complete with an introduction to birdsong that will inspire readers to look out their kitchen windows and venture out in the field, this unique book provides an exciting entryway into the subtle art of birding.

Pure Sea Glass: Discovering Nature's Vanishing Gems

Richard LaMotte, Sally Lamotte Crane

Amazon Price: $23.07 List Price: $34.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Chesapeake Seaglass Pub. Amazon Marketplace: 27 new & used starting at $19.99

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 43 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Awesome Book For Any Beachcomber! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Everything you would ever need to know about seaglass is in this book! VERY interesting!!! I love it & could read my copy over & over!

Highly recommended for sea glass lovers 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I have recently became interested in sea glass after finding a few beautiful peices when I ordered this book. I was not dissappointed! This book is very informational and beautifully illustrated. I found a match for a peice I had found in the book, allowing me to date the peice.

I love this book and will keep in on my coffee table along with my display of my precious finds! It's a joy just to flip through and just look at the pictures.

Pure Sea Glass 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This is a lovely coffee table book that is amazingly beautiful as well as informative. I have recently started collecting beach glass and I learned so much about the various colors, how rare each is and where the glass might have come from. I highly recommend this book to any beach glass collector.

Sea glass review 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I was told by a friend about the book and bought it so I could have a keepsake for the glass I collect.

Sea Glass: A favorite hobby 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This a beautiful book. It makes for a great gift for any beach lover. Especially one that enjoys collecting beach glass (sea glass). The photography is spectacular. The information on the different colors is very interesting.

Gemstones (Smithsonian Handbooks)

Cally Hall

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 25 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Good for real gems, but... 3 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I'm a new beader, and while this is a beautiful book, many of the stones I buy are not listed when I look them up in the color-code index. My hopes were that when I forgot what the stone was called, or wanted more info to tell my customers, I could find it. There are so many color variations and so many semi-precious gemstones being made into beads, it may be impossible to have a total reference book. It is a great source for those gems listed, and it may be more geared toward rockhounds.

Absolutely beautiful and informative book. 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This is great reference gook if you are interested in gemstones and where they are found. I first checked this book out of the library to see if I wanted to buy it. I definitely wanted my own copy. I keep this by my computer, along with a copy "Gemstones of the World" by Walter Schumann, when I am looking for gemstones on the internet. The photographs are excellent and information is to the point.

pocket sized 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Its a very thorough reference guide. Kind of like a field guide that you could carry with you. It is organized very well and gives some good in depth information. I think for some users they may find some of the information quite over their heads. Being a Smithsonian publication it of course leans towards the scientific.

How to Stay Alive in the Woods

Angier

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Subjects -> Outdoors & Nature -> Hiking & Camping -> Excursion Guides -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 29 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A little outdated, but contains some solid tips. 3 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

First off, it's important for the potential buyer to realize that this book was written in the 1950's.


This is a handy book - if you already have some experience with the out-of-doors. The author assumes some familiarity with roughing it on the part of the reader, and does not give in-depth instructions on some survival skills such as procuring food - making this book less than ideal for the rank beginner. However, there are plenty of valuable tips and skills outlined in this book that it would be good for the beginner to learn - and this book can serve as a starting point for figuring out which skills you need to learn more about! This book is not nearly as in-depth as the U.S. Army Survival Manual - it's not designed for anything like the same purpose, however. The author stresses preparedness, common sense, and choosing the proper gear to carry with you while trekking in the wilderness. This book is more of an overview of important things to consider for your survival, not an instruction manual.

This book was written in the 1950's, so some of the instructions (particularly for medical supplies and other kit) are a bit out of date, but there is plenty of timeless, common sense advice at hand. I found the information on finding one's direction and not getting lost in the first place to be quite useful - but understand that this book was written in a different time, and for a different audience than today's casual hiker or vacationer.

This book focuses mainly on survival in the North - i.e. the Canadian wilderness, but there are some tips on survival in desert climates, as well.

There are probably better manuals out there for practical survival skills, and this book suffers from a lack of clear illustrations and step-by-step instructions, But much of this lore comes straight from those who truly DID have to survive in the woods - trappers, prospectors, and the independent spirits who simply wanted a simpler way of life. I think this book is mainly useful as a general work on the subject of survival - and it does give you an interesting insight into how old-timers managed to live off the land in days gone by.

But with a little brains and common sense most of the tricks in this book can be adapted to different types of terrain, vegetation, and climate, and outdated survival kit items can be substituted with more modern ones.

Not a must-have book, in my opinion, as there are better survival guides out there these days, but it was an interesting read and does contain some solid tips for survival, I think.

Editorial Review:

Camping enthusiasts, hunters, and even the occasional hiker will benefit from this all-inclusive guide to the woods which offers tips on finding food, water, and shelter, and reveals fascinating secrets of the wilderness.