by Rachel Carson
Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring was first published in three serialized excerpts in the New Yorker in June of 1962. The book appeared in September of that year and the outcry that followed its publication forced the banning of DDT and spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water. Carson’s passionate concern for the future of our planet reverberated powerfully throughout the world, and her eloquent book was instrumental in launching the environmental movement. It is without question one of the landmark books of the twentieth century.
by Amy Balfour
To celebrate America's amazing national parks, Lonely Planet, the world's leading travel publisher, takes you on an informative and gorgeous tour of all 59 parks with our lavishly finished hardcover gift guide packed with detailed itineraries and practical tips on what to do and see in each park to get you started planning your next adventure.
America's national parks are full of timeless marvels that still rejuvenate the soul: the world's largest trees in Sequoia; its most spectacular geothermal site in Yellowstone; the grandest canyon.
From Acadia to Zion, this beautiful introduction to America's preserved natural treasures is packed with landscape photography, original wildlife illustrations, and practical information. You will surely be inspired to rediscover these incredible spaces and find out why they're worth celebrating and you'll have all the tools to plan the first of many exciting trips.
This book is intended to be a practical introduction to each of America's 59 national parks, distilled by Lonely Planet's expert authors. We highlight the best activities and trails, explain how to get there and where to stay, show you the wildlife to watch out for, and suggest ideal itineraries. Whether you're lucky enough to have a park on your doorstep or need to travel further, we hope that the following pages inspire you both the iconic and lesser-known gems that make up the USA's diversely breathtaking expanses.
by National Geographic Society
Discover more than 950 of the best parks in all 50 states in this completely updated guide from National Geographic.
Bask in the spectacular beauty, thrilling terrain, and quiet peacefulness of the country's finest state parks, hand-picked by park directors and National Geographic editors. This fully updated fifth edition includes 750 additional off-the-beaten track destinations. Beautifully written descriptions tell the stories of the parks, from their wildlife, natural features, and history to their most popular current activities such as hiking, biking, horseback riding, water sports, and rock climbing. Vivid images inspire your next getaway, while detailed information--including 32 detailed maps highlighting sites, trails, campgrounds, and more--helps you plan your next excursion. From free to low-cost, from Florida to Alaska, from the six-acre Iao Valley to the 204,000-acre Baxter, use this essential guide to plan a day visit or a weekend escape.
by Peter Wohlleben
Through vivid stories of devoted pigs, two-timing magpies, and scheming roosters,The Inner Life of Animals weaves the latest scientific research into how animals interact with the world with Peter Wohlleben's personal experiences in forests and fields.Horses feel shame, deer grieve, and goats discipline their kids. Ravens call their friends by name, rats regret bad choices, and butterflies choose the very best places for their children to grow up.In this, his latest book, Peter Wohlleben follows the hugely successfulThe Hidden Life of Treeswith insightful stories into the emotions, feelings, and intelligence of animals around us. Animals are different from us in ways that amaze us-and they are also much closer to us than we ever would have thought.
The Hidden Life of Trees : What They Feel, How They Communicate : Discoveries from a Secret World by Peter Wohlleben
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
With more than 2 million copies sold worldwide, this beautifully-written book journeys deep into the forest to uncover the fascinating—and surprisingly moving—hidden life of trees.
Are trees social beings? In The Hidden Life of Trees forester and author Peter Wohlleben convincingly makes the case that, yes, the forest is a social network. He draws on groundbreaking scientific discoveries to describe how trees are like human families: tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, support them as they grow, share nutrients with those who are sick or struggling, and even warn each other of impending dangers. Wohlleben also shares his deep love of woods and forests, explaining the amazing processes of life, death, and regeneration he has observed in his woodland.
After learning about the complex life of trees, a walk in the woods will never be the same again.
Southern California’s residents don’t have far to go to find high adventure in their own backyard.
Mountain, desert, and coastal environs are all only an hour or two’s drive from almost any point in the Southland. Authors Jerry Schad and David Money Harris reveal 101 of the region’s very best hikes, from 1-mile family strolls to challenging 20-mile treks.
This book takes the guesswork out of determining whether a particular trip is right for you. For each hike, you’re given its total distance, elevation gain or loss, hiking time, highlights, difficulty rating, and whether dogs or mountain bikes are allowed, plus a full description of the route.
Here are just a few of the gems you’ll discover:
A spectacular geological showcase cradled between two faults (Hike 25)
The ruins of a once grand Malibu mansion, now a peaceful natural park (Hike 9)
A hidden waterfall in a desert oasis (Hike 94)
A natural hot springs alongside a mountain stream (Hike 40)
From the Santa Monica and the San Gabriel Mountains to the Laguna Mountains and Anza-Borrego Desert, from the Torrey Pines beaches to the summit of San Jacinto Peak, it’s easy to leave the urban world behind and discover the natural beauty of the Southland.
by Dian Fossey
One of the most important books ever written about our connection to the natural world,Gorillas in the Mistis the riveting account of Dian Fossey's thirteen years in a remote African rain forest with the greatest of the great apes. Fossey's extraordinary efforts to ensure the future of the rain forest and its remaining mountain gorillas are captured in her own words and in candid photographs of this fascinating endangered species. As only she could, Fossey combined her personal adventure story with groundbreaking scientific reporting in an unforgettable portrait of one of our closest primate relatives. Although Fossey's work ended tragically in her murder,Gorillas in the Mistremains an invaluable testament to one of the longest-running field studies of primates and reveals her undying passion for her subject.
by Jane Goodall
From world-renowned scientist Jane Goodall, as seen in the new National Geographic documentary Jane, comes a poignant memoir about her spiritual epiphany and an appeal for why everyone can find a reason for hope.
Dr. Jane Goodall's revolutionary study of chimpanzees in Tanzania's Gombe preserve forever altered the very, definition of humanity. Now, in a poignant and insightful memoir, Jane Goodall explores her extraordinary life and personal spiritual odyssey, with observations as profound as the knowledge she has brought back from the forest.
by Cheryl Strayed
A powerful, blazingly honest memoir: the story of an eleven-hundred-mile solo hike that broke down a young woman reeling from catastrophe—and built her back up again.
At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother's death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life: to hike the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State—and to do it alone. She had no experience as a long-distance hiker, and the trail was little more than “an idea, vague and outlandish and full of promise.” But it was a promise of piecing back together a life that had come undone.
Strayed faces down rattlesnakes and black bears, intense heat and record snowfalls, and both the beauty and loneliness of the trail. Told with great suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, Wild vividly captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.
by Isak Dinesen
Out of Africa tells the story of a farm that the narrator once had in Africa. The farm is located at the foot of the Ngong hills outside of Nairobi, in what is now Kenya. It sits at an altitude of six thousand feet. The farm grows coffee, although only part of its six thousand acres is used for agriculture. The remaining parts of the land are forest and space for the natives to live on.
by Nicholas Hulot
Our planet, with all its spectacular diversity, is a source of endless fascination-the stunning success of books like Earth from Above is proof of that. Now comes this spellbinding volume, filled with glorious images from the world's greatest nature photographers. This breathtaking work celebrates the amazing variety of species and ecosystems and how various forces affect them positively and negatively. In his absorbing, informative text, journalist Nicolas Hulot presents a lucid portrait of eight ecosystems (forests, oceans, deserts, poles, mountains, wetlands, grasslands, and cities), the species that inhabit them, and the role humans play in each. One Planet, just in time for Earth Day, is a loving photographic tribute to the beauty of the earth-it will remind us all how important it is to preserve this exquisite planet.
by Bill Trotter
by Diane Ackerman
When Germany invaded Poland, Stuka bombers devastated Warsaw—and the city's zoo along with it. With most of their animals dead, zookeepers Jan and Antonina Zabinski began smuggling Jews into empty cages. Another dozen "guests" hid inside the Zabinskis' villa, emerging after dark for dinner, socializing, and, during rare moments of calm, piano concerts. Jan, active in the Polish resistance, kept ammunition buried in the elephant enclosure and stashed explosives in the animal hospital. Meanwhile, Antonina kept her unusual household afloat, caring for both its human and its animal inhabitants—otters, a badger, hyena pups, lynxes.With her exuberant prose and exquisite sensitivity to the natural world, Diane Ackerman engages us viscerally in the lives of the zoo animals, their keepers, and their hidden visitors. She shows us how Antonina refused to give in to the penetrating fear of discovery, keeping alive an atmosphere of play and innocence even as Europe crumbled around her.
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