The Essential Naturalist: Timeless Readings in Natural History

The cumulative effect of The Essential Naturalist is wide and deep. It's a powerful and majestic contribution to the literature of natural history. It's also a great read. Aside from its scholarly value and its potential for deepening the non-academic reader's knowledge of nature, these classic writings are simply great yarns. I was on the edge of my seat while reading most of them. Reading one or two of the articles a day, this book kept me in its thrall for more than a month. It draws the reader gradually and inevitably toward the deepest ramifications of the Darwinian process.As the title suggests, the subspecies under the book's magnifying glass isn't a spider, an owl, a mussel or an electric eel, it's that odd duck the naturalist. Despite the range of epochs, locations, species and peculiarities of style reflected in the writings, there's an intriguing consistency in the people we never see directly: the authors behind the articles. The effort, risk, hardship and ingenuity invested by each author is largely unspoken, so there's a modesty and, in many cases, a wry humor that only comes out when you think about what lies behind each of these short pieces.The book's introduction and the introductions to each section are elegantly written and they do more than simply prepare the reader for the next batch of writings. Together they put natural history in its larger historical and contemporary context.The Essential Naturalist now has a revered place on my bookshelf.

a great collection of often hard to find gems. Belongs on every Natural Historian's bedside table! This book, edited by some very important Naturalists in their own right, contains some wonderful examples of the remarkable writings of the remarkable men and women who have created natural history over the centuries. Just lovely!

This book is fantastic. The introductions to the sections are a bit less interesting than the writings themselves (the editors selected truly fantastic writings), but do provide useful context. You can pick it up and read an essay in 20 minutes or read a whole chapter with the introduction for a longer time. I'd recommend to anyone - professional or amateur naturalist. My personal favorite was the essay on the wolf spider.

This a great book for all you naturalists out there!

Not what I thought it was. You would be much better off getting things directly from the source, meaning the authors included in this.

This book reads like a rollicking revelation. To see so many fine biologists belying the modern misconception that science must be sterile to be accurate & bone-dry to be professional is uplifting and liberating. Some of these scientist/explorer/authors are world famous, others I'd never heard of, but all write with care, passion, and often wit, about the subjects of their attention and delight. The book ranges geographically, taxonomically, and temporally throughout the living world. Read it and rejoice to remember that insight and love are often intertwined.

This is a wonderful contribution to any library! It is filled with great stories that not only engage my undergraduate and graduate science students, but even my young daughter enjoys this being read to her. Who would have thought that the first good description of Galapagos nature came from a pirate ... And that scientists can collect electric eels using stampeding horses. This book really is a must-have, particularly for the natural history enthusiast or student.