Book description
Natural history, perhaps more than any other pursuit or study, has
always relied heavily on books. Without their basic function of enabling
the different kinds of animals and plants to be described in adequate
detail, the subject could never have come into being and gone on to
thrive as it does today.
In displaying nature's colourful diversity, books have stimulated
attempts to capture the wonders of the natural world with the pencil or
in paint. They have challenged their readers to seek out and record what
the countryside has to offer, and they have enabled naturalists to
convey to unknown fellow spirits the excitements of 'the chase' and of
unexpected discoveries.
In this latest book in the highly-acclaimed New Naturalist series,
David Elliston Allen explores the often complicated ways in which books
on the flora and fauna of these islands have been published through the
years, from the earliest days of printing through to the era of the
computerised distribution atlas and the giant multinational compendium.
Difficult to free from market constraints, publication in book form
would have remained an elusive aim for all too many naturalists but for
the regular trickle of individual publishers who have shared their
delight in the subject and leant over backwards to assist it. The
important role played by these allies, the colourful backgrounds of many
of the authors and the sometimes fraught relationship between the
partners in a process in which the aims of business and learning do not
necessarily coincide are among the many themes woven together into a
fascinating account, which also breaks new ground. '…an engaging
history of natural history publishing, full of beautiful images and
delightful stories about the books and people who collected them …
Allen's book will serve both as an excellent introduction to this arcane
and complex - but fascinating - history, and as a fitting addition to
the library of anyone who loves natural history and the many books that
record it.'
The Times Literary Supplement
Praise for the New Naturalist series:
'The series is an amazing achievement.'
The Times Literary Supplement
'The books are glorious to own.'
Independent David Elliston Allen has had a specialist interest in the
subject of this book for many years, the combined legacy of an
undergraduate degree in anthropology, a period as an analyst of
marketing surveys and co-authorship of two county Floras. A past
President of the Botanical Society of the British Isles and of the
Society for the History of Natural History, his books include 'The
Naturalist in Britain: A Social History', first published in 1976. Allen
has spent many years administering academic research grant programmes,
particularly in aspects of history.
