nature
A GOOD READ AT LAST DECEMBER I SUGGESTED A FEW BOOKS THAT MIGHT BE USEFUL FOR ANYONE STARTING OUT ON THE STUDY OF NATURAL HISTORY. THIS YEAR, JUST IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS, I THOUGHT I WOULD LOOK AT SOME OF THE MORE SPECIALISED BOOKS
T
he books I am including are ones that I have found lately, and even purchased, to enable me to look more deeply into the areas of nature that I find interesting, so this article will be a bit more idiosyncratic even than usual.
in English by the same authors, “Plants that Kill”, Princeton University Press, ISBN 9780691178769. It is priced in dollars, and I have seen it offered for sale at anything between €26 and €40, so shop around. The book is fairly comprehensive, and the English edition is full of information, introducing you to the types of poisons with which plants defend themselves. There is good solid material, but readable, and interspersed with anecdotes and historical instances. A little research in its pages will tell you which of your houseplants is likeliest to kill the cat, and which leaves to avoid when making salad. The illustrations are very good. Sadly, the book barely mentions fungi; but then they aren’t really plants, are they? Besides, as we have already seen, that matter is quite well covered elsewhere.
Two that I found that particularly piqued my interest were “Champignons Comestibles” by Nat Sinob (really?), Mosaique-Santé, at €14.90, and “Guide des 60 Meilleurs Champignons Comestibles” by Eyssartier and Roux, Belin, at €12.50. I have always said that the best fungus guide is “Mushrooms” by Roger Phillips, but that is a fairly weighty tome. These are small enough to be portable, and contain quite a lot of information about the dos and don’ts of looking for edible mushrooms, especially with regard to the French law and approach. You will have to have reasonable reading ability in French. The two books do not completely overlap; the former is more a guide, but with some mouth-watering recipes included, while the latter is more a gourmet approach. Both are very well illustrated.
When I was convalescing from surgery some friends gave me a lovely book, “A Sting in the Tail” by Dave Goulson, Vintage, ISBN 9780099575122, £9.99. It is very much one man’s journey into the world of bumblebees, but it gives you all the information you are ever likely to need to know about them in a very readable form. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and would recommend it to anyone starting out or even deep into the subject of Natural History, as it shows the reader how the researcher’s mind works. It is not an identification manual, although it lists at the end the common and Linnaean names of all the bumblebee species, but apart from the cover it is unillustrated.
As part of my ongoing mission to keep all my readers safe, I invested in a book called, “Les plantes qui Tuent” by Dauncey and Larsson, Ulmer, ISBN 9782379220319, €32.00. This proved to be a very heavy tome in all senses of the word, with challenging French. Then I discovered it was a French translation of a book
36 etcetera
Two bird books now. As far as I know they have not been translated into English, though I’d be happy to be proved wrong. “Rapaces Diurnes et Nocturnes d’Europe”, Paul Böhre and Joris De Raedt, Artemis Editions, ISBN 9782816012446, €25.90 is a superb encyclopaedia of the raptor birds of the continent. Superbly illustrated with detailed paintings of each species, copious
detail both written and illustrated, distinguishing features, anatomical details and maps, this is the book for any wouldbe student of birds of prey who has a good grasp of the French language. It includes owls, and reveals the difference between a hibou and a chouette (basically, a hibou has earlike tufts of feathers on its head and a chouette hasn’t). One suggestion for the less-than-bilingual reader; make a list of the English and corresponding Linnaean name of each raptor by reference to an Anglophone bird-book and keep it in the front of this book – it makes a useful cross-reference. “La Migration des Oiseaux” by Maxime Zucca, Editions Sudouest, ISBN 9782817704067, €28.50, covers many and varied migratory birds. The photographs are excellent, the research is detailed, and copious maps show the migration routes that the birds follow, and where they stay. It answers many of the questions that the interested observer might ask, but again a good knowledge of French is essential for full benefit. One bird book that is very familiar to British birdwatchers is the Collins Bird Guide. I have to say that my own edition dates from 1977 and is intended as a field guide – as its title states. However, I learn
