Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Perhaps the best value book ever!, 24 Dec 2008
If you buy this book you will be delighted you made such a great choice. For me this book represents one of the greatest things of our age; fabulous coverage, excellent photos, brief written detail, durable plastic cover, glossy pages and all for the cost of a packet of fags and a pint of beer. Superb book and astounding value DO NOT HESITATE.

Useful reference guide, 17 Oct 2007
This is a really useful book and is well illustrated throughout with photos to help you identify what you're looking at. Until recently this was the only book I'd take with me when out and about exploring nature, but lately I've taken the Armchair Naturalist by Johnson P. Johnson as well (a beautiful book with some more obscure facts and a wry sense of humour). If you're interested in British nature at all, get both!

A superb one stop guide to UK Wildlife., 04 Oct 2007
I bought this book after watching countless Nature programs on TV and wanting get out an discover for myself. All I can say is this book as unlocked a new world to my family with my two young boys suddenly taking an interest in the trees, bird and general wildlife around us.

Belive me, for cost of this book you will get alot of pleasure if you just step out of your home and visit your local park be that in a city, town or the middle of nowhere.

FABULOUS! * * * * *, 08 Nov 2006
This is a beautiful photoguide which has proven really useful in identifying insects, animals and plants that i see on my travels. I keep it in my car's glovebox so that where ever I am I have access to it.

There are over 150 double page spreads with a full page of wonderful, bright, close up photos on the right and names and a short description / habits of all the creatures/plants shown on the left.

I am always getting phone calls from my friends asking to borrow it to find out what they have seen.

A really enjoyable buy!

wot no midge, 07 Sep 2006
looks good apart from the tree section not being brilliant for field identification but imagine my surprise when I looked up the index for the entry on one of the most notorious British species - Culicoides impunctatus - the Highland midge. It isn't there and it definitely should be in a book of that title.

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Perhaps the best value book ever!, 24 Dec 2008
If you buy this book you will be delighted you made such a great choice. For me this book represents one of the greatest things of our age; fabulous coverage, excellent photos, brief written detail, durable plastic cover, glossy pages and all for the cost of a packet of fags and a pint of beer. Superb book and astounding value DO NOT HESITATE.

Useful reference guide, 17 Oct 2007
This is a really useful book and is well illustrated throughout with photos to help you identify what you're looking at. Until recently this was the only book I'd take with me when out and about exploring nature, but lately I've taken the Armchair Naturalist by Johnson P. Johnson as well (a beautiful book with some more obscure facts and a wry sense of humour). If you're interested in British nature at all, get both!

A superb one stop guide to UK Wildlife., 04 Oct 2007
I bought this book after watching countless Nature programs on TV and wanting get out an discover for myself. All I can say is this book as unlocked a new world to my family with my two young boys suddenly taking an interest in the trees, bird and general wildlife around us.

Belive me, for cost of this book you will get alot of pleasure if you just step out of your home and visit your local park be that in a city, town or the middle of nowhere.

FABULOUS! * * * * *, 08 Nov 2006
This is a beautiful photoguide which has proven really useful in identifying insects, animals and plants that i see on my travels. I keep it in my car's glovebox so that where ever I am I have access to it.

There are over 150 double page spreads with a full page of wonderful, bright, close up photos on the right and names and a short description / habits of all the creatures/plants shown on the left.

I am always getting phone calls from my friends asking to borrow it to find out what they have seen.

A really enjoyable buy!

wot no midge, 07 Sep 2006
looks good apart from the tree section not being brilliant for field identification but imagine my surprise when I looked up the index for the entry on one of the most notorious British species - Culicoides impunctatus - the Highland midge. It isn't there and it definitely should be in a book of that title.

We're all doomed, 16 Dec 2008
Without bees, no pollenation. Without pollenation, no variey of flora. Without that, no small insect life. And of course no richness in diet.

Timely, persuasive and necessary, 25 Jul 2008
If climate change doesn't get you, the disappearance of the honeybee will - this is the rather gloomy message of Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum's well researched and engagingly written new book on Colony Collapse Disorder - a honeybee `plague' which has already killed millions of bees worldwide. Some 90 commercial crops owe their continued existence to the pollination services provided free of charge by the honeybee so its fair to say that A World Without Bees is an important book. For it to succeed in its mission it has to put the fear of God into us without losing us to jargon. It does so admirably, taking us through the rather complicated but interesting world of honeybee health, politics and economics and delivering us to a conclusion which lays the blame firmly on our own shoulders. Time to start talking about bee rights? Could be.

Unique, valuable, objective; a fantastically GOOD book, 24 Jun 2008
I read this wonderful book in one very long sitting; I really could not stop once I started. Having grown up surrounded, in my immediate family, by the 1950's acute nature-awareness of the early Soil Association days of Bob Waller and Harold Horne et al, it was like deja vu to me.
The authors have been very disciplined in producing a really worthwhile book; it is almost perfectly objective, and therefore above cheap criticism. They have worked immensely hard to source a huge amount of sound material, and they have taken the trouble to understand it thoroughly before using it in their book. And the mystery at issue is no less than how terrifyingly detached from truth we are becoming, and how little we now understand our own misery and poverty of life in the midst of all our illusion of ease; how deprived of reality we have already become.
Read it! In the morning, the evening, on the train, in the bath, but read it. It is more real than most other stuff you will find on printed paper or glowing on a monitor any day of the year.

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Perhaps the best value book ever!, 24 Dec 2008
If you buy this book you will be delighted you made such a great choice. For me this book represents one of the greatest things of our age; fabulous coverage, excellent photos, brief written detail, durable plastic cover, glossy pages and all for the cost of a packet of fags and a pint of beer. Superb book and astounding value DO NOT HESITATE.

Useful reference guide, 17 Oct 2007
This is a really useful book and is well illustrated throughout with photos to help you identify what you're looking at. Until recently this was the only book I'd take with me when out and about exploring nature, but lately I've taken the Armchair Naturalist by Johnson P. Johnson as well (a beautiful book with some more obscure facts and a wry sense of humour). If you're interested in British nature at all, get both!

A superb one stop guide to UK Wildlife., 04 Oct 2007
I bought this book after watching countless Nature programs on TV and wanting get out an discover for myself. All I can say is this book as unlocked a new world to my family with my two young boys suddenly taking an interest in the trees, bird and general wildlife around us.

Belive me, for cost of this book you will get alot of pleasure if you just step out of your home and visit your local park be that in a city, town or the middle of nowhere.

FABULOUS! * * * * *, 08 Nov 2006
This is a beautiful photoguide which has proven really useful in identifying insects, animals and plants that i see on my travels. I keep it in my car's glovebox so that where ever I am I have access to it.

There are over 150 double page spreads with a full page of wonderful, bright, close up photos on the right and names and a short description / habits of all the creatures/plants shown on the left.

I am always getting phone calls from my friends asking to borrow it to find out what they have seen.

A really enjoyable buy!

wot no midge, 07 Sep 2006
looks good apart from the tree section not being brilliant for field identification but imagine my surprise when I looked up the index for the entry on one of the most notorious British species - Culicoides impunctatus - the Highland midge. It isn't there and it definitely should be in a book of that title.

We're all doomed, 16 Dec 2008
Without bees, no pollenation. Without pollenation, no variey of flora. Without that, no small insect life. And of course no richness in diet.

Timely, persuasive and necessary, 25 Jul 2008
If climate change doesn't get you, the disappearance of the honeybee will - this is the rather gloomy message of Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum's well researched and engagingly written new book on Colony Collapse Disorder - a honeybee `plague' which has already killed millions of bees worldwide. Some 90 commercial crops owe their continued existence to the pollination services provided free of charge by the honeybee so its fair to say that A World Without Bees is an important book. For it to succeed in its mission it has to put the fear of God into us without losing us to jargon. It does so admirably, taking us through the rather complicated but interesting world of honeybee health, politics and economics and delivering us to a conclusion which lays the blame firmly on our own shoulders. Time to start talking about bee rights? Could be.

Unique, valuable, objective; a fantastically GOOD book, 24 Jun 2008
I read this wonderful book in one very long sitting; I really could not stop once I started. Having grown up surrounded, in my immediate family, by the 1950's acute nature-awareness of the early Soil Association days of Bob Waller and Harold Horne et al, it was like deja vu to me.
The authors have been very disciplined in producing a really worthwhile book; it is almost perfectly objective, and therefore above cheap criticism. They have worked immensely hard to source a huge amount of sound material, and they have taken the trouble to understand it thoroughly before using it in their book. And the mystery at issue is no less than how terrifyingly detached from truth we are becoming, and how little we now understand our own misery and poverty of life in the midst of all our illusion of ease; how deprived of reality we have already become.
Read it! In the morning, the evening, on the train, in the bath, but read it. It is more real than most other stuff you will find on printed paper or glowing on a monitor any day of the year.

I just love Planet Earth!, 25 Oct 2008
It makes you want to travel around this beautiful world and forget about all the ugly and bad things that are happening on this planet.

Great completment to the series!, 10 Oct 2008
This is a very well made book about the series and compltements it well. As books do you can linger on the pages, read the explanatory notes in your own time and take it a page at a time.

Fills in loads of details about issues and facts that can only be glossed over on TV,


Simply Superb, 30 May 2008
This book describes the Earth in its truest sense, Not what we see every day, but what we should see and help protect.!! A spectacle. It appeals to every human soul, A delight to read it over and over again.

Recommended now and for generations to come..

Breathtaking,beautiful and at times thought provoking., 16 Dec 2007
This book is a portfolio of the best moments from the Planet earth series.It covers everything from the great sands to the shallow seas.11 different sections in total.I recieved it as a birthday gift and couldnt be more pleased with it. The photos are absolutely stunning and at times thought provoking.The lone polar bear surrounded by melting sea ice really did move me.I have looked at the photos time and time again and they are still as special as when i first saw them.If you love wildlife photography then i can't see how you could not enjoy this.Faultless.

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Perhaps the best value book ever!, 24 Dec 2008
If you buy this book you will be delighted you made such a great choice. For me this book represents one of the greatest things of our age; fabulous coverage, excellent photos, brief written detail, durable plastic cover, glossy pages and all for the cost of a packet of fags and a pint of beer. Superb book and astounding value DO NOT HESITATE.

Useful reference guide, 17 Oct 2007
This is a really useful book and is well illustrated throughout with photos to help you identify what you're looking at. Until recently this was the only book I'd take with me when out and about exploring nature, but lately I've taken the Armchair Naturalist by Johnson P. Johnson as well (a beautiful book with some more obscure facts and a wry sense of humour). If you're interested in British nature at all, get both!

A superb one stop guide to UK Wildlife., 04 Oct 2007
I bought this book after watching countless Nature programs on TV and wanting get out an discover for myself. All I can say is this book as unlocked a new world to my family with my two young boys suddenly taking an interest in the trees, bird and general wildlife around us.

Belive me, for cost of this book you will get alot of pleasure if you just step out of your home and visit your local park be that in a city, town or the middle of nowhere.

FABULOUS! * * * * *, 08 Nov 2006
This is a beautiful photoguide which has proven really useful in identifying insects, animals and plants that i see on my travels. I keep it in my car's glovebox so that where ever I am I have access to it.

There are over 150 double page spreads with a full page of wonderful, bright, close up photos on the right and names and a short description / habits of all the creatures/plants shown on the left.

I am always getting phone calls from my friends asking to borrow it to find out what they have seen.

A really enjoyable buy!

wot no midge, 07 Sep 2006
looks good apart from the tree section not being brilliant for field identification but imagine my surprise when I looked up the index for the entry on one of the most notorious British species - Culicoides impunctatus - the Highland midge. It isn't there and it definitely should be in a book of that title.

We're all doomed, 16 Dec 2008
Without bees, no pollenation. Without pollenation, no variey of flora. Without that, no small insect life. And of course no richness in diet.

Timely, persuasive and necessary, 25 Jul 2008
If climate change doesn't get you, the disappearance of the honeybee will - this is the rather gloomy message of Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum's well researched and engagingly written new book on Colony Collapse Disorder - a honeybee `plague' which has already killed millions of bees worldwide. Some 90 commercial crops owe their continued existence to the pollination services provided free of charge by the honeybee so its fair to say that A World Without Bees is an important book. For it to succeed in its mission it has to put the fear of God into us without losing us to jargon. It does so admirably, taking us through the rather complicated but interesting world of honeybee health, politics and economics and delivering us to a conclusion which lays the blame firmly on our own shoulders. Time to start talking about bee rights? Could be.

Unique, valuable, objective; a fantastically GOOD book, 24 Jun 2008
I read this wonderful book in one very long sitting; I really could not stop once I started. Having grown up surrounded, in my immediate family, by the 1950's acute nature-awareness of the early Soil Association days of Bob Waller and Harold Horne et al, it was like deja vu to me.
The authors have been very disciplined in producing a really worthwhile book; it is almost perfectly objective, and therefore above cheap criticism. They have worked immensely hard to source a huge amount of sound material, and they have taken the trouble to understand it thoroughly before using it in their book. And the mystery at issue is no less than how terrifyingly detached from truth we are becoming, and how little we now understand our own misery and poverty of life in the midst of all our illusion of ease; how deprived of reality we have already become.
Read it! In the morning, the evening, on the train, in the bath, but read it. It is more real than most other stuff you will find on printed paper or glowing on a monitor any day of the year.

I just love Planet Earth!, 25 Oct 2008
It makes you want to travel around this beautiful world and forget about all the ugly and bad things that are happening on this planet.

Great completment to the series!, 10 Oct 2008
This is a very well made book about the series and compltements it well. As books do you can linger on the pages, read the explanatory notes in your own time and take it a page at a time.

Fills in loads of details about issues and facts that can only be glossed over on TV,


Simply Superb, 30 May 2008
This book describes the Earth in its truest sense, Not what we see every day, but what we should see and help protect.!! A spectacle. It appeals to every human soul, A delight to read it over and over again.

Recommended now and for generations to come..

Breathtaking,beautiful and at times thought provoking., 16 Dec 2007
This book is a portfolio of the best moments from the Planet earth series.It covers everything from the great sands to the shallow seas.11 different sections in total.I recieved it as a birthday gift and couldnt be more pleased with it. The photos are absolutely stunning and at times thought provoking.The lone polar bear surrounded by melting sea ice really did move me.I have looked at the photos time and time again and they are still as special as when i first saw them.If you love wildlife photography then i can't see how you could not enjoy this.Faultless.

Superb illustrations and highly informative, 22 Dec 2008
I am very impressed by this book. I'm a keen bird-watcher and have many bird books, but must say that the photographs and illustrations in this book are outstandingly good. The distribution maps appear to be up-to-date reflecting the spread North of some species as the climate warms. It's very difficult nowadays to get pictures of birds' eggs and so I am delighted to see excellent examples in this publication. The birds described are not exclusively the common garden birds and I think this book would be useful for identifying most of the birds you're likely to encounter in the countryside. It's not just about birds: there are most informative and well-illustrated sections on amphibians, mammals, butterflies and moths that you may see in your garden and beyond. With the modern emphasis on habitat being crucial to encouraging wildlife there is helpful advice about which garden plants are beneficial and which wild-flowers to encourage. Altogether a "must have" for anybody interested in the other life forms that share your garden.
The book would be good value at the full price and is an absolute bargain at the discounted one.

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Perhaps the best value book ever!, 24 Dec 2008
If you buy this book you will be delighted you made such a great choice. For me this book represents one of the greatest things of our age; fabulous coverage, excellent photos, brief written detail, durable plastic cover, glossy pages and all for the cost of a packet of fags and a pint of beer. Superb book and astounding value DO NOT HESITATE.

Useful reference guide, 17 Oct 2007
This is a really useful book and is well illustrated throughout with photos to help you identify what you're looking at. Until recently this was the only book I'd take with me when out and about exploring nature, but lately I've taken the Armchair Naturalist by Johnson P. Johnson as well (a beautiful book with some more obscure facts and a wry sense of humour). If you're interested in British nature at all, get both!

A superb one stop guide to UK Wildlife., 04 Oct 2007
I bought this book after watching countless Nature programs on TV and wanting get out an discover for myself. All I can say is this book as unlocked a new world to my family with my two young boys suddenly taking an interest in the trees, bird and general wildlife around us.

Belive me, for cost of this book you will get alot of pleasure if you just step out of your home and visit your local park be that in a city, town or the middle of nowhere.

FABULOUS! * * * * *, 08 Nov 2006
This is a beautiful photoguide which has proven really useful in identifying insects, animals and plants that i see on my travels. I keep it in my car's glovebox so that where ever I am I have access to it.

There are over 150 double page spreads with a full page of wonderful, bright, close up photos on the right and names and a short description / habits of all the creatures/plants shown on the left.

I am always getting phone calls from my friends asking to borrow it to find out what they have seen.

A really enjoyable buy!

wot no midge, 07 Sep 2006
looks good apart from the tree section not being brilliant for field identification but imagine my surprise when I looked up the index for the entry on one of the most notorious British species - Culicoides impunctatus - the Highland midge. It isn't there and it definitely should be in a book of that title.

We're all doomed, 16 Dec 2008
Without bees, no pollenation. Without pollenation, no variey of flora. Without that, no small insect life. And of course no richness in diet.

Timely, persuasive and necessary, 25 Jul 2008
If climate change doesn't get you, the disappearance of the honeybee will - this is the rather gloomy message of Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum's well researched and engagingly written new book on Colony Collapse Disorder - a honeybee `plague' which has already killed millions of bees worldwide. Some 90 commercial crops owe their continued existence to the pollination services provided free of charge by the honeybee so its fair to say that A World Without Bees is an important book. For it to succeed in its mission it has to put the fear of God into us without losing us to jargon. It does so admirably, taking us through the rather complicated but interesting world of honeybee health, politics and economics and delivering us to a conclusion which lays the blame firmly on our own shoulders. Time to start talking about bee rights? Could be.

Unique, valuable, objective; a fantastically GOOD book, 24 Jun 2008
I read this wonderful book in one very long sitting; I really could not stop once I started. Having grown up surrounded, in my immediate family, by the 1950's acute nature-awareness of the early Soil Association days of Bob Waller and Harold Horne et al, it was like deja vu to me.
The authors have been very disciplined in producing a really worthwhile book; it is almost perfectly objective, and therefore above cheap criticism. They have worked immensely hard to source a huge amount of sound material, and they have taken the trouble to understand it thoroughly before using it in their book. And the mystery at issue is no less than how terrifyingly detached from truth we are becoming, and how little we now understand our own misery and poverty of life in the midst of all our illusion of ease; how deprived of reality we have already become.
Read it! In the morning, the evening, on the train, in the bath, but read it. It is more real than most other stuff you will find on printed paper or glowing on a monitor any day of the year.

I just love Planet Earth!, 25 Oct 2008
It makes you want to travel around this beautiful world and forget about all the ugly and bad things that are happening on this planet.

Great completment to the series!, 10 Oct 2008
This is a very well made book about the series and compltements it well. As books do you can linger on the pages, read the explanatory notes in your own time and take it a page at a time.

Fills in loads of details about issues and facts that can only be glossed over on TV,


Simply Superb, 30 May 2008
This book describes the Earth in its truest sense, Not what we see every day, but what we should see and help protect.!! A spectacle. It appeals to every human soul, A delight to read it over and over again.

Recommended now and for generations to come..

Breathtaking,beautiful and at times thought provoking., 16 Dec 2007
This book is a portfolio of the best moments from the Planet earth series.It covers everything from the great sands to the shallow seas.11 different sections in total.I recieved it as a birthday gift and couldnt be more pleased with it. The photos are absolutely stunning and at times thought provoking.The lone polar bear surrounded by melting sea ice really did move me.I have looked at the photos time and time again and they are still as special as when i first saw them.If you love wildlife photography then i can't see how you could not enjoy this.Faultless.

Superb illustrations and highly informative, 22 Dec 2008
I am very impressed by this book. I'm a keen bird-watcher and have many bird books, but must say that the photographs and illustrations in this book are outstandingly good. The distribution maps appear to be up-to-date reflecting the spread North of some species as the climate warms. It's very difficult nowadays to get pictures of birds' eggs and so I am delighted to see excellent examples in this publication. The birds described are not exclusively the common garden birds and I think this book would be useful for identifying most of the birds you're likely to encounter in the countryside. It's not just about birds: there are most informative and well-illustrated sections on amphibians, mammals, butterflies and moths that you may see in your garden and beyond. With the modern emphasis on habitat being crucial to encouraging wildlife there is helpful advice about which garden plants are beneficial and which wild-flowers to encourage. Altogether a "must have" for anybody interested in the other life forms that share your garden.
The book would be good value at the full price and is an absolute bargain at the discounted one.

The Best at what it does., 18 Nov 2008
This is beyond any reasonable doubt the best portable field guide.
The other reviewers make that clear.

One of three essential books:

For beginners, or for more detailed information on commoner British Birds I would suggest that the excellent RSPB Handbook of British Birds (Ornithology) is a better choice.
For detailed ID info on rarer birds, Handbook of Bird Identification for Europe and the Western Palearctic, The is probably the best.

I use all 3 frequently (the last mainly for birds I haven't seen myself! Sigh!)the RSPB book is also a very reasonable price and pocketable, the Western Palearctic book is neither cheap (good value nonetheless) nor pocketable.

Birds - lots of feathers, 13 Apr 2008
I bought this book to identify the little blighters who hop and fly merrily around my garden. It's a great book with good images and text. The only bird book you'll ever need.

BRILLIANT BOOK!, 25 Mar 2008
I cannot recommend this book khighly enough. I have being birding for 25 years and have amassed a collection of c60 bird books on European birds. This is equal to 50 of them TOGETHER! The illustrations and descriptions are excellent. Many books carry detailed descriptions and photographs on birds in winter plumage and then state that they are summer visitors (or vice versa)! This book is invaluable and ever birder should have at least one copy

First class field guide, 23 Jan 2008
An excellent field guide with brilliant drawings of all the birds in their different plumages. Really does help when identifying rare birds or ones which you are unsure of.

Best bird guide ever!!!!, 29 Oct 2007
The best field guide I have ever owned. Beautiful illustrations and ideal text (plus illustrations and text on opposite pages!!!). It is also comprehensive and features many 'common' vagrants too. If you are a serious European based birder or wildlife enthusiast then quite simply you need this book.
Its scope and detail may prove off-putting to beginners but trust me its worth every penny!

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Perhaps the best value book ever!, 24 Dec 2008
If you buy this book you will be delighted you made such a great choice. For me this book represents one of the greatest things of our age; fabulous coverage, excellent photos, brief written detail, durable plastic cover, glossy pages and all for the cost of a packet of fags and a pint of beer. Superb book and astounding value DO NOT HESITATE.

Useful reference guide, 17 Oct 2007
This is a really useful book and is well illustrated throughout with photos to help you identify what you're looking at. Until recently this was the only book I'd take with me when out and about exploring nature, but lately I've taken the Armchair Naturalist by Johnson P. Johnson as well (a beautiful book with some more obscure facts and a wry sense of humour). If you're interested in British nature at all, get both!

A superb one stop guide to UK Wildlife., 04 Oct 2007
I bought this book after watching countless Nature programs on TV and wanting get out an discover for myself. All I can say is this book as unlocked a new world to my family with my two young boys suddenly taking an interest in the trees, bird and general wildlife around us.

Belive me, for cost of this book you will get alot of pleasure if you just step out of your home and visit your local park be that in a city, town or the middle of nowhere.

FABULOUS! * * * * *, 08 Nov 2006
This is a beautiful photoguide which has proven really useful in identifying insects, animals and plants that i see on my travels. I keep it in my car's glovebox so that where ever I am I have access to it.

There are over 150 double page spreads with a full page of wonderful, bright, close up photos on the right and names and a short description / habits of all the creatures/plants shown on the left.

I am always getting phone calls from my friends asking to borrow it to find out what they have seen.

A really enjoyable buy!

wot no midge, 07 Sep 2006
looks good apart from the tree section not being brilliant for field identification but imagine my surprise when I looked up the index for the entry on one of the most notorious British species - Culicoides impunctatus - the Highland midge. It isn't there and it definitely should be in a book of that title.

We're all doomed, 16 Dec 2008
Without bees, no pollenation. Without pollenation, no variey of flora. Without that, no small insect life. And of course no richness in diet.

Timely, persuasive and necessary, 25 Jul 2008
If climate change doesn't get you, the disappearance of the honeybee will - this is the rather gloomy message of Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum's well researched and engagingly written new book on Colony Collapse Disorder - a honeybee `plague' which has already killed millions of bees worldwide. Some 90 commercial crops owe their continued existence to the pollination services provided free of charge by the honeybee so its fair to say that A World Without Bees is an important book. For it to succeed in its mission it has to put the fear of God into us without losing us to jargon. It does so admirably, taking us through the rather complicated but interesting world of honeybee health, politics and economics and delivering us to a conclusion which lays the blame firmly on our own shoulders. Time to start talking about bee rights? Could be.

Unique, valuable, objective; a fantastically GOOD book, 24 Jun 2008
I read this wonderful book in one very long sitting; I really could not stop once I started. Having grown up surrounded, in my immediate family, by the 1950's acute nature-awareness of the early Soil Association days of Bob Waller and Harold Horne et al, it was like deja vu to me.
The authors have been very disciplined in producing a really worthwhile book; it is almost perfectly objective, and therefore above cheap criticism. They have worked immensely hard to source a huge amount of sound material, and they have taken the trouble to understand it thoroughly before using it in their book. And the mystery at issue is no less than how terrifyingly detached from truth we are becoming, and how little we now understand our own misery and poverty of life in the midst of all our illusion of ease; how deprived of reality we have already become.
Read it! In the morning, the evening, on the train, in the bath, but read it. It is more real than most other stuff you will find on printed paper or glowing on a monitor any day of the year.

I just love Planet Earth!, 25 Oct 2008
It makes you want to travel around this beautiful world and forget about all the ugly and bad things that are happening on this planet.

Great completment to the series!, 10 Oct 2008
This is a very well made book about the series and compltements it well. As books do you can linger on the pages, read the explanatory notes in your own time and take it a page at a time.

Fills in loads of details about issues and facts that can only be glossed over on TV,


Simply Superb, 30 May 2008
This book describes the Earth in its truest sense, Not what we see every day, but what we should see and help protect.!! A spectacle. It appeals to every human soul, A delight to read it over and over again.

Recommended now and for generations to come..

Breathtaking,beautiful and at times thought provoking., 16 Dec 2007
This book is a portfolio of the best moments from the Planet earth series.It covers everything from the great sands to the shallow seas.11 different sections in total.I recieved it as a birthday gift and couldnt be more pleased with it. The photos are absolutely stunning and at times thought provoking.The lone polar bear surrounded by melting sea ice really did move me.I have looked at the photos time and time again and they are still as special as when i first saw them.If you love wildlife photography then i can't see how you could not enjoy this.Faultless.

Superb illustrations and highly informative, 22 Dec 2008
I am very impressed by this book. I'm a keen bird-watcher and have many bird books, but must say that the photographs and illustrations in this book are outstandingly good. The distribution maps appear to be up-to-date reflecting the spread North of some species as the climate warms. It's very difficult nowadays to get pictures of birds' eggs and so I am delighted to see excellent examples in this publication. The birds described are not exclusively the common garden birds and I think this book would be useful for identifying most of the birds you're likely to encounter in the countryside. It's not just about birds: there are most informative and well-illustrated sections on amphibians, mammals, butterflies and moths that you may see in your garden and beyond. With the modern emphasis on habitat being crucial to encouraging wildlife there is helpful advice about which garden plants are beneficial and which wild-flowers to encourage. Altogether a "must have" for anybody interested in the other life forms that share your garden.
The book would be good value at the full price and is an absolute bargain at the discounted one.

The Best at what it does., 18 Nov 2008
This is beyond any reasonable doubt the best portable field guide.
The other reviewers make that clear.

One of three essential books:

For beginners, or for more detailed information on commoner British Birds I would suggest that the excellent RSPB Handbook of British Birds (Ornithology) is a better choice.
For detailed ID info on rarer birds, Handbook of Bird Identification for Europe and the Western Palearctic, The is probably the best.

I use all 3 frequently (the last mainly for birds I haven't seen myself! Sigh!)the RSPB book is also a very reasonable price and pocketable, the Western Palearctic book is neither cheap (good value nonetheless) nor pocketable.

Birds - lots of feathers, 13 Apr 2008
I bought this book to identify the little blighters who hop and fly merrily around my garden. It's a great book with good images and text. The only bird book you'll ever need.

BRILLIANT BOOK!, 25 Mar 2008
I cannot recommend this book khighly enough. I have being birding for 25 years and have amassed a collection of c60 bird books on European birds. This is equal to 50 of them TOGETHER! The illustrations and descriptions are excellent. Many books carry detailed descriptions and photographs on birds in winter plumage and then state that they are summer visitors (or vice versa)! This book is invaluable and ever birder should have at least one copy

First class field guide, 23 Jan 2008
An excellent field guide with brilliant drawings of all the birds in their different plumages. Really does help when identifying rare birds or ones which you are unsure of.

Best bird guide ever!!!!, 29 Oct 2007
The best field guide I have ever owned. Beautiful illustrations and ideal text (plus illustrations and text on opposite pages!!!). It is also comprehensive and features many 'common' vagrants too. If you are a serious European based birder or wildlife enthusiast then quite simply you need this book.
Its scope and detail may prove off-putting to beginners but trust me its worth every penny!

Excellent book for someone considering beekeeping, 11 Jun 2008
I bought this book knowing virtually nothing about bees (they exist, they live in hives and they make honey was about the sum total of my knowledge).
I have been considering keeping bees for a while and thought that a little reading would help guide me to a decision.

From memory, the book covers: types of bees (not just honey bees), types of hives, the gear required by the beekeeper, where bee hives can be situated, how bees can be purchased, the maintenance of the colony & hive, pests and how to mitigate their impact, the social structure of the bee colony, the way honey is produced by the bees, the 'swarming' of bees, how to harvest honey from the hive and how to store the harvested honey. There's definitely more - my memory just isn't good enough.

The book material is pitched at the level of the layman/novice. In particular areas the book is usefully pratical and in-depth e.g. There are guides to setting up the hive and putting in the colony, checking the colony's health after setting up your apiary, harvesting the honey, controlling swarming and spring-cleaning the hive. There are also little practical tips throughout that will obviously help you avoid common mistakes e.g. Approach your hive from the side, approaching the front entrance will only wind-up your bees!

To sum up. I thought the book was excellent and was written at exactly the right level for someone in my position. It increased my knowledge greatly (admittedly i started with none), it informed me that i have a more-than-reasonable environment for a hive, it convinced me that i'd be capable of performing the duties required to keep the bees happy and healthy, it told me how to go about performing the duties required, it told me what equipment i'd need to keep bees and finally it was a thoroughly pleasant read into the bargain.

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. It'd be quite suitable to read in its own right but as the TV series is on at the moment it makes a great accompanyment to that as well. Definately recommended.

Simply Stunning, 08 Jan 2009
It is easy to be short and to the point about this book.....it is simply stunning. That, unfortunately, is a cliche all too often used and abused...but not here. I own 2 horses and am a keen semi pro photographer, and thus was attracted to this book when I saw a review. No review can do it justice.....you have to experience the book, feel the book. I would love to spend a week with this guy , seeing how he achieved such light conditions
Nothing compares

Truly Beautiful, 31 Dec 2008
This book is a true masterpiece that can be enjoyed by anyone, not just horse lovers. The photographs are just stunning, beautifully composed and with a simplicity that belies the talent of Tim Flach, the subjects are varied, detailed and they will stir something in the soul of everyone. It is extremely good value for the money and makes a wonderful affordable gift, especially for those who appreciate horse form. 5 stars and highly recommended.

Stunning!, 29 Dec 2008
Bought this for my daughter for Christmas and we both love it. Quite different to any other horse book and a beautiful one to own - can't recommend it enough!

Superb, 27 Dec 2008
I truly loved this book, the way the equine was portrayed so naturally and with the influence of man without him being here was magnificent. I often collect a variety of equine photography but this is most greatly one of the best I have come across

Superb interest blend of photography through horses, 23 Dec 2008
I saw a review of this book a month or so ago in the Daily Express and was delighted to find it available at a very reasonable price on Amazon, as a Christmas present for a friend. It arrived quickly and I unpacked it to look at it myself. It is an amazing book, of interest both to those who love horses, and those who appreciate the intricacies of excellent photography alike. For those who go ahead and purchase this book, it is worth noting that there are great little snippets of information alongside the thumbnail pictures towards the end of the book that refer to the full size photos within the book, so well worth keeping a thumb in at the back so you can read those notes while appreciating the pictures. I know my friend is going to love this book when she opens it on Christmas Day, and that other family members of hers will be equally impressed by it. Great value; great quality book. Love it!

Perhaps the best value book ever!, 24 Dec 2008
If you buy this book you will be delighted you made such a great choice. For me this book represents one of the greatest things of our age; fabulous coverage, excellent photos, brief written detail, durable plastic cover, glossy pages and all for the cost of a packet of fags and a pint of beer. Superb book and astounding value DO NOT HESITATE.

Useful reference guide, 17 Oct 2007
This is a really useful book and is well illustrated throughout with photos to help you identify what you're looking at. Until recently this was the only book I'd take with me when out and about exploring nature, but lately I've taken the Armchair Naturalist by Johnson P. Johnson as well (a beautiful book with some more obscure facts and a wry sense of humour). If you're interested in British nature at all, get both!

A superb one stop guide to UK Wildlife., 04 Oct 2007
I bought this book after watching countless Nature programs on TV and wanting get out an discover for myself. All I can say is this book as unlocked a new world to my family with my two young boys suddenly taking an interest in the trees, bird and general wildlife around us.

Belive me, for cost of this book you will get alot of pleasure if you just step out of your home and visit your local park be that in a city, town or the middle of nowhere.

FABULOUS! * * * * *, 08 Nov 2006
This is a beautiful photoguide which has proven really useful in identifying insects, animals and plants that i see on my travels. I keep it in my car's glovebox so that where ever I am I have access to it.

There are over 150 double page spreads with a full page of wonderful, bright, close up photos on the right and names and a short description / habits of all the creatures/plants shown on the left.

I am always getting phone calls from my friends asking to borrow it to find out what they have seen.

A really enjoyable buy!

wot no midge, 07 Sep 2006
looks good apart from the tree section not being brilliant for field identification but imagine my surprise when I looked up the index for the entry on one of the most notorious British species - Culicoides impunctatus - the Highland midge. It isn't there and it definitely should be in a book of that title.

We're all doomed, 16 Dec 2008
Without bees, no pollenation. Without pollenation, no variey of flora. Without that, no small insect life. And of course no richness in diet.

Timely, persuasive and necessary, 25 Jul 2008
If climate change doesn't get you, the disappearance of the honeybee will - this is the rather gloomy message of Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum's well researched and engagingly written new book on Colony Collapse Disorder - a honeybee `plague' which has already killed millions of bees worldwide. Some 90 commercial crops owe their continued existence to the pollination services provided free of charge by the honeybee so its fair to say that A World Without Bees is an important book. For it to succeed in its mission it has to put the fear of God into us without losing us to jargon. It does so admirably, taking us through the rather complicated but interesting world of honeybee health, politics and economics and delivering us to a conclusion which lays the blame firmly on our own shoulders. Time to start talking about bee rights? Could be.

Unique, valuable, objective; a fantastically GOOD book, 24 Jun 2008
I read this wonderful book in one very long sitting; I really could not stop once I started. Having grown up surrounded, in my immediate family, by the 1950's acute nature-awareness of the early Soil Association days of Bob Waller and Harold Horne et al, it was like deja vu to me.
The authors have been very disciplined in producing a really worthwhile book; it is almost perfectly objective, and therefore above cheap criticism. They have worked immensely hard to source a huge amount of sound material, and they have taken the trouble to understand it thoroughly before using it in their book. And the mystery at issue is no less than how terrifyingly detached from truth we are becoming, and how little we now understand our own misery and poverty of life in the midst of all our illusion of ease; how deprived of reality we have already become.
Read it! In the morning, the evening, on the train, in the bath, but read it. It is more real than most other stuff you will find on printed paper or glowing on a monitor any day of the year.

I just love Planet Earth!, 25 Oct 2008
It makes you want to travel around this beautiful world and forget about all the ugly and bad things that are happening on this planet.

Great completment to the series!, 10 Oct 2008
This is a very well made book about the series and compltements it well. As books do you can linger on the pages, read the explanatory notes in your own time and take it a page at a time.

Fills in loads of details about issues and facts that can only be glossed over on TV,


Simply Superb, 30 May 2008
This book describes the Earth in its truest sense, Not what we see every day, but what we should see and help protect.!! A spectacle. It appeals to every human soul, A delight to read it over and over again.

Recommended now and for generations to come..

Breathtaking,beautiful and at times thought provoking., 16 Dec 2007
This book is a portfolio of the best moments from the Planet earth series.It covers everything from the great sands to the shallow seas.11 different sections in total.I recieved it as a birthday gift and couldnt be more pleased with it. The photos are absolutely stunning and at times thought provoking.The lone polar bear surrounded by melting sea ice really did move me.I have looked at the photos time and time again and they are still as special as when i first saw them.If you love wildlife photography then i can't see how you could not enjoy this.Faultless.

Superb illustrations and highly informative, 22 Dec 2008
I am very impressed by this book. I'm a keen bird-watcher and have many bird books, but must say that the photographs and illustrations in this book are outstandingly good. The distribution maps appear to be up-to-date reflecting the spread North of some species as the climate warms. It's very difficult nowadays to get pictures of birds' eggs and so I am delighted to see excellent examples in this publication. The birds described are not exclusively the common garden birds and I think this book would be useful for identifying most of the birds you're likely to encounter in the countryside. It's not just about birds: there are most informative and well-illustrated sections on amphibians, mammals, butterflies and moths that you may see in your garden and beyond. With the modern emphasis on habitat being crucial to encouraging wildlife there is helpful advice about which garden plants are beneficial and which wild-flowers to encourage. Altogether a "must have" for anybody interested in the other life forms that share your garden.
The book would be good value at the full price and is an absolute bargain at the discounted one.

The Best at what it does., 18 Nov 2008
This is beyond any reasonable doubt the best portable field guide.
The other reviewers make that clear.

One of three essential books:

For beginners, or for more detailed information on commoner British Birds I would suggest that the excellent RSPB Handbook of British Birds (Ornithology) is a better choice.
For detailed ID info on rarer birds, Handbook of Bird Identification for Europe and the Western Palearctic, The is probably the best.

I use all 3 frequently (the last mainly for birds I haven't seen myself! Sigh!)the RSPB book is also a very reasonable price and pocketable, the Western Palearctic book is neither cheap (good value nonetheless) nor pocketable.

Birds - lots of feathers, 13 Apr 2008
I bought this book to identify the little blighters who hop and fly merrily around my garden. It's a great book with good images and text. The only bird book you'll ever need.

BRILLIANT BOOK!, 25 Mar 2008
I cannot recommend this book khighly enough. I have being birding for 25 years and have amassed a collection of c60 bird books on European birds. This is equal to 50 of them TOGETHER! The illustrations and descriptions are excellent. Many books carry detailed descriptions and photographs on birds in winter plumage and then state that they are summer visitors (or vice versa)! This book is invaluable and ever birder should have at least one copy

First class field guide, 23 Jan 2008
An excellent field guide with brilliant drawings of all the birds in their different plumages. Really does help when identifying rare birds or ones which you are unsure of.

Best bird guide ever!!!!, 29 Oct 2007
The best field guide I have ever owned. Beautiful illustrations and ideal text (plus illustrations and text on opposite pages!!!). It is also comprehensive and features many 'common' vagrants too. If you are a serious European based birder or wildlife enthusiast then quite simply you need this book.
Its scope and detail may prove off-putting to beginners but trust me its worth every penny!

Excellent book for someone considering beekeeping, 11 Jun 2008
I bought this book knowing virtually nothing about bees (they exist, they live in hives and they make honey was about the sum total of my knowledge).
I have been considering keeping bees for a while and thought that a little reading would help guide me to a decision.

From memory, the book covers: types of bees (not just honey bees), types of hives, the gear required by the beekeeper, where bee hives can be situated, how bees can be purchased, the maintenance of the colony & hive, pests and how to mitigate their impact, the social structure of the bee colony, the way honey is produced by the bees, the 'swarming' of bees, how to harvest honey from the hive and how to store the harvested honey. There's definitely more - my memory just isn't good enough.

The book material is pitched at the level of the layman/novice. In particular areas the book is usefully pratical and in-depth e.g. There are guides to setting up the hive and putting in the colony, checking the colony's health after setting up your apiary, harvesting the honey, controlling swarming and spring-cleaning the hive. There are also little practical tips throughout that will obviously help you avoid common mistakes e.g. Approach your hive from the side, approaching the front entrance will only wind-up your bees!

To sum up. I thought the book was excellent and was written at exactly the right level for someone in my position. It increased my knowledge greatly (admittedly i started with none), it informed me that i have a more-than-reasonable environment for a hive, it convinced me that i'd be capable of performing the duties required to keep the bees happy and healthy, it told me how to go about performing the duties required, it told me what equipment i'd need to keep bees and finally it was a thoroughly pleasant read into the bargain.


really only for those new to bird watching, 25 Jul 2008
I bought this book, hoping that it would be a replacement for the out-of-print Mitchell Beazley guide which has been my trusty companion on bird-watching excursions for many years. I was very disappointed with this book. The title does not make clear that it only covers 170 of the most common birds, and as an experienced bird-watcher I found that I already knew how to identify all of the birds in it. The only up-side was that it was cheap. I am surprised that this is a RSPB publication, I would have expected better. Why did they not include all British birds - laziness?? cost??

Having said all that, the illustrations are clear, and for those new to birding it will be a good guide - unless a less common species is encountered and then the watcher will not have a clue what it is!

The distribution maps are somewhat inaccurate, as it shows birds to be absent in areas where they are known to be present.

Excellent Pocket Bird Book, 14 Dec 2007

This book contains all the usual information that a good quality book on birds should carry within its pages. It covers 170 of the most commonly found birds in Britain and Ireland in a well laid out and easy to follow format. The illustrations by David Nurney are excellent and many bird enthusiasts prefer illustrations to photographs. For identification purposes they are first class.

This book features a bird per page and has all the usual features including descriptions of each bird's main characteristics including distribution of each species. The bird's plumage and behaviour patterns. RSPB books seem to go that extra mile with the information they provide the enthusiast.

Book matches the tv programme in quality, 30 Dec 2008
I bought this book for my daughter's christmas as she was fascinated by the programme recently shown on the BBC. I did wonder whether she would find the written book a little too hard-going, but she loves it and finds it an easy and interesting read. She is 13. The photography is superb and the full colour picture inside this book are fantastic. Great buy. The picture of the weedy sea dragon is enthralling and was her favourite by miles.

Great on its own or to read with the series, 18 Nov 2008
I saw this book in Sainsbury's and suggested to my wife that it would be a good birthday present. Sure enough, guess what I got on my birthday. I love the underwater world as I am a scuba diver so anything like this is right down my street. The images are superb and the tone of the text makes it very easy to read. I