Book Review - The Nile Revealed: A Deep History of Earth's Longest River - Princeton University Press

     From biblical times and beyond, the Nile has captured our imagination in ways unrivalled by other rivers. Moses was left floating in a basket on the Nile, Cleopatra famously seduced Julius Caesar in a barge on the river, and Stanley greeted Dr. Livingstone while questing for the source of the Nile. The giant pyramids of Egypt are located in a wadi alongside the Nile and the river's natural cycle of seasonal floods deposited rich, alluvial soil to feed the large population living in the area. The river itself provided protein and access to water year round. Nelson was wounded in the Battle of the Nile, but Napoleon was defeated and French dominance in the region was ended once and for all.

      Martin Williams, arguably the world's leading authority on the Nile, has written a lively account of this legendary waterway with the eloquence of an historian and the cutting edge clarity of a scientist. Disciplines such as sociology, geography, biology, environmental science, earth science, archeology and paleontology give us a comprehensive, all encompassing account of the mighty river (the world's longest), its role in history and its importance in the modern world. Natural forces that operate today, particularly in the Rift Valley, remind us that the Nile is not done with us yet! The climate crisis will not leave the river and its environs unscathed either. 

      This is a book to be read by scientist and layman alike. There is something for everyone!

The Nile Revealed: A Deep History of Earth's Longest River - Princeton University Press

Hardcover - US$29.95 - ISBN 9780691275918

232 pages - 6.125 x 9.25 inches (15.31 x 23.125 cm)

25 colour and 18 black-and-white illustrations - 3 tables

Publishing date: 20 October, 2026

Book Review - Seashells: A Compendium of Five Thousand of the World's Species - Princeton University Press

 

     Who among us who has visited the seashore has resisted the urge to collect shells to take home? Very few, I am sure.  Shells are beautiful, varied in form and colour, and speak to us of a realm hidden from our view, a world of mystery, a kingdom of wonder, and a link to the very early days of life on Earth. What else fills all these niches? And shells are free, and available equally to everyone, no matter their status in life. A pauper can amass a collection equal to that of a millionaire.

     There is a bit of an addiction to shell collecting that only kicks in when collecting is possible. In the Bahamas in February I could not resist searching for conch shells and bringing them home. In a house where space is at a premium I need more shells like the proverbial hole in the head, but I can gaze at them now as I compose this review. And they make me happy!

     This fabulous book, covering a staggering five thousand species, will enable you to go beyond the purely aesthetic appeal of shells, to an understanding of their origins, their geographic distribution, and their ecosystem functions. You will become acquainted with molluscs from the shallow waters of tropical seas, to coral reefs, to frigid polar shores, and shells cast up from the deepest parts of the ocean.

 

     For the serious shell collector or conchologist a great deal of useful information is provided on collecting and storage techniques, with up-to-date taxonomy and systematics. 

     There is general agreement that the most satisfying way to build a collection is to visit beaches where you can find your own specimens. An alarming, yet all too familiar caveat from the book: "Nowadays, many beaches are sadly adorned with mounds of trash, and a good pair of gloves has become a necessary part of a beachcomber's outfit."

     We do know how to ruin a good thing, don't we?

     There is an excellent glossary of the terms used in the book, and a guide to the families that I found exceptionally useful.

     The pages that comprise most of the book are nothing short of phenomenal. 

     Not only are they a feast for eyes, essential information is encapsulated in so scant a space. There is a picture of the external and internal views where applicable, the measurement to the nearest millimetre, the original taxonomic authority and the location. This will often be enough, but if you are serious about knowing more, here is the starting point.

     I am already looking forward to a few cold winter's nights sitting with my shell collections, organizing and identifying them in ways I have never done before. Precision, accuracy and knowledge will be my reward!

     Thank you Paul Callomon and Gary Rosenberg for a job very well done.

Seashells: A Compendium of Five Thousand of the World's Species - Princeton University Press

Paul Callomon and Gary Rosenberg

Hardcover - US$49.95 - ISBN 9780691265285

336 pages - 9 x 12.5 inches (22.5 x 31.25 cm)

5,400 + colour photographs

Publications date: 22 September, 2026

Book Review - The Language of Bees - Princeton University Press

 

     I was delighted when I noted that Princeton University Press had published yet another title in its unrivalled coverage of bees over the last several years.

     A veritable who's who of the world of bees has been included - Chitka, Grozinger, Packer, Seeley, Tautz (and others), and they are now joined by James C. Nieh.

     This fascinating book is both a personal account of Nieh's ascendancy in this select group, and an insider's glimpse into research hitherto not undertaken - or pursued minimally. In the classic way of good scientists, Nieh writes about events that initially seemed like failure, or conditions that developed to thwart his carefully staged experiments, turning them into first rate opportunities for other avenues of research. 

     It was Karl von Frisch, of course, who discovered the now famous waggle dance, whereby foraging bees direct their sisters to food sources, but much additional knowledge has been gained over the years (see, for example, Tautz (2021). The means of communication among bees are diverse and multi-faceted, involving scent, movement, vibration and sound. 

     In a series of elegant experiments Nieh explores the intricacies of communication among bees in myriad ways. A really helpful tool is the provision of a QR code to take the reader to a series of YouTube videos showing the signals and behaviours discussed in the book.

     This is a commendable use of technology to improve the learning experience.

     A series of full colour plates also enhances the text.

     Nieh's prose is not without humour. I chuckled mightily over his description of riding a bicycle after being stung on his tender parts!

     

     Life on Earth is threatened by the climate crisis; bees no less than other living things. Global warming is significant in this regard, with the potential disruption of plant cycles. This has the ability to hit bees that utilize one plant especially hard. The principal function of honey bees has ceased to be the production of honey; rather they are used as pollination tools, shipped over vast distances to facilitate food production for humans. The California almond crop, for example, would fail without this intervention. There are indications that this practice may be harming bees in ways unthought of. Rampant (and in some jurisdictions almost uncontrolled) use of pesticides, especially neonicotinoids, has the potential to seriously impact the foraging efficacy and breeding success of bees.

     We tamper with natural cycles at our peril - yet we keep doing it. We seem to lack will when it is needed most.

     This book is an important addition to the canon of literature on bees. It should be essential reading for everyone concerned with our future life on Planet Earth.

The Language of Bees - Princeton University Press

James C. Nieh

Hardcover - US$29.95 - ISBN 9780691204895

288 pages - 6.125 x 9.25 inches (15.31 x 23.125 cm)

16 colour and 31 black-and-white illustrations

Publication date: 15 September, 2025

Book Review - Marine Life of the Caribbean Sea - Princeton University Press

      Whether you are a diver, scuba diver, snorkeller, or simply a beachcomber probing tide pools and rocky shores, this is the book for you.

      The marine life of the Caribbean Sea is revealed in all its glorious, colourful diversity. Our guide is the renowned Scottish author and underwater photographer, Lawson Wood.

      All of the riches you will locate in this subtropical,  watery realm are covered in this field guide - fish, coral, marine reptiles and mammals, crustaceans, tubeworms, nudibranchs, and everything else! 

     Even those tourists who stay at an all inclusive resort, where nature study is not uppermost on their minds, will benefit from this book. A brief stroll along the beach, or wading out into shallow waters reveals hitherto unknown wonders. Scuba diving packages often form part of a preplanned winter getaway to the warmth of Caribbean sun and sand.

     Each organism is represented by superb photographs taken by Wood, accompanied by a brief description, quite terse but adequate to facilitate identification, which is, after all the purpose of this guide.

     Going back to the storied days of Jacques Cousteau, and in more recent years the documentaries of Sir David Attenborough, a fascination with life beneath the waves has developed and expanded. Its beauty is appreciated like never before, yet the fragile nature of marine ecosystems is now known to be at serious peril from humankind's flagrant disregard for the health of the oceans.

      This book will alert you to what we stand to lose unless we change our ways - and soon. 

Marine Life of the Caribbean Sea - Princeton University Press

Lawson Wood

Paperback - US$29.99 - ISBN 9780691292458

224 pages - 5.5 x 8.5 inches (13.75 x 21.25 cm)

700+ colour photographs and illustrations - one map

Publishing date: 08 September, 2026

Book Review - Costa Rica's Rainforests: The Natural History of the Plants and Animals of La Selva - Princeton University Press

      On this Earth there are mere mortals, and those exalted beings who have spent time at La Selva! I count myself among the latter. There is magic in the air in Costa Rica - always, everywhere - but the magic is elevated to its pinnacle at La Selva.

     Scott Wesley Shumway has done a terrific job in writing a complete account of La Selva's biodiversity and its place in contemporary tropical studies. In addition to being a world-renowned, distinguished research facility, La Selva welcomes ecotourists and spares no effort in disseminating information to all who visit. If you are present when it pours rain they will explain hydrology and transpiration to you!

     Many casual visitors are birders and the birding genie is let out of the bottle immediately upon arrival!

     Species that are elusive elsewhere seem to be especially cooperative at La Selva; no doubt the fact that the guides know exactly where to look plays a major role in this. I remember as though it were yesterday having prolonged views of Great Tinamou and my first ever Great Curassows perched in a tree above my head. Shumway reports, "As of 2021,480 species of birds have been identified by researchers and resident naturalists at La Selva." These same resident naturalists always seem to have the time to provide information and answer questions.

     There is more than birds, of course, and Shumway has done a magnificent job in pulling together all the component parts of an integrated neotropical ecosystem.

     This book is a field guide, a first class field guide in fact, but it is much more than that. From page to page, cover to cover, it is filled with information. Want to know about hummingbirds? Then obviously you'll need to understand the flowers they feed on. Did you know that mites travel from flower to flower on hummingbird bills? How about the mechanism by which they collect nectar? All of this kind of information is provided for every taxa covered in the book. The superb photographs do aid in identification but it is the cornucopia of information that sets this book apart.

     Shumway writes with a fluid, easy style, combining his years as a teacher with an intimate knowledge of the biology of this region, and, perhaps most importantly a deep love for it. All its creatures are special, all have their role to play, all are acknowledged in all their glorious diversity and individuality.

     I have visited Costa Rica four times and it is unlikely that I will do so again, but rest assured that should it happen, this book will be my constant companion. It is a resource par excellence. A complete guide, not only to La Selva, but the entire ecosystem of this region of Costa Rica.

     I have been an admirer of Alexander Skutch, that scion of Costa Rican ornithology for as long as I can remember, and have paid homage twice at his home in Los Cusingos. He would have applauded this work and championed it - and there could be no better endorsement than that.

Costa Rica's Rainforests: The Natural History of the Plants and Animals of La Selva - Princeton University Press

Scott Wesley Shumway

Paperback - US$45.00 - ISBN 9780691251998

480 pages - 7.5 x 9.5 inches (18.75 x 23.75 cm)

812 colour photographs - 7 tables - 6 maps

Publishing date: 11 August, 2026

Book Review - How Our Climate Works: A Brief Guide in Seven Lessons - Princeton University Press

     In a time of climate crisis, with the dire consequences of continued neglect, indifference or fatuous denial, there is little more pressing than an understanding of how the climate works. We all need to know this; we need a factual basis on which to challenge our political "leaders" in order to tackle the existential crisis of our time.

     Paul I. Palmer has produced a terrific book enabling us to do just that. As a scientist he delivers climate facts, untarnished by opinion, speculation or bias, without political attribution or blame, in a manner that is accessible to the reader lacking scientific training or prior knowledge. The text is presented in easily readable fashion (although I had to go over a couple of sections a second time!), and chapter builds on chapter, truth builds on truth, plausibility conquers doubt.

     

     Palmer moves us along effortlessly through chapters on Temperature, Energy, Air, Water, Cycles, Time, and Uncertainty. One topic slides seamlessly and builds onto the next. You really do get a sense that you are starting to understand the complexities of climate science in a way that enables you to enter the conversation at a different, more detailed level.

     Every reputable climate scientist in the entire world agrees that the crisis is real. It is not a hoax, it is not "just a cycle." It is happening now, literally daily in the Anthropocene and affects us all. The background rate of extinction is one to ten thousand times the historical record, and greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere are ballooning. Carbon dioxide alone exceeds by 32% the start of the industrial age; methane pours into the atmosphere from melting permafrost and belching livestock. We know what is happening, we are crystal clear what it will likely portend for the future, yet we are reluctant to act in any meaningful way. Summers are becoming hotter, with each season setting a new record for heat, wildfires burn out of control, floods and drought decimate landscapes, one hundred year storms become five or ten year events.

     In the face of this overwhelming, irrefutable evidence the leader of the largest per capita polluter in the word denies that the climate crisis is real, and actively promotes actions to reverse the minimal progress that has already been made, aggressively reinforcing and expanding the use of fossil fuels and cancelling clean energy projects and installations. It defies logic at even the basic level. It is madness writ large.

     Palmer has written a book that is a product of its time. It is much needed, welcome, educational, eye-opening; indeed it is vital. 

     Don’t imagine for a moment that you cannot make a difference in your own life. Small actions by many produce major results. Now it’s up to you.

 How Our Climate Works: A Brief Guide In Seven Lessons - Princeton University Press

Paul I. Palmer

Hardcover - US$27.95 - ISBN: 9780691181257

296 pages - 5.5 x 8.5 inches (13.75 x 21.25 cm)

4 black-and-white illustrations

Publication date: 22 September, 2026

Book Review - Marine Crustaceans of Britain and Ireland - Princeton University Press

 

     I remember well, as a young boy on infrequent visits to the seaside, being fascinated by tidepools and spending my time probing in them. The life forms  were both exotic and amazing and cemented my lifelong love of such habitats and the creatures they contain. The scope of this book, of course, expands far beyond tidepools, but the fascination remains the same. From the beach to deep offshore waters the crustaceans of these ecosystems are revealed in glorious detail.

    It is the work of three distinguished marine biologists with a passion for their subjects. All have vast experience around the world and it shows. The focus of this book is the British Isles but expertise and knowledge gained internationally raises the bar.

     The involvement of Seasearch, an organization dedicated to marine conservation and management is of material value in this book. All three authors are, or have been, Seasearch coordinators.

     The result is a first rate field guide crammed with information, accompanied by stunning pictures taken by the authors, but also submitted by enthusiastic divers and recreational crustacean enthusiasts. Your expertise will be enhanced whether you are a seasoned marine biologist or an amateur sleuth anxious to expand your own knowledge and contribute as a citizen scientist.

     When you progress to the species accounts you will be presented with the common name, scientific name, a general description, key features, similar species, abundance and distribution, and taxonomic notes. It is important to recognize that some species are very difficult to identify and it is a mark of maturity to assign the organism to the highest level you feel confident with; nailing down an organism to the generic level is often a major accomplishment!

     When one contemplates the years of research Charles Darwin allocated to barnacles one knows that he would have rejoiced in their inclusion in an august field guide such as this. Mister Anthrobalanus has found his place in the sun!

     The section on Hermit Crabs was a vivid reminder of my visit in February to Eleuthera Island in The Bahamas. These entertaining and highly interesting crustaceans are found in Britain too, and the geographic separation is shrunk in an instant. 

     There is a universality to these organisms and everyone can benefit from this book. Whether on a beach in The Seychelles, diving to a coral reef in the Caribbean or hunkered down on a rocky shore in Newfoundland, there are crustaceans. 

     You may never look at a crab the same way again!

 

Marine Crustaceans of Britain and Ireland - Princeton University Press

Lin Baldock, Charlotte Bolton and Iain M. T. Dixon

US$35.00 - ISBN 9780691274744

320 pages - 300 colour illustrations - 5.88 x 8.25 inches (14.70 x 20.625 cm)

Publishing date: (US) 04 August, 2026

                           (UK) 02 June, 2026

   

Book Review - Sacred Plants of the Americas - Princeton University Press

     The juxtaposition of science and indigenous knowledge has long been a subject of great interest to me, particularly as it concerns our relationship with nature in its many and varied guises. Not least among these is the supreme importance of plants  throughout The Americas and their connection to the spiritual lives of aboriginal people, whether influenced by a shaman or as an act of personal reverence. And this does not even touch on the intimate knowledge of the therapeutic and pharmacological qualities of sacred plants.

     Much of this knowledge, passed down from generation to generation,  has been under threat since the very first encounters between white explorers, conquistadors, capitalists and mercenaries; some indeed has been lost along with native land, languages and cultural identities. The authors are correct when they state, "Christianity and extraactivist economies have been operating together with devastating consequences for Indigenous peoples in the Americas for centuries."

     Fortunately, these attitudes are undergoing change, albeit slowly and piecemeal, but change nonetheless, with a recognition that Indigenous wisdom has much to offer, reviving and rehabilitating knowledge dismissed out-of-hand by colonial arrogance. My bookshelves contain works by Wade Davis (and through him a connection to perhaps the greatest ethnobotanist of all time, Richard Evans Schultes), Monica Gagliano, Stefano Mancuso, and the most eloquent of all, Robin Wall Kimmerer, whose Braiding Sweetgrass should be required reading for  everyone who cares about the planet. 

     This book is an incredibly valuable addition to the literature, with its dazzling images that leave me breathless. In addition to "simple" photographs of the plants, seemingly innocent of the powerhouse of stimulatory and medicinal compounds they contain, confocal microscopy is used to deliver images as psychedelic as the plants themselves!

     Briefly, confocal microscopy is an optical technique for increasing optical resolution and contrast of a micrograph by means of using a spatial pinhole to block out-of-focus light in image formation. Capturing multiple two-dimensional images at different depths in a sample enables the reconstruction of three-dimensional structures within an object. (Wikipedia).

     Surely the brightest stars in the galaxy could barely compete with the brilliant beauty of these images.

     I have turned the pages of this book many, many times, and still I am left in awe of this hitherto hidden beauty.

     This book would make a fine coffee table book, and should be displayed for all to see. But it is more than that. It contains a wealth of information on each of the more than fifty plants featured, in addition to cultural references, historical facts, the present state of the plant and its uses, and speculation as to what the future holds from ethnographic and curative perspectives. 

     I am indebted to Jill Pflugheber and Steven F. White for sharing their work with us, enabling us to benefit from their concern and compassion.

     You will not be displeased, I am sure, if I end this review on a personal note. My wife, Miriam, is an accomplished quilter with a great eye for symmetry, colour matching, design, creativity and all that goes into the completion of a work of art. Even though I am exposed to her formidable skills daily, I never cease to wonder how she does it. 

     When I showed her the confocal pictures in the book she immediately exclaimed, "Wouldn't that make wonderful fabric!" Indeed it would, and I can only imagine what she could do with it. But I can assure you that it would be great, inspired in no small part by a deep respect for Indigenous people everywhere; a heartfelt tribute to maligned humans for whom justice has been delayed far too long.

Sacred Plants of the Americas - Princeton University Press

Jill Pflugheber and Steven F. White

Hardcover - US$45.00 - ISBN: 9780691296074

264 pages - 10 x 11 inches (25 x 27.5 cm)

200+ colour illustrations - 48 maps

Publishing date: 11 August, 2026

Book Review - A is for Amoeba: The Story of Life in a Single Cell - Princeton University Press

 

     A is for Amoeba, but A is also for admiration, appreciation and applause. Who could imagine that a book about the allegedly lowly amoeba could be both educational and entertaining, fun to read yet packing a storehouse of knowledge.

     If there is such a person as an amoebaphile I have become one! And if I have coined a word, so much the better!

     Nicholas Money writes with his characteristic wry humour, while simultaneously conferring the benefit of his impressive credentials as a biologist of note. He even provides juicy bits about the array of deviant scientists who have contributed to amoeba research over the centuries. It is all done in a manner that makes the book a joy to read.

     I had not thought much about amoebas in many a year and I suspect that is true for you too. After all, who dwells on a microscopic blob, invisible without the aid of powerful optics, that doesn't even have a sex life and clones itself in perpetuity? 

     In fact amoebas influence our lives in more ways that we might imagine, having the largest genome of any organism. They have the potential for both great good and devastating harm in the treatment of human illnesses. Researchers are trying to replicate the beneficial actions of amoebas in the quest for cures to types of cancer that still resist all treatments so far devised. With AI and robotics in the ascendancy, artificial amoebas may hold the key to defeating intractable illnesses that cause great suffering to humans. 

     If the narrative of a microbe can grip the reader, this is the book to do it. I found it hugely satisfying.

A is for Amoeba: The Story of Life in a Single Cell - Princeton University Press

Nicholas P. Money

Hardcover - US$27.95 - ISBN: 9780691266985

240 pages - 5.5 x 8.5 inches (13.75 x 21.25cm)

10 black-and-white illustrations

Publication date: 11 August, 2026

Book Review - Darwin: A Biography - Princeton University Press

      When Janet Browne produced her seminal volumes Voyaging and The Power of Place no less a luminary than Stephen Jay Gould proclaimed them "....wonderful and marvellous, even magisterial." Other notable authors such as David Quammen have gone on to endorse this viewpoint.

     I suspect they might conclude that this amalgamation of the two books in a single volume is no less magisterial. Browne has produced a wonderful new work, benefitting greatly from the Correspondence of Charles Darwin (1985-2023), material unavailable when she wrote her first two books.  

     She has successfully condensed her two-volume opus into a major new work, offering hitherto unknown insights into Darwin the explorer, Darwin the sceptic, Darwin the scientist and Darwin the man. In the process she cements her position as the leading Darwin scholar of our time.

     I find myself almost mesmerized by the depth and complexity of her treatment, all the while captivated by a highly readable, charming account of the most important scientist of all time. We move from the diffident young naturalist voyaging on the Beagle, often laid low by recurring seasickness, revealing his inner feelings and doubts in letters to his sisters, to the investigative scientist on the cusp of a theory that would change the world forever, to a dignified, empathetic English gentleman living a quiet life in Kent. He was a village magistrate, a doting father, a loving husband, friend to his butler no less than to the rich and famous. He was often wracked by ill health, and insecurity, and was initially devastated when Alfred Russel Wallace threatened to lay prior claim to his theory of evolution by natural selection.

     His attention to detail was nothing short of remarkable, with years spent researching barnacles, flowers, worms and heritability in domestic animals. He doggedly pressed forward with investigation on many fronts, all the while building up to the moment when he would publish his treatise to change the world, The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. 

     He had always thought he would be buried in the local churchyard; indeed had expressed a wish to be so interred, yet when he died he was accorded that highest of all honours, that of being entombed in Westminster Abbey. No other final resting place would have been acceptable for this noble man who had become a household name in Britain even during his lifetime; although there was great irony in selecting this space to bury the person who had shattered the notion of a divine origin of life.

     The canon of literature in the English language is replete with soaring, stirring, magnificent, elegant, memorable and oft repeated phrases in prose and verse, but for me the most beautiful of all has always been, and remains to this day, the following words of Charles Darwin.

"It is interesting to contemplate an entangled bank, clothed with many plants of many kinds, with birds singing on the bushes, with various insects flitting about, and with worms crawling through the damp earth, and to reflect that these elaborately constructed forms, so different from each other, and dependent on each other in so complex a manner, have all been produced by laws acting around us. There is a grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being evolved."

     A portrait of the young Charles Darwin sits on my desk. He inspires me every day.

Darwin: A Biography - Princeton University Press

Janet Browne

Hardcover - US$35.00 - ISBN: 9780691232256

624 pages - 6.125 x 9.25 inches (15.31 x 23.125 cm)

79 black-and-white illustrations - 4 maps

Publication date: 02 June, 2026