This is a brilliant scholarly, yet readable work by two of the country's leading folklorists; it should appeal to anyone interested in the legends of the British Isles.

a work that entertains and intrigues from the first page to the last; not to be flicked through, but to be steadily digested and enjoyed.

Elder is a stylish writer and his ornithological travelogue takes him on entertaining adventures to some of Britain's most remote bird sites

[This] joyous account will delight twitchers and novices alike

One of those rare books where, though you may not care about the subject at the first page, you will by the last

A funny, enduring chronicle of a man who has rediscovered a childhood passion for birds

A gently humorous and accessible look at a serious subject... above all an entertaining read

As he delights in each new discovery, so do we

The Magic of Reality provides a beautiful, accessible and wide ranging volume that addresses the questions that all of us have about the universe...written with the masterful and eloquently literate style of perhaps the best popular expositor of science, Richard Dawkins, and delightfully illustrated by Dave McKean. What more could anyone ask for?

This book may be exactly what's needed to increase science literacy for readers of all ages

This book is primarily aimed at teenagers, but plenty of adults will get a kick out of it too...McKean's drawings bring the text to life brilliantly ... Dawkins writes convincingly about everything from chemistry to statistics

Dawkins uses a simple, brilliant technique highly appealing to young and old

Few scientists manage to reach a huge popular audience. Even among them Richard Dawkins is distinctive for the clarity and elegance of his prose. The Magic of Reality... will be appreciated by inquisitive children while illuminating much for the adult general reader.

This is not a book about the end of the world but about an imagined beginning ...The results of this huge thought-experiment are both fascinating and surprising. Fascinating for what they tell us about the impermanence of the works of man, and surprising for the simple reason that it soon becomes clear that our world would carry on regardless, indifferent to our demise

Weisman's gripping fantasy will make most readers hope that at least some of us can stick around long enough to see how it all turns out

Engrossing

An idea that is so lateral and clever, so powerfully evocative and masterfully executed that the only appropriate response is fervent envy

A wonderful idea ... a hugely enjoyable and thought-provoking book

Fascinating, absorbing

A quick, absorbing read - a summer beach book with brains

If you can stomach only one end-of-the world-as-we-know it story this summer, none is more audacious or interesting than Alan Weisman's The World Without Us

His is an extraordinary story laced with tragedy

[Root's] life story, vividly related here, is crammed with incident and adventure. Curious, creative and fearless, he has diced with death on numerous occasions and been mauled several times in his efforts to capture the daily lives of everything from silver-back gorillas to leopards in the wild on film. A gripping account of a life well lived