Earth

This book covers an enormous amount of information. Features such as mountains, rivers, lakes, oceans, plains, deserts, forests, glaciers -- you name it -- are described in general and then short sections are devoted to specific places (the more prominent instances of those features, such as Mt Kilimanjaro for mountains, the Yangtze for rivers, etc., but many relatively lesser known places as well). But this book goes way beyond just land/water features. It also has a timeline of Earth's geological and biological history, covers rocks and minerals, soils, ecosystems, tectonics, natural forces, climate, conservation, and much more. The pictures are spectacular, and this book is full of them. Anyone with a general interest in geography, geology, or nature will certainly enjoy this book immensely.

I just received this heavyweight book and was overwhelmed by the desire to read every page at one time: it was like being a child in a candy store. Which should I choose? The book is magnificently presented with wonderful photographs throughout - hundreds, perhaps thousands. The page edges are decorated beautifully with a different design per section,and the text is woven in among the graphics so that you aren't overfaced with masses of text at one time. The text is clear and flowing and on good quality paper. I cannot imagine that there is anything in this masterpiece that I might want to find and cannot. Clearly it cannot delve over deeply into every topic on a subject as grand as "Earth", but it has a jolly good try. The original price was reasonable - this lower price is an absolute bargain. An excellent book for adults and older children alike.

As a college geography professor I decided to require Earth as the textbook for my physical geography classes. Tired of the exorbitantly priced textbooks which empty students' wallets, I thought it would be worthwhile to order a cheaper, more accessible book which the students might want to read even after the course ended. Now as the semester is finishing I am mostly happy with my choice. Earth cuts down on the jargon which is part of most college geography classes, so I had to alter my lecture and change some of my exam questions. Also, the sequencing of topics is different than most physical geography texts and I found it necessary to tell students that "today's material is found on pages 110-111,116-119, and 252-253," not quite as simple as telling the students to read chapter 11. Nevertheless, my classes have loved using the text, which caters to the shortened attention spans of most students. I think any reader would enjoy picking up this book, thumbing to any page, and reading it for even a mere 5 minutes. The photos are beautiful and the captions alone are informative. Highly recommended!

It seems that DK and the Smithsonian have teamed up to produce a sure winner with their new book "Smithsonian Earth". It is profusely graphic with superb full color photographs and illustrations throughout.This book is divided into five major subjects: (1) Planet Earth (2) Land (3) Ocean (4) Atmosphere and (5) Tectonic Earth. It is extremely well organized with a comprehensive index and glossary. One will find "thematic panels" scattered throughout the text, which might in other works be referred to as "sidebars". They serve three functions: They are used to highlight science (how scientists have learned about different aspects of the workings of our planet), biography (notable earth scientists, explorers and others are profiled) and environment (the ways humans are changing the Earth). These panels are color-coded. For instance, all biography entries have a light gray background. Having indexed some books myself in the past, this comprehensive feature was much appreciated. It was impressive in that even the "thematic panels" are indexed as well as the regular text. The index in boldface type refers to the most prominent page. For instance, copper's indexed entry referred to the "thematic panel" that noted that copper is extremely malleable and can be formed into intricate patterns that are invaluable for covering domes, spires and cupolas. Furthermore, it notes that the copper roofs last for centuries - all this in a small thematic panel!The first part of the book deals with the Earth's past with a colored timeline extending over several pages dating from the Big Bang. The color reflects the temperature and the environment. One outstanding feature of this book is the use of what they call "double pages" (facing pages) that are used for subjects of a global nature, for instance, such as "The Solar System", "The Earth and the Sun" and "The Earth and the Moon". This is the same format that DK used expertly in their superb Concise Atlas of the World. This format eliminates the annoying necessity of distractive page flipping.The Planet Earth section is broken down into the Earth's Past, the Earth in Space, the Anatomy of the Earth and The Changing Earth. Each of these subjects is further subdivided.The Land section focuses on Mountains and Volcanoes, Rivers and Lakes, Glaciers, Deserts, Forests, Wetlands, Grasslands and Tundra, Agricultural Areas, Urban Areas and Industrial Areas.The Ocean section covers Oceans and Seas and Coasts. These are also further subdivided. Coasts, for instance, are broken down into Tides and Waves, Coasts and Sea Level and Erosions and Depositional Coastlines topics.In reviewing this book, I first ran a readability test to determine the reading level (the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level) and it showed that it was written on the 12th grade level.In other words, this book is appropriate for seniors in high school and above and "advanced" young readers. It's good to see an educational book that has not been "dumbed down" to the lo