The Outer Lands: A Natural History Guide to Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Block Island, and Long Island

So writes Dorothy Sterling in this remarkable book. She goes on, "It builds and destroys". Ostensibly a natural history guide, at times The Outer Lands reads more like a poetic drama. Here is the author's description of the formation of the beaches: "Waves battered against the gravel banks, carrying away rocks, stones, and clay. Undermined by the storms of winter, washed out by spring rains, boulders tumbled from the bluffs. A million times, and a million times a million, the smaller fragments of the glacial till somersaulted along the ocean floor. Pulled by winds and pushed by currents, they were swept out to sea and tossed back to shore. Rocks rubbed against each other. Stones clattered over the surface of the boulders at high tide. Filing, scraping, polishing rough edges, the endless motion of the waves turned the coarse gravel into smooth pebbles, and the pebbles into sand." Wonder abounds even in the very small things. For instance, "The architecture of a snail's shell is not only a thing of beauty but a precise bit of engineering". And indeed, so it is. There is even a section entitled "Worms Can Be Beautiful". In it Sterling makes her point, "Although `worm', often coupled with the word `lowly' conjures up unpleasant images, these marine worms are by no means at the bottom of the evolutionary ladder. They are lowly when compared to the readers of this book, but their bodies and behavior are admirably adapted to the tidal world in which they live. Viewed without prejudice, they can seem surprisingly beautiful". With these insights and deft description, we explore beaches, bays and sounds, marshes and dunes, ponds and bogs. The interesting facts never stop coming. We learn, for instance, that a single meadow mouse consumes about thirty pounds of vegetation per year. The Outer Lands has a timeless, vintage feel. Much more than a reference work, it's a perfect read for a foggy afternoon. Highly recommended.

Dorothy Sterling describes the Outer Lands (The Cape, Long Island, Nantucket, etc.) very eloquently, using understandable, interesting language. She adds charming local folklore and local sights, as well as maps and drawings that contribute so much to the book. This book is great for leasure reading as well as a textbook for a marine biology class.