Cabinet of Curiosities: Collecting and Understanding the Wonders of the Natural World

by Gordon Grice

Exactly the book for every young explorer who loves finding stuff in nature and bringing it home. Cabinet of Curiosities is a lavishly illustrated introduction to the wonders of natural history and the joys of being an amateur scientist and collector.

Nature writer Gordon Grice, who started his first cabinet of curiosities at age six when he found a skunk’s skull, explains how scientists classify all living things through the Linnaeus system; how to tell real gold from fool’s gold; how to preserve butterflies, crab shells, feathers, a robin’s egg, spider specimens, and honeycombs; how to identify seashells; the difference between antlers and horns; how to read animal tracks. And then, what to do with your specimens, including how to build a cabinet of curiosities out of common household objects, like a desk organizer or a box for fishing tackle.
  

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Science, Reference, Childrens, Art, Natural History

160 pages, Hardcover

First published May 5, 2015

About the author

Gordon Grice has written about the dark corners of biology for The New Yorker (where he tackled the history of post-mortem dissections), Harper’s (black widow spiders), and Discover (leprosy). His books include The Red Hourglass: Lives of the Predators and Deadly Kingdom (paperback: The Book of Deadly Animals). His other projects include National Geographic’s eBook short Shark Attacks: Inside the Mind of the Ocean’s Most Terrifying Predator and more than a dozen horror stories in magazines, including the Best of the ‘Net winner “The White Cat” and the Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror runner-up “Hide.”

Reviews

[Sherri · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book full of beautiful detailed illustrations and information. Although written for younger readers I found it fascinating and informative. So much so I want to help my nephew start his collection, when he is older and can read.

There is no dumbing down or censoring information because it's for elementary or middle school readers. Grice explains the Linnaeus system of classification and taxonomic ranking. He tells how to preserve specimens and other practical advice like how to avoid getting stung . Most of the book is focused on animals but chapters on plants and minerals are also detailed and include history as well.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have several issues with this book... where to start. Who is the intended audience? Some of the text is super dense, which seems to be for older readers. But in his intro, Grice assumes the reader to be younger. Also, he shows "commonly collected" items, but they're from all over the world, and some are prohibited items. I was also expecting this to be a history of curiousity cabinets, not a how-to guide. But it even missed the mark on that. This was a big let down for me.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

if you ever want to get the phylum and kingdom and class and domain etc straight, this book, Cabinent of Curiosities will show everything. there are pages and pages of pictures ,charts, and interesting detail of the wonderful array of the natural world. it is an easy book to dip into and study and a perfect companion to identify any natural objects in your own cabinet of curiosities.

[Em Amir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Gordon Grice for this beautiful book, here is my honest review;
Cabinet of Curiosities would be a great gift for a children who are interested about nature and finding their own collections and for science teachers, also a thoughtful Christmas gift!
Very informative book with detailed illustrations, well-written, and nicely photographed; full of all kinds of useful information in natural world, animals, plants, shells, feathers, …. This not a heavy reference book, has an enough explanation on each subject which won’t make you bored, in other hand it is very accurate and sort of in depth too, which includes historical information, instructions on making your own collection.
The quality of book and print is remarkable.

[Rebecca Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of useful information for people wanting to preserve a variety of items found in nature.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book for inspiring young nature observers. The author's goal is to whet the appetite for discovering and questioning what we find outdoors. Older readers may learn a few things too! Also gives a very general overview of Carl Linnaeus's classification system without getting too technical. Again, spot-on for a young reader.

[Barbara White · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is fascinating.....one I'll keep forever. It encompasses minerals, plants, insects, and more. I learned so much while reading Cabinet of Curiosities. I will be sharing it with younger members of my family so they can learn from this eclectic collection in the cabinet of curiosities.

[Anneleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leuk voor kinderen. Alleen dacht ik dat het meer over rariteitenkabinetten ging en niet over de classificatie van soorten. Want ja, als bioloog daar weet ik al genoeg over :p.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a part of homeschooling, my daughter and I started a "science museum" where we identified and named species of feathers, leaves, shells, and other curiosities.

As a science teacher, over the years, my students brought me whatever they found - snake skin, cicada skin, bones, eggs, nests, tarantula molt, shells, and bee hives. We would always research the genus and species and add a label with the student that discovered it.

This book reinforced what joy I have always found in nature and identifying nature. I have always been drawn to science museums and would love to start another one along with nature journaling. Let the adventures begin!!!

[Steph F · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. Not only is it a beautiful book, but it has information on how to build and store a nature collection properly, from rocks and shells to bones and bugs. Some of it would be great for children, but some of the instructions are definitely more advanced for older collectors and readers. The age range given by the publisher is 8-18. Either way, this book is one that I not only appreciate using myself (as someone in her 30s), but something I can see myself referencing and using projects from when I have my own children.

[Janne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Prachtig vormgegeven boek met veel weetjes en bijzonderheden. Leuk om een extraatje te ontdekken over snavel van de ara of de voortplanting van de segrijnslak.

Toch is het een vrij niche boek, meer uitleg over de uiteenlopende dieren-, planten- en mineralensoorten. Wel toffe uitleg over hoe en waar skeletten, zaden, dieren en bloemen te bewaren.

Als je, net als mij, zoekt naar de geschiedenis van rariteitenkabinetten, welke er allemaal zijn en wie deze heeft samengesteld, dan is dit niet het boek voor jou. Dan ben je beter af met de podcast 'Aaron Mahnke's Cabinet of Curiosities'. Trust me.

[Shahna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book grabbed my attention right from the cover. I love this kind of stuff and this book is perfect if you love it too. 

It's informative, easy to read and the photos are beautiful. I love just looking at the images and all the detail. 

A really nice and pretty book. So glad I picked it up. 

[Gill · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a bit of a mix of things. Dense history and forest guides. And lovely instructions, stories and inspiration for young explorers to make their own curiosity cabinets. Did inspire us to start making our own!

[Peg · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great book for inspiration. Inconsistent in determining the target audience and in the language - alternating for children and adults. It will definitely work as a base for further studies or determining and building a collection.

[Sierra Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would have LOVED this book when I was around 9 or 10. Perfect for those who want to build collections and also learn more about the natural world.

[Lauri Meyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun reading for the natural collector. Collection boxes and handling specimens. Scientific classification. Looks at skulls, footprints, feathers, scat, shells, insects, plants , seeds, rocks.

[Caren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book for the curious kid.

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Atheist Sunday School read complete

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Severely lacking in terms of the ethics of nature collection.

[Annette McIntyre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolute fascinating

A book all about curiosity cabinets, what they are, how to make your own and what to put in them. All ages will find this book interesting and helpful.
Having read this book, I am now going to find the things I have collected over the years and make a curiosity cabinet with them and I will be adding to it.

[Alison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought it for Andy, Xmas 2015. Hope he likes it. It may be a bit rich for a 10-11 yr. old. I'm optimistic. I know I would've been into it. It incorporates concepts of organization and cataloging, which I thought was nifty.

[H Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book. It's gorgeous and deeply informative.

[Sarah Pearce · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely primer on biology!

[Clever Name · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great primer for a younger collector/reader.

[Marie Lay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!

[Juli Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is such a cool idea for a book: it teaches biology and earth science through the conceit of the cabinet of curiosities, with particular attention paid to collection and preservation practices. It is a beautifully designed book, with clear and solid instructions for collection and beautiful illustrations; I would have eaten this up as a child. Unfortunately, I felt that sometimes the information was not quite as thorough as it could have been, and that there were gaps in the "narrative" that left me flipping back and forth through the book, trying to find information that wasn't there. There was also not nearly enough discussion about the ethics of collection, which I feel is necessary in a book of this sort. This could have been a truly exceptional introductory science textbook, but I found in the end that it was merely a sort of novelty itself.