Exploring the Secrets of Nature

by Reader's Digest Association

More than one thousand full-color photographs and drawings complement an illuminating journey into the natural world that reveals nature's complex life cycles, the mysteries of animal behavior, and the intricate web of nature and human life. 15,000 first printing.

Genres: Reference, Nature

432 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. is a global media and direct marketing company based in Chappaqua, New York, best known for its flagship publication founded in 1922, Reader's Digest. The company's headquarters are in New York City, where it moved from Pleasantville, New York.

The company was founded by DeWitt and Lila Wallace in 1922 with the first publication of Reader's Digest magazine, but has grown to include a diverse range of magazines, books, music, DVDs and online content.

Reviews

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting read. It taught me a lot I didn't know.

[Ian Banks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful-looking reference book that contains a wealth of information about animals from all over the world. It is well-researched and written but it suffers a little from the “what’s the most interesting thing we can put in a two-page spread” syndrome, as the chapters are split into stages of life but there didn’t feel like there was a real plan to how the animals were set out aside from doing something interesting related to that particular aspect of the life cycle. Which, frankly, is a perfectly legitimate way to set out a book but it did leave me a little put off because there are more interesting things about stoats aside from the fact that they can conceive while still nursing because the male stoats are just violent, rampaging penises! It’s fantastic for a starting point at looking at nature - many of the illustrations are excellent, too - as well as for quickly finding out some facts (the index is also very well-done) but, as stated above, wasn’t what I look for in a reference book. For a general reader or as a reference book for less finicky readers, though, it is terrific.

[Robert Allan Wragg · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book, it covers animals I have never heard of.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Four very different and wonderful stories. Joan Brock is an inspiration to us all, thank you for sharing your life experiences with us. This collection will be staying in my collection and re-read in the future.