Handbook of Nature Study [Paperback]

Anna Botsford Comstock (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0801493846 | ISBN-13: 978-0801493843 | Publication Date: July 20, 1986

The late Anna Botsford Comstock was the founder and first head of the Department of Nature Study at Cornell University and the first woman to be appointed to the Cornell faculty. Written originally for elementary school teachers, this book is as valid and helpful today as it was when it was first written in 1911.

Product Details

• Paperback: 887 pages
• Publisher: Comstock Publishing/Cornell University Press (July 20, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801493846
• ISBN-13: 978-0801493843
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 2.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,605 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #12 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Natural History

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

164 of 165 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT BOOK!!!!, August 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Handbook of Nature Study (Paperback)

This is a wonderful book for studying ANY aspect of nature (except ocean life.) Thoroughly discusses all details of any living thing that you could dream of...want to know where a cricket's ears are located? How to tell if you have a male/female? What should you feed your cricket? Ever wondered why a lightning bug "lights up"? How can you tell if you have a male or female? Covers birds, fish, reptiles, wild animals, farm animals, pets, trees, flowers, rocks, weather, stars, etc, ETC!!! Many labled diagrams. A GREAT book, and written to fit in wonderfully with a Charlotte Mason philosophy. Geared towards elementary grades and complete with lessons, questions, projects, etc. Over 800 pages of easily understood information. As the original was published in 1911, be aware that the photos are not in color, nor as clear as modern nature guides, but the book MORE than makes up for this in so many ways! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

55 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nurture Your Love of Nature, June 12, 2006

By 

Mary Esterhammer-Fic (Morgan Park, Chicago IL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Handbook of Nature Study (Paperback)

I have a fairly decent natural science home library, and this book is probably the jewel in the crown. It's packed with information, and even though some data has been updated by recent discoveries (the book was first issued nearly a century ago) much of it is still relevent.

The author has a contagious awe for the world around us, from caddis fly larvae to little brown bats (which she recommends keeping for a while in order to observe closely). She wrote this when our society was less urbanized and more hands-on, so a lot of her audience (teachers and their young students) had only to march out into a nearby field to collect specimens. Today, we're more used to sanitized, distilled, controllable nature--and nothing that can't be washed away with antibacterial soap--that we forget how compelling these little anthill or treetop dramas are.

Comstock brings us into that wild world, and we don't have to go far to find it, after all. Her anecdotes about her personal experiences and her study questions that end each section keep this book from becoming just another field guide. Even if you don't have young kids with whom to share these adventures, it's great to have this resource at hand.

And if you do have young kids, it's fun to go mucking around in a ditch right after a storm, looking for tadpoles. Don't be obsessive about diseases (we all eat a pound of dirt before we die...or so they say) and don't forget to bring this book.

70 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good book depending on your location, December 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Handbook of Nature Study (Paperback)

I checked this book out of our local library because it was recommended for homeschoolers and because of the reviews here at Amazon.com. I do agree this is an excellent book BUT not very useful when you live in Hawaii. Seems the animals and plants the writer focusses on are mostly common to the eastcoast of the US. If you live in Hawaii, and possibly other places on the mainland, this book in not very helpful in studying our daily environment.