Views of Nature

Forests along the Orinoco, the grasslands of Venezuela and the high Andes supply Alexander von Humboldt with subjects for essays that combine landscape description with scientific inquiry. He explains that these papers grew from observations made in tropical countries, with each essay intended to stand on its own. The book pairs these accounts with extensive scientific notes, linking the pleasure of looking at nature to an understanding of the forces that shape it.

The detail can be exacting: Humboldt discusses flowering plants near the snow line in the Andes, compares mountain measurements and explains why altitude calculations depend on both surveying and the barometer. A cloud covering Chimborazo can interrupt a carefully prepared observation. These passages reveal the practical difficulties behind descriptions of distant landscapes. Readers interested in the history of science will find a naturalist balancing vivid prose with measurements, corrections and close attention to the connections between plants, climate and terrain.