I greatly enjoyed this book! The moment I began reading the introductory pages I felt a great relaxation, as if I had come home to a safe place. I have spent my working life among field biologists though have not been a field person myself. I admire how these authors share not only their experience but their love of nature and of their work.

It is a compilation of essays about the observation of scientific field work and an exploration of field notebooks by the authors. I spent as much time examining the facsimile pages given as examples, as reading the narrative. ( )

I loved the reproduced journal pages, which were absolutely riveting. Twelve different field notebooks, twelve different ways of seeing the world, twelve different ways of doing science. Brilliant.

The text was less interesting. Some of the scientists talked about their own personal journaling processes, which was great. Some of them nattered on about their chosen fields, or how I should keep my own personal field notebooks. Some of them were good writers, some of them were not.

The concept is wonderful, the actual leaves from the notebooks wondrous. Worth seeking out for that, most certainly. ( )

A mixture of tone and approach, but several of the chapters offer strong arguments for the under-appreciation of field notebooks in biology, and for the continued importance of drawing as a part of real observation. ( )