Explorer’s Botanical Notebook: In the Footsteps of Marco Polo, Linnaeus, Flinders, Darwin, Speke, and Hooker

Thinard, in partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the Université de Montpellier, has produced a fascinating account of explorers who traveled the world, from ancient Egyptians to contemporary researchers, and the plant specimens they catalogued. Thinard’s writing experience—both as a journalist who writes about geopolitical issues and as an author of young adult novels—is evident, as in her account of how Scottish botanist Robert Fortune journeyed into China as a industrial spy for the East India Company to steal the secrets of growing tea. The book features 80 explorers and the botanists who traveled with them through the ages. Organized chronologically, explorers, their achievements, and annotated plant specimens are handsomely presented on adjacent facing pages. The achievement page contains a short biography, a map of the explorer’s travel, and other related insets and photos. A detailed index and table of contents enables readers to access specific content readily. Enhanced by illustrations and Yannick Fourie’s photographs, this attractive coffee-table book is designed to be leisurely perused, but it is also an encyclopedic resource that would be an excellent reference for students. (Sept.)