A week or two ago, I picked up Andrea Wulf’s ‘The Invention of Nature’ at the Canning Library and Heritage Centre (see post Visit Canning).
It is a significant biographical contribution on the life of Humboldt (1769-1859). Humboldt journeyed to America between 1799-1804. Later he travelled to Russia in 1829.
The book is divided into five parts: Emerging Ideas, Collecting ideas, Sorting ideas, Spreading ideas and Evolving ideas. Humboldt interacted with Darwin, Thoreau, George Perkins Marsh, Ernst Haeckel and John Muir.
Subsequently Wulf has authored books on Founding Gardens, Brother Gardens and also a BBC TV series ‘British Gardens in Time’.
This week, I plan to return the book to the Canning Library. Perhaps, they will have copies of her other books.
Reference
Andrea Wulf, 2015, The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World, Alfred A Knopf, NY. 473 pp.
This book is a testament to the enduring value of libraries in today’s society. The subject, ‘the invention of nature’, remains significant today.
Postscript
Yesterday, late afternoon, we sat on the deck and watched a Sharp-shinned hawk monitor the activity along the Annapolis River flood plain — for almost an hour.
A treasured library acquisition that contributes to our knowledge of local place.
Ernest Blair Experiment 