Under The Microscope

NATURE CROSS-SECTIONS by Richard Orr; Viking/Penguin Books, 1996; 30 pages; $34.95
IN THE BEGINNING, by Brian Delf and Richard Platt; Viking/Penguin, 1995; 76 pages; $39.95

These large hardbacks are both packed with detailed illustrations that warrant a great deal of studied examination. Nature's Cross-Sections takes a literal slice of life through various habitats around the world. Fold-out pages provide more room for life from the Arctic and the equatorial rainforests. The double-page spreads cover everything from the specifics of beaver lodge and bee nest to the broader environments of ocean and wood.

The woodland, naturally, is inhabited by badgers, foxes, squirrels and other creatures not seen in our own forests. The one criticism of this book is that is has nothing covering the remarkable diversity of life found in New Zealand or Australia; while the former is a common omission, it is surprising that the more widely known possibilities offered by the latter are ignored. In the Beginning is subtitled The Nearly Complete History of Almost Everything, and it makes a valiant effort to live up to that billing. The first section covers the origins of the Earth and life on it, with a good, well-illustrated synopsis of the major geological forces at work before moving on to Cambrian sea life, Carboniferous swamps and Jurassic dinosaurs to arrive eventually at Homo sapiens sapiens. From there on, it's Mankind all the way, with major sections on everyday life, buildings, making and measuring and transport.

A vast amount of development and a surprising amount of detail is covered: the Castles and Fortresses double-page spread starts at ditch and dike construction and finishes up with the American Air Defence Command. It's a view of history reflected through predominantly Western technological development.

Vicki Hyde is the editor of New Zealand Science Monthly.