This book is a coffee table book for the lovers of nature and Darwin It had beautiful illustrations, with explanations about the plant world.

A book fit for the coffee table because it will always spark conversation. Inside this tome are delightful illustrations that can be enjoyed by the curious onlooker. For those craving more knowledge, Costa and Angell give you enough to feed the whole family.

This is a very aesthetically pleasing book, and I would have loved to read the physical copy (I may have to go get it). This is a beautiful reference book for the plants Darwin studied and has interesting stories and details throughout. Definitely worth a read for anyone interested in science, history, and plants.

I knew from the second I saw this cover and title that I would love it! Everyone has heard of Darwin, ok maybe almost everyone? But this concept was super interesting since mainstream references to him involve animals. But Darwin’s work and ideas apply to both flora and fauna so this was an enlightening collection to expand that thinking. Great read and beautiful “table book” too! ;)

I’m a sucker for just about anything that blends science or conservation with art. A few favorites include nature journaling, the Blaschka glass sculptures, and the Federal Duck Stamp contest. This book is another great example. It compiles some of Charles Darwin’s writings on various plant species and pairs those writings with botanical illustrations from the Oak Spring Garden Library collection. Each section highlights a different plant, excerpts from at least one of Darwin’s writings about it, and context from the author about how that plant relates to Darwin.

A few sections that caught my eye were those about foxglove, lupine, grape vine, flame lily, and bucket orchid.

Whether you want to familiarize yourself with Darwin’s botanical works or you just want to peruse the beautiful botanical artwork, this book is definitely worth taking a look.

This unique volume unearths six rarely seen, plant-centered texts by Charles Darwin, and presents them with breathtaking 19th-century botanical illustrations. Framing Darwin's own words within the lens of the science of his time, this curated collection provides insight into a pioneering mind that forever changed our relationship with the natural world.

This visually beautiful book contains fascinating excerpts from Darwin's work, which illuminate the wonders of the natural world.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This beautiful book combines science and art to provide a delightful book for botanists, scholars, gardeners, scientists, and others who enjoy learning about plants. The book begins with a foreword, preface, and intro that describe the process of deciding what would go into the book, as well as background on the author and sources. A thoughtfully detailed biography of Darwin is found at the beginning of the book, accompanied by black and white illustrations and details about his botanical writings.

Each type of plant is described through author comments and excerpts from Darwin's writings. The plants are illustrated with color plates taken from authoritative artistic sources. The book is well-researched and includes an index, botanical art credits, end notes, a list of digital resources, and a bibliography.

This book is by far a book to be read slowly and savored, rather than to be rushed through. It is a credible scholarly source of information and scientific art. While this book may appeal to a limited niche group of readers, it is certainly a fine addition to the body of knowledge about botany, and provides a bridge between science and art.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

It is not always appreciated that, in addition to his revolutionary 'On the Origin of Species', Charles Darwin produced seventeen other books, including on plants. He also wrote articles on botany, and plants are increasingly prominent examples in later editions of 'Origin'. In 'Darwin and the art of Botany — observations on the curious world of plants' forty-five extracts from his works are presented alongside beautiful illustrations of the species concerned.

The botanical illustrations come from a collection at the Oak Spring Garden Foundation, in the United States. They are grouped, as in Darwin's studies, into climbing plants, modes of fertilisation, insectivorous plants, orchids, flower forms, and power of movement in plants. The accompanying texts show Darwin's experimental method and precise focus. However, they are quite technical and might best be appreciated by someone with botanical knowledge. For other readers, an introductory diagram labelling the parts of plants would have been helpful.

Nevertheless, this is a beautiful and interesting book. As the authors say, it illustrates “a corpus of work that was 'Origin' writ large; myriad subjects with an eye to extending and reinforcing the explanatory power of his theory of evolution by natural selection.”

A delightful book that covers the botanical investigations of Darwin. Excellent illustrations and perfect selections from Darwin and others in the field at the time. The book clearly shows Darwin close to the concepts of the theory of genetics which were to become an integral element to understanding the idea of natural selection. Those concepts were to be explained by Mendel a generation later. One does not get a sense of Darwin missing anything though. We marvel at his speculations and his meticulous work and see the proper context of him and the state of science at the time. The answers were being formulated to the questions, but no one was there just yet.

This book is a pleasant enjoyable read and a perfect way to enhance your knowledge of Darwin. Well done Costa and Angell.

Lovely illustrations sourced from various artists and publications. Both color and ink drawings bring life to the flora. that Darwin studied. The text is accessible, and well formatted. For any age of learner who is interested in history, botany and art.

This book is an ode to both Darwin and the natural world of today, It's very informative on the plants themselves as well as Darwin's scientific method.

"-he simulated the windy seaside conditions by violently shaking the plants, surely a curious spectacle to any passerby"

I definitely learned a lot, and for me this is a book to be perused in pieces, perhaps once printed, as a coffee table book.

Very interesting book about something I'd been completely unaware of - Darwin's interest in plants seems only natural given his work but it never occurred to me until I saw this book. Illustrations are lovely as well.

The text was captivating, but the artwork was beautiful. This was an exceptionally visually pleasing work, and I loved seeing the older botanical drawings.

This is a beautiful book. If you love botany then this is for you. I gleaned some wonderful information, the section on the Venus fly trap was excellent as a native of North Carolina. This is one I’ll be turning to over and over for our homeschool nature studies.

This was a beautiful book with gorgeous botanical illustrations. The book gives great insight to Darwin, his research, and botany.

This book can appeal to a wide range of people, from history or botany enthusiasts, Darwin-fans, artists, nature lovers or just about anyone. The book can be a great educational tool but also a pretty coffee table book. This is one of those books that you can just flip open to any page and either marvel at the beautiful illustrations or deepen your knowledge of an interesting subject.

I am definitely recommending this book for my library!

Absolutely beautiful illustrations and interesting text.

I received an electronic ARC but I imagine the print version would be even better. Recommended for anyone interested in plant life or even as a gift.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher. #sponsored

I’d like to thank Timber Press and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book was beautifully done, effortlessly combining art and science with excerpts of Darwin’s descriptions of flora. The Oak Spring Garden’s illustrations are gorgeous, what a fantastic read!

Interesting, if not a bit didactic, but did enjoy skimming the images and briefly reading about the early backgrounds of their findings. So much is known now, it is easy to forget how many of these plants, including peanuts, used to be unknown to many. If nothing else, would recommend this book for the beautiful images. Nice book.

This beautiful book is an ode to botany and the art of plants in all their glory. I've always enjoyed the style of drawing plants that is lovingly put to use alongside Darwin's detailed descriptions of his plant studies. I learned so much detail that makes me appreciate what nature has to offer even more.

This book was a quick, fun read for anyone interested in botany, the work of Charles Darwin, and beautiful artwork. The prints in this book are gorgeous and I think more science themed book should have artwork in them. I will admit that Darwin is a very dry writer, but I appreciate his (and his family's) dedication to science and the rigorous study of life on this planet. Now I'd love to take a trip to visit the Botanical Gardens in Kew.

An interesting book especially regarding the details of Darwin's work with Orchids & also the Movement within Plants that goes totally unnoticed by most people. The Colour Plates & Illustrations in this Book were superb & one could love it just for those, however I feel some of the text was very long winded & specialised & would therefore put many off from reading this Book hence why I have only given it 3 Stars. #NetGalley, #GoodReads, #Amazon.co.uk,#Fb, #Instagram, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/8a5b541512e66ae64954bdaab137035a5b2a89d2" width="80" height="80" alt="200 Book Reviews" title="200 Book Reviews"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>.