Collins Field Guide: Fields (2010)

Combining history, natural history, folklore, food, and armchair travel, The Field Guide to Fields is a celebration of these rural treasures, painting a vivid picture of their unique histories and many facets. From the terraced paddies of Asia to the meadows of Europe, and from the paddocks of Australia to the wide-open prairies of the Great Plains, fields are an integral part of the modern landscape. In their myriad forms, they are the most familiar and well-tended part of the countryside -- and have been for millennia.They are places in which we work and play, tranquil spaces to be explored or simply admired from afar. The Field Guide to Fields is a celebration of these rural treasures, painting a vivid picture of their unique histories and many different facets. The text combines many aspects, including history, natural history, folklore, food, and armchair travel. It also includes practical feature spreads on subjects such as collecting and drying wild herbs, as well as identification guides to help you spot different types of flora and fauna. Beautifully presented in cloth binding, and illustrated throughout with a combination of photographs and specially commissioned linocut-style artwork, The Field Guide to Fields is a pleasure both to own and to read. CONTENTS: / What is a field? / Field Forebears / Shaping the Landscape / Brave new World / Flora / Fauna / Tools & Technology / Nature's Bounty / Field Folklore / ID Guides

Bill Laws is a writer, editor, and journalist. He is the author of ten books, including Common Losses: Essays and Interviews on Trees, Woods and the Green Man (1987), which was commissioned by the environmental arts group, Common Ground, Spade, Skirret and Parsnip: The Curious History of Vegetables, and Byways, Boots and Blisters: A History of Walkers and Walking. Bill writes on homes, gardens, and landscapes for numerous publications, including the Guardian and Telegraph newspapers, Environment Now, Period House, BBC History magazine, and the BBC's Who Do You Think You Are? He has also edited a series of journals and books on rural history for the last 20 years, the latest publication, A Slap of the Hand, being a social history of a country cattle market.