This acclaimed biography of 19th century scientist Gregor Mendel is “a fascinating tale of the strange twists and ironies of scientific progress” (Publishers Weekly). A National Book Critics Circle Award finalist In The Monk in the Garden, award-winning author Robin Marantz Henig vividly chronicles the birth of genetics, a field that continues to challenge the way we think about life itself. Tending to his pea plants in a monastery garden, the Moravian monk Gregor Mendel discovered the foundational principles of genetic inheritance. But Mendel’s work was ignored during his lifetime, even though it answered the most pressing questions raised by Charles Darwin's revolutionary book, On the Origin of Species. Thirty-five years after his death, Mendel’s work was saved from obscurity when three scientists from three different countries nearly simultaneously dusted off his groundbreaking paper and finally recognized its profound significance. From the perplexing silence that greeted his discovery to his ultimate canonization as the father of genetics, Henig presents a tale filled with intrigue, jealousy, and a healthy dose of bad timing. Though little is known about Mendel’s life, she "has done a remarkable job of fleshing out the myth with what few facts there are" (Washington Post Book World).

André Le Nostre, the son and grandson of royal master gardeners, was the most influential landscape architect of his time. In this definitive study, Professor Hazlehurst shows how his style developed from a complex of influences: his family background, the classic tradition, French rationalism, and the theories of landscape design propounded by Jacques Boyceau and Claude Mollet. He also traces the impact of Père Niceron, Salomon de Caus, and Simon Vouet on Le Nostre's understanding of the principles of perspective and optical foreshortening. By careful analysis of the sites where Le Nostre is known to have worked, among them Vaux-le-Vicomte, Fontainebleau, the Tuileries, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Versailles, Chantilly, Meudon, and Saint-Cloud, Professor Hazlehurst illustrates his skillful use of optical illusion to introduce vitality and surprise into otherwise coldly formal compositions. More than 370 photographs, plans, and elevation drawings, some in color, are included to show how these illusions were created. Garden of Illusion, the first book-length study of André Le Nostre to appear in almost twenty years, provides important new insights into the practice of landscape gardening not only in France but in the Western world. -- Jacket.

"In this thought-provoking, handsomely illustrated book, Italian neurobiologist Stefano Mancuso considers the fundamental differences between plants and animals and challenges our assumptions about which is the ‘higher’ form of life.” —The Wall Street Journal “Fascinating…full of optimism…this quick, accessible read will appeal to anyone with interest in how plants continue to surprise us.” —Library Journal Do plants have intelligence? Do they have memory? Are they better problem solvers than people? The Revolutionary Genius of Plants—a fascinating, paradigm-shifting work that upends everything you thought you knew about plants—makes a compelling scientific case that these and other astonishing ideas are all true. Plants make up eighty percent of the weight of all living things on earth, and yet it is easy to forget that these innocuous, beautiful organisms are responsible for not only the air that lets us survive, but for many of our modern comforts: our medicine, food supply, even our fossil fuels. On the forefront of uncovering the essential truths about plants, world-renowned scientist Stefano Mancuso reveals the surprisingly sophisticated ability of plants to innovate, to remember, and to learn, offering us creative solutions to the most vexing technological and ecological problems that face us today. Despite not having brains or central nervous systems, plants perceive their surroundings with an even greater sensitivity than animals. They efficiently explore and react promptly to potentially damaging external events thanks to their cooperative, shared systems; without any central command centers, they are able to remember prior catastrophic events and to actively adapt to new ones. Every page of The Revolutionary Genius of Plants bubbles over with Stefano Mancuso’s infectious love for plants and for the eye-opening research that makes it more and more clear how remarkable our fellow inhabitants on this planet really are. In his hands, complicated science is wonderfully accessible, and he has loaded the book with gorgeous photographs that make for an unforgettable reading experience. The Revolutionary Genius of Plants opens the doors to a new understanding of life on earth.

This series offers a range of heretofore unavailable writings in English translation on the subjects of art, architecture, and aesthetics. Camus's description of the French hotel argues that architecture should please the senses and the mind.

A garden classic, The Genius of the Place reveals that the history of landscape gardening is much more than a history of design and style; it opens up a wide perspective of English cultural history, showing how landscape gardening was gradually transformed over two centuries into an art that has been widely imitated throughout Europe and North America. The English landscape garden is richly documented in this anthology. Over 100 illustrations accompany writings that range from Francis Bacon to Jane Austin; from the early 1600s, when Englishmen began to determine their own concept and form of the garden, through the first half of the eighteenth century when its distinctive feature emerged, to the heyday of the landscape garden under "Capability" Brown and the reactions to his pure formalism under Repton and Loudon in the 1800s. This edition contains a new introduction and bibliography covering the many developments in garden history during the last dozen years.

In the first comprehensive biography of Ossian Cole Simonds, a seminal figure in the naturalistic landscape movement at the beginning of the 20th century and founder of the American Society of Landscape Architects, Geiger explores the development of his philosophy and the important colleagues, clients, and projects that shaped his career.

In this lavishly illustrated volume, Robin Karson explores the development of a distinctly American style of landscape design. Analyzing seven country places created by some of the most imaginative landscape practitioners of the era in the context of professional and cultural currents, Karson draws a richly comprehensive picture of the artistic achievements of the period. Striking contemporary black-and-white photographs by Carol Betsch and hundreds of drawings, plans, and period photographs further illuminate their histories.

‘Inch by Inch, Row by Row, Gonna Make This Garden Grow!' This picture book version of a favorite popular song charts the faithful progress of a young boy who overcomes every obstacle'rock and weeds and a hungry old crow'and makes his garden overflow with bounty. Included are the song lyrics set to music for guitar and piano. An Alternate Selection of Children's Book-of-the-Month Club