Spend hours navigating the world's great rivers in this vibrant, fact-filled book for kids that blends geography, history, and culture. Where in the Rhein does the Nibelung Treasure lie? What river helps mark the prime meridian? Why do people make pilgrimages to the Indian city of Benares? Why is the Mekong called the "Nine Dragon" river in Vietnam? How does the Mississippi divide and unite the United States? These and hundreds of other facts are explored in this wonderfully illustrated atlas of the world's great rivers. Each spread in this book, which includes a goregeous gatefold page, offers a colorful map packed with drawings, figures, and facts. Cities that border the rivers are highlighted, as are distinct flora and fauna, significant natural and human-made features, and fascinating historical details. A "biography" of each river describes where it flows, and its importance to the communities it passes through. Special attention is given to the ecological health of the rivers--those that are thriving and those in danger of losing their valuable habitats. Along the way, young readers will come to understand the enormous impact that rivers have on our lives, while learning valuable information in a way that will spark their curiosity and imagination.

Far from being the serene, natural streams of yore, modern rivers have been diverted, dammed, dumped in, and dried up, all in efforts to harness their power for human needs. But these rivers have also undergone environmental change. The old adage says you can’t step in the same river twice, and Ellen Wohl would agree—natural and synthetic change are so rapid on the world’s great waterways that rivers are transforming and disappearing right before our eyes. A World of Rivers explores the confluence of human and environmental change on ten of the great rivers of the world. Ranging from the Murray-Darling in Australia and the Yellow River in China to Central Europe’s Danube and the United States’ Mississippi, the book journeys down the most important rivers in all corners of the globe. Wohl shows us how pollution, such as in the Ganges and in the Ob of Siberia, has affected biodiversity in the water. But rivers are also resilient, and Wohl stresses the importance of conservation and restoration to help reverse the effects of human carelessness and hubris. What all these diverse rivers share is a critical role in shaping surrounding landscapes and biological communities, and Wohl’s book ultimately makes a strong case for the need to steward positive change in the world’s great rivers.

The courses of the great rivers recount the history of the Earth and mankind. This book is dedicated to 25 of the world's longest, most important rivers, from the Ganges, Mekong, Tigris, and Euphrates to the Nile and Amazon, from the Mississippi to Danube. This lavish volume aims to portray them as never before. It alternates aerial and panoramic photographs with detailed close-ups and hidden views that instil in the reader the sights and impressions that can be enjoyed when travelling along these great rivers from their sources to their estuaries. Historic photographs and archival documents make it possible to relive the decisive moments in the evolution of individual watercourses; enthralling narratives describe the characteristics and location of each river. Great Rivers of the World is a nature book, brimming with facts and information; it is also a history book that discusses humankind and its age-old relationship with rivers - it is even an art book, given its magical and emotive evocations of memorable riverscape.

The Nile River has been flowing for generations, and with it, history was made. In this book, you are going to read and learn about the Nile River as one of the major and most historic rivers in the world. It's important to learn about geography to fully grasp its cultural context too. Go ahead and grab a copy today.

The conventional approach to river protection has focused on water quality and maintaining some "minimum" flow that was thought necessary to ensure the viability of a river. In recent years, however, scientific research has underscored the idea that the ecological health of a river system depends not on a minimum amount of water at any one time but on the naturally variable quantity and timing of flows throughout the year. In Rivers for Life, leading water experts Sandra Postel and Brian Richter explain why restoring and preserving more natural river flows are key to sustaining freshwater biodiversity and healthy river systems, and describe innovative policies, scientific approaches, and management reforms for achieving those goals. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter: explain the value of healthy rivers to human and ecosystem health; describe the ecological processes that support river ecosystems and how they have been disrupted by dams, diversions, and other alterations; consider the scientific basis for determining how much water a river needs; examine new management paradigms focused on restoring flow patterns and sustaining ecological health; assess the policy options available for managing rivers and other freshwater systems; explore building blocks for better river governance. Sandra Postel and Brian Richter offer case studies of river management from the United States (the San Pedro, Green, and Missouri), Australia (the Brisbane), and South Africa (the Sabie), along with numerous examples of new and innovative policy approaches that are being implemented in those and other countries. Rivers for Life presents a global perspective on the challenges of managing water for people and nature, with a concise yet comprehensive overview of the relevant science, policy, and management issues. It presents exciting and inspirational information for anyone concerned with water policy, planning and management, river conservation, freshwater biodiversity, or related topics.

Large Rivers: Geomorphology and Management explores an important topic in geomorphology and sedimentology: the form and function of major rivers. Our knowledge of the big rivers of the world is limited. It is currently difficult to recognise large rivers of the past from relict sedimentary deposits or to structure management policies for long international rivers. This exciting book brings together a set of papers on large rivers of the world, as a unique introduction to a demanding subject. The book includes thirty chapters and is organised into three sections. The first part is on the environmental requirements for creating and maintaining a major river system. The second is a collection of case studies on 14 large rivers from different continents, covering a range of physical environments. The third section includes chapters on the measurement and management of large rivers. First book to offer in a single volume state-of-the-art knowledge on management and geomorphology of large rivers of the world A pioneering study, pushing the boundaries of our knowledge related to big rivers Includes comprehensive case studies covering the major large rivers of the world including Amazon, Mississippi, Nile, Congo, Indus, and Mekong Written by a leading team of distinguished, international contributors Large Rivers: Geomorphology and Management is essential reading for postgraduate students and researchers in fluvial geomorphology, hydrology, sedimentary geology, and river management. It is also of relevance to engineers and environmental consultants in the private and public sectors working on major rivers of the world.

Discusses the importance of water to planet Earth, including what animals live in water and where the most beautiful bodies of water are.

Looks at the major rivers around the world, describing the myths, events, popular culture, and historical figures associated with each.

'As fascinating as it is beautifully written' JARED DIAMOND, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Guns, Germs and Steel Rivers, more than any road, technology or political event, have shaped the course of civilization. Rivers have opened frontiers, defined borders, supported trade, generated energy and fed billions. Most of our greatest cities stand on river banks or deltas, and our quest for mastery has spurred staggering advances in engineering, science and law. Rivers and their topographic divides have shaped the territories of nations and the migration of peoples, and yet - as their resources become ever more precious - can foster cooperation even among enemy states. And though they become increasingly domesticated, they remain a formidable global force: these vast arterial powers promote life but are capable of destroying everything in their path. From ancient Egypt to our growing contemporary metropolises, Rivers of Power reveals why rivers matter so profoundly to human civilization, and how they continue to be indispensable to our societies and wellbeing. 'Takes readers on a tour of the world's great rivers - past, present and future. The result is fascinating, eye-opening, sometimes alarming, and ultimately inspiring' Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sixth Extinction 'A tour de force ... From Herodotus musing on the Nile to the dam makers of modern China, this is their story' Fred Pearce, author of When the Rivers Run Dry 'Instructive and entertaining' The Times

Examines the rivers of the world, their ecology, and the people who live near them.