The Naturalist’s Notebook – an Observation Guide and Five Year Calendar Journal for Tracking Changes in the Natural World around You is an attractive hardcover book that is good for anyone who loves outdoor.
No matter the interest, either in plants, climate, gardening, birds, or other outdoor activities, the Naturalist’s Notebook got it all covered.
About the Authors of the Book
The Naturalist’s Notebook was written by both Nathaniel Thoreau Wheelwright and Bernd Heinrich. The authors both hail from the world of academia and are both professors.
The Naturalist’s Notebook was written with the aim to help gardeners, birders, naturalists, etc., record life events and the timing of those natural occurrences. The Naturalist’s Notebook contains the author’s experience of natural phenomenon – phenomena like birds incubating their egg, plants blooming alongside birds, and so many others.
About the Notebook
The Naturalists Notebook is a book, more like a document designed to help one appreciate his or her natural surroundings. The pages of the Naturalist’s Notebook are made of thick paper. This paper type makes it excellent for keeping records.
The Notebook contains many encouraging and practical help. Not only that, but there are also personal discoveries from the two authors that have studied nature throughout their lives. So do not neglect this helpful idea in this book as it can help you in your nature study.
The Notebook engages in a conversational style and makes good use of illustration.
The first hundred pages are categorized into six chapters, which are:
Chapter one: Being Attentive I
Chapter two: How to Become an Observant Naturalist II
Chapter three: How to Become an Observant Naturalist III
Chapter four: The Naturalist’s Toolbox IV
Chapter five: Simple Experiments as a Way of Learning V
Chapter six: Knowing Nature Where You Live VI
Let’s consider these chapters, one after the other.
Chapter One: Being Attentive
The chapter is built on the citizen scientist’s observation from their youth. The comparison of historical works of the previous centuries (that is, The Natural History of Selborne (1788) and Handbook of Nature Study (1911) is made with the digital age of recording observation.
The two formats have their values and benefits but the authors like the “old fashioned way” of recording observation. In this chapter, the way of recording short observation and the means to be an experienced observer are all explained and covered.
Chapter Two and Three: How to Become an Observant Naturalist
These two chapters are devoted to how you can become a trainer or observer of nature in a practical way. These chapters highlight and describe eight key elements needed to develop the above skill. These are: cultivate curiosity, learn the names of plants and animals surrounding you.
Familiarize yourself with the basic ecology, go on nature walks and take notes; ask why, use your sense of touch, smell, hear along with sight, conduct a simple experiment and also, teach others.
Bernd shares his personal experience on how he uses these skills and also how he made use of drawings to connect with nature and record his observations.
Chapter Four: The Naturalist’s Toolbox
The chapter shows the tools needed to make observations, which are: clothing, camera, binoculars, thermometer, pencil, and journal. This chapter focuses on how you can also observe and make brief recordings of events in two to three phrases.
The chapter also provides the recommended formats for timelines, tables, and graphs in case you are more detailed as a citizen scientist.
Chapter Five: Simple Experiments as a Way of Learning
This chapter has a conversational style with the author. It explains the four seasons and the simple experiments he carried out – experiments such as taking note of bird behavior during the winter season, planting seeds, and the diet of earthworms in spring; the bumblebee flower and spider diets in summer and fall.
Chapter Six; Knowing Nature Where You Are
Whether you live in an urban or rural area, a naturalist can still observe. Wherever you are, take note of your surroundings, slow down, observe, and ask questions, record daily observations. It will help to create a sense of unity, as well as understanding.
Note Bernd’s words: “without the attainment of familiarity, the significant remains invisible.”
The Five Year Journal
The last hundred pages are a five-year calendar journal that is for you to use in recording nature observation. The space left on the page is mainly for you to record your daily observation in writing and also to draw.
The five-year journal, however, contains no room for drawing. This is because the book is illustrated with sketches and drawings of Bernd attained by his sixty years of studying nature. So you can have a separate sketchbook to make your drawings along with your notebook.
After this five year journal, the Naturalist Notebook ends with:
- · Personal Glossary for Symbols and Abbreviations
- · Useful Books
- · Metric Conversion
- · Timelines for Species and Events you follow
- · Acknowledgement
- · About the author.
Recommendation
The Naturalist’s Notebook is a good resource for gardeners, birders, students to record their observations. The notebook offers all in one; the prose, the illustrations, instructions, experience, and space for your daily record, all in one journal.
Whether you are an experienced journal keeper or you are just looking for a better way to record your observations. The Naturalist’s Notebook is just right for you!
Available on Amazon
The 208-page volume Naturalist’s Notebook is published by the Storey, and you can buy it at the bookstore or through the Amazon website for just 19.95 dollars.
Conclusion
The Naturalist’s Notebook is a good book for all who are ready to level up your nature study. The Notebook helps one appreciate the efforts of other naturalists such as Lewis and Clark, Henry David, and others.
It is also a reminder that the natural world is important, and it broadens our personal awareness and appreciation of the changes and seasons. The Naturalist’s Notebook helps you strengthen your love for your natural world that surrounds you and also helps you improve your observation skills.
Get this guided nature journal, and it will help you develop a habit of learning the creations of God in full! For more details, please click the link to the images below or one on the top. Thank you for your kind visit.
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LearnToEarn Admin
This is indeed a handy tool too! Have nearby when gardening in the vegetable garden, herb garden, rockery, and hothouse to jot down and track when plants and herbs were planted, which seeds were used, organic hopefully, and to note when they were harvested and compare notes to what was recommended. This great for comparison of previous sowing and harvesting of crops, coupled with the book’s information, one can definitely up their game in improving their gardening skills. Thank you for bringing this valuable notebook to our attention.
admin
Hello,
Thank you so much for dropping by and reading the article about The Naturalist’s Notebook: Book Review. Thank you also that you found this article valuable to you for your own use in your vegetable garden.
Thank you so much,
Joyce
Zayom
Wow, This is a great article. The Naturalist’s Notebook contains many encouragements and practical help combined with personal anecdotes and discoveries from two authors who have enjoyed a lifetime of nature study. You will find an occasional evolutionary or global warming comment. Still, those do not negate all of the helpful and practical ideas you will gain for your own nature study. With an appealing conversational style, the authors discuss being attentive, how to become an observant naturalist, a naturalist’s toolbox, simple experiments through the seasons, and knowing nature where you are. It is pretty much half and half. About half of it is the inspirational and practical ideas, and half of it is the five-year calendar. Thanks for sharing
admin
Hello Zayom,
Welcome to my Amazing garden. I’m glad for your interest in reading my article about the Naturalist’s notebook, book review. Great that you find this helpful article and appealing to you and could help your own nature study anytime you want. Thank you for dropping by.
Joyce
Paolo
I would like to become a more attentive observer and deepen my appreciation for the natural world. This is energizing!
I really like the unique five-year calendar format of The Naturalist’s Notebook. It will help me create a long-term record and point of comparison for memorable events. Last year I saw my first monarch butterfly sighting of summer, and it would be cool to pin down those events.
admin
Hello Paolo,
Thank you so much for your time and interest in reading this article about The Naturalist’s Notebook, book review. Glad that you like it. Some other people don’t mind nature. I’m glad that you find it more helpful and informative, and you may use it for your own record and events.
Best wishes to you always. Thanks.
Joyce
Leahrae
This sounds like a great book for my dad. He loves to put out seeds and stuff when he is visiting as he likes to sit and watch the birds and any wildlife that stumbles onto our property. He has a lot of time on his hands right now because of the pandemic, and he is still confined to his apartment. So great gift idea!
admin
Hello Leahtrae,
Thank you once again for visiting my website today and reading my article about The Naturalist’s Notebook: Book Review. Thanks that you have to recommend it to your Dad, it will help him, and he will be enjoying using it. Thanks a lot.
Joyce
Rich Gilbert
I saw the title and clicked over, expecting a review of a book about Nature. Sometimes you see the word Naturalist and need to proceed with caution. Being aware of nature is important. Anyone looking to get started as a Naturalist would probably benefit from the book you reviewed here on your website. I need to read more books. Thanks for the Review.
admin
Hi Rich,
Thank you so much for reading this article, and good that it takes your interest to know about The Naturalist’s Notebook: Book Review. If you didn’t know about it you could do some research naturalist’s notebook helps people who love nature they will appreciate it very much. Thank you.
Joyce
wdeal11
Looks like this book covers about ever thing for the naturalist It is fine for the every day person who just loves nature. I grow a garden both flowers,plants and vegetables. This helps with the bird watching and so much more This seams to be a book that covers everthing
admin
Hello,
Thank you so much for your comment. I appreciate you very much. Thanks.
Joyce
Jules
Wow, I want this book now.
Thank you for reviewing this, now I know I won’t be disappointed. How great is it to have only one book to carry in the wild?! I love nature and never thought that this kind of tool existed out there, now I can start recording my observations and build on my personal experiences.
Cheers,
Jules
Jules
Wow, I want this book now.
Thank you for reviewing this, now I know I won’t be disappointed. How great is it to have only one book to carry in the wild?! I love nature and never thought that this kind of tool existed out there, now I can start recording my observations and build on my personal experiences.
Cheers,
Jules
admin
Hello Jules!
Nice to meet you here. Thank you so much for dropping by reading my article about the naturalist’s NoteBook Review. Glad that you love it, and please enjoy and explore with that naturalist’s notebook, handy. Thanks.
Joyce
Nabeel Razzaq
There are very few people who actually encourage nature nowadays. This is the reason I started reading your review and continued it till the end. We should care about nature and help ourselves understand that nature is the reason we are alive.
The book seems to highlight the importance of nature. I would definitely consider looking into it.
admin
Hi, Nabeel,
Thank you so much for your kind comment.
Best wishes,
Joyce
Jamie
It seems like a good book to check out for anyone wanting to get more in tune with nature. I love the quote, “without the attainment of familiarity; the significant remains invisible.” I wonder if this would be a good gift for a kid just getting into exploring nature and the world around them.
admin
Hello Jamie,
Thank you so much for your comment.
Thanks,
Joyce
terryiching
This is a wonderful book on many levels. I would recommend The Naturalist’s Notebook to everyone for its message on the value of observation. After reading Chapter 2, I truly understood what the authors meant by being an attentive observer; simply applying my meditation practice to my garden practice gave me a new appreciation of my garden.
I was surprised by the recommended tools aside from traditional, but when you remember, it’s all about observation; it makes a lot of sense. It will take a little time to get in the habit of documenting my observations, but it’s going to become an extension of my meditation practice.
The Naturalist’s Notebook five-year calendar format really puts your long-term gardening on a detailed plan, which will help me track all my organic vegetables, herbs, and seeds. It has great garden hacks combined with personal antidotes stories from two authors who appear to know something about gardening and life.
admin
Hello Terry,
Thank you so much for your kind visit here to my site and reading my article about The Natural notebook book review. Thanks that you enjoyed it.
Thank you and best wishes,
Joyce