cover image To the Arctic: An Introduction to the Far Northern World

To the Arctic: An Introduction to the Far Northern World

Steven B. Young. John Wiley & Sons, $24.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-471-62082-2

Young, director of the Center for Northern Studies in Vermont, describes this work as a field guide. It is more than that; it is an exceptional primer of Arctic ecology. Young takes away the myth and romance of the Arctic without diminishing its allure. Here is an accurate, up-to-date, detailed portrait of its lands and waters, flora and fauna, climatic and environmental patterns. Young discusses the Ice Ages, glaciers and geomorphology (nearly half the text relates to geology), adaptations of plants and animals. He traces the presence of humans from prehistoric times and reconstructs the ancient Arctic environment with the aid of carbon dating and pollen samples. Readers interested in the physical and biological features of the far north will find this volume of great interest. Illustrated. (Jan.)