• The best books on Natural History - The Outermost House: A Year of Life on the Great Beach of Cape Cod by Henry Beston
  • The best books on Natural History - Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
  • The best books on Natural History - Findings by Kathleen Jamie
  • The best books on Natural History - Dark Emu: Aboriginal Australians and the Birth of Agriculture by Bruce Pascoe
  • The best books on Natural History - A Natural History of the Future: What the Laws of Biology Tell Us about the Destiny of the Human Species by Rob Dunn

The best books on Natural History, recommended by David George Haskell

Natural history can offer a “portal into wonder and astonishment,” says David George Haskell, the biologist and award-winning author of nonfiction works including Sounds Wild and Broken and The Forest Unseen. But natural history books, in the past, have also been guilty of reinforcing prejudices. Here he recommends five natural history books that celebrate the diversity of life.

  • The best books on Animal Consciousness - The Animal Mind: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Animal Cognition by Kristin Andrews
  • The best books on Animal Consciousness - What Would Animals Say If We Asked the Right Questions? by Vinciane Despret, translated by Brett Buchanan
  • The best books on Animal Consciousness - An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us by Ed Yong
  • The best books on Animal Consciousness - The Emotional Lives of Animals by Marc Bekoff
  • The best books on Animal Consciousness - Why Look At Animals? by John Berger

The best books on Animal Consciousness, recommended by David Peña-Guzmán

The more we learn about the minds of other species, the more we are forced to question any assumptions that might previously have been made about their inner lives. Here, the philosopher David Peña-Guzmán talks us through the profound questions thrown up by research into animal cognition, perception and emotion, as he recommends five of the best books on animal consciousness.

  • The best books on Longevity - Lifespan: Why We Age and Why We Don't Have To by David A. Sinclair
  • The best books on Longevity - Eat Like the Animals: What Nature Teaches us About the Science of Healthy Eating by David Raubenheimer & Stephen Simpson
  • The best books on Longevity - The Human Advantage: A New Understanding of How Our Brain Became Remarkable by Suzana Herculano-Houzel
  • The best books on Longevity - Long for this World: The Strange Science of Immortality by Jonathan Weiner
  • The best books on Longevity - Charlatan: America’s Most Dangerous Huckster, the Man who Pursued Him, and the Age of Flimflam by Pope Brock

The best books on Longevity, recommended by Steven Austad

The promises of potions or techniques to achieve longevity have been with us since time immemorial, the outlandishness of some claims matched only by our willingness to believe them. And, yet, today’s scientific research does give some clues on how to live longer and healthier lives. Biologist Steven Austad, Distinguished Professor and Endowed Chair in Healthy Aging Research at the University of Alabama, recommends a range of books that give insight into longevity.

  • The best books on Summer - The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
  • The best books on Summer - The Go-Between by L P Hartley
  • The best books on Summer - To the River: A Journey Beneath the Surface by Olivia Laing
  • The best books on Summer - Summer by Ali Smith
  • The best books on Summer - The Hill of Summer by J A Baker

The best books on Summer, recommended by Melissa Harrison

Temperatures ratcheting, tinderbox conditions, a pressure cooker atmosphere… summer is a handy literary shorthand for rising tensions. But in the natural world, summer is a quiet time when the flowers die back and the fruits and seeds are ripening. Here, Melissa Harrison—the novelist, nature writer and podcaster—recommends five of the best summer books, for those who like to read in step with the seasons.

  • The best books on Pets For Young Kids - I Love Guinea Pigs by Dick King-Smith
  • The best books on Pets For Young Kids - Ginger by Charlotte Voake
  • The best books on Pets For Young Kids - Blue Chameleon by Emily Gravett
  • The best books on Pets For Young Kids - Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy by Lynley Dodd
  • The best books on Pets For Young Kids - Borka: The Adventures of a Goose With No Feathers by John Burningham

The best books on Pets For Young Kids, recommended by Catherine Rayner

Feathered, scaly or furry, children form powerful and enriching bonds with their pets. If you don’t have room in your house (or lifestyle) for a multitude of birds and beasts—you can always read about them in books! Catherine Rayner, one of the UK’s leading creators of children’s picture books and devoted animal lover, recommends her favourite illustrated picture books celebrating pets.

  • The best books on Prehistoric Women - Femmes de la préhistoire by Claudine Cohen
  • The best books on Prehistoric Women - Femmes, naissance de l'homme: Icônes de la préhistoire by Alexandre Hurel & Florian Berrouet
  • The best books on Prehistoric Women - L'homme préhistorique est aussi une femme by Marylène Patou-Mathis
  • The best books on Prehistoric Women - The Invisible Sex: Uncovering the True Role of Women in Prehistory J. M. Adovasio, Olga Soffer and Jake Page
  • The best books on Prehistoric Women - Our Human Story by Chris Stringer & Louise Humphrey

The best books on Prehistoric Women, recommended by Thomas Cirotteau

Thanks to scientific advances, we’re finding out more and more about prehistoric people, including women and their lives during the Upper Paleolithic era. French filmmaker Thomas Cirotteau, director of the documentary and co-author of a book about Lady Sapiens, recommends books to find out more about our female ancestors, who while separated from us by tens of thousands of years, have been brought tantalizingly close by new techniques and discoveries.

  • The Best Sci Fi Books on Space Settlement - Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler
  • The Best Sci Fi Books on Space Settlement - The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
  • The Best Sci Fi Books on Space Settlement - Cibola Burn by James S. A. Corey
  • The Best Sci Fi Books on Space Settlement - Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson
  • The Best Sci Fi Books on Space Settlement - The Word for World is Forest by Ursula Le Guin

The Best Sci Fi Books on Space Settlement, recommended by Erika Nesvold

We look to the stars and imagine a new home for humanity, an escape from the troubles that plague us here on Earth, but as astrophysicist Erika Nesvold points out, many of our problems will join us on our voyage. Here, she selects five science fiction books that illuminate the challenges and possible conflicts we’ll face if we head for this new frontier.