From Chaucer’s sweet April showers to the peasoupers of Sherlock Holmes the British scene cannot be contemplated without climate entering in. This edition is exclusive to newnaturalists.com
In this book Professor Manley shows us the best and worst of our much-maligned climate. He traces the subtle influence of sunshine and cloud, of dew, mist, rain, hail and snow, of heat and cold on the changing scene through the seasons. We often apologise for our climate, but in many ways it is the best in the world. No great extremes of heat or cold, no dreaded droughts, no destructive hurricanes, yet a marked seasonal rhythm with lots of little surprises. The richness of plant and animal life, the extremely high productivity of our farmlands, the fleeting beauties of our landscape – all are closely linked with Britain’s climate.
It may justly be claimed that this is the first book to attempt scientifically to trace these intimate yet elusive relationships.
- ‘I have enjoyed Professor Gorgon Manley’s Climate and the British Scene as much as any book in the New Naturalist series. What weather does to men and to their environment is the theme … On our habits, our clothing, our agriculture, our food, the effects of the weather are considered, and there is a full, scholarly but lucid explanation of what causes weather, and how the climatic convulsions of far-past years affected men then and to some extent affect them now …’ Country Life
- ‘Professor Manley’s book is written for not too scientific people in the British Isles, and it fulfils its purpose admirably. The author is both a geographer and a meteorologist, and the particular charm of his book is due to the blending of his two main interests. Without becoming too heavy for the average reader, it contains a good deal of expert meteorological information … the book is not written for the physicist but for the lover of the British countryside.’ The Times Educational Supplement