About BC Books Online
BC Books Online was created for anyone interested in BC-published books, and with librarians especially in mind. We'd like to make it easy for library staff to learn about books from BC publishers - both new releases and backlist titles - so you can inform your patrons and keep your collections up to date.
Our site features print books and ebooks - both new releases and backlist titles - all of which are available to order through regular trade channels. Browse our subject categories to find books of interest or create and export lists by category to cross-reference with your library's current collection.
A quick tip: When reviewing the "Browse by Category" listings, please note that these are based on standardized BISAC Subject Codes supplied by the books' publishers. You will find additional selections, grouped by theme or region, in our "BC Reading Lists."
Description
The North Atlantic coast of North Americacommonly known as the Atlantic Coastextends from Newfoundland and Labrador through the Maritime Provinces and the Northeastern United States south to Cape Hatteras. This North Atlantic region belongs to the sea. The maritime influence on climate, flora, and fauna is dominant even far inland. Both on land and at sea, this region is where north meets south, where the great northern boreal forests intermingle with the southern coniferous-hardwood forests, and where the icy Labrador Current and the tropical Gulf Stream vie for supremacy and eventually mix. The Atlantic Coast draws upon the best and most up-to-date science on the ecology of the region as well as the author’s lifetime experience as a resident, biologist, and naturalist. The book explores the geological origins of the region, the two major forest realms, and the main freshwater and marine ecosystems, and describes the flora and fauna that characterize each habitat. It ends with a look at what has been lost and how the remaining natural heritage of the region might be conserved for the future.
Published in partnership with the David Suzuki Foundation
Contributor Notes
Harry Thurston is the author of several collections of poetry and twelve nonfiction books, including A Place Between the Tides: A Naturalist’s Reflections on the Salt Marsh, which received the 2005 Sigurd Olson Nature Writing Award. He has also written for such magazines as Audubon and National Geographic. Thurston lives in Nova Scotia.
Wayne Barrett is a partner in Barrett & MacKay Photography. His photographs have been featured in advertisements, magazines, and calendars and have appeared in numerous books. He lives in Prince Edward Island.
Editorial Review
"[Thurston's] definition of Atlantic Coast” encompasses more than the region south of the Gulf of Maine. And that is good By ignoring political boundaries in favor of natural divisions, Mr. Thurston paints a clearer picture of the plants and animals of the region, the ecological niches they inhabit and the problems tormenting them." New York Times
"Mixing observations, in-depth research, and vivid prose, Thurston explores the region’s geologic, ecologic, and cultural history, [and] Barrett’s gorgeous color photographs of land, sea, and sky supplement Thurston’s vivid descriptions"Publishers Weekly
Harry Thurston is the best naturalist/writer in the Maritimes (and probably well beyond) and any book by him is well worth the read. This one is an especially valuable addition to anyone’s library, and a veritable fount of knowledge about the wildlife of the Atlantic Coast and about that world itself.”
Farley Mowat
A wonderful portrait of a key region of our world. With evocative writing and scientific rigour, Harry Thurston takes us from the deep time of drifting continents to the environmental challenge of today.”
Ronald Wright, author of A Short History of Progress
