The story of humanity’s evolving relationship with the natural world from pre-history to the present day

Nature has long been the source of human curiosity and wonderment, and the inspiration for some of our deepest creative impulses. But we are now witnessing its rapid impoverishment, even destruction, in much of our world. 

In this beautifully illustrated book, Jeremy Mynott traces the story of nature—past, present and future. From the dramatic depictions of animals by the prehistoric cave-painters, through the romantic discovery of landscape in the eighteenth century, to the climate emergency of the present day, Mynott looks at the different ways in which humankind has understood the world around it. Charting how our ideas about nature emerged and changed over time, he reveals how the impulse to control nature has deep historical roots.

As we reach an environmental crisis point, this vital study shows how human imagination and wonder can play a restorative role—and reveal what nature ultimately means to us.