Review by Choice Review
If ever a book cried out for topical organization, this is that book. If ever a book cried out for highlighting the important from the trivial, this is it. The centerpiece of this work is the early 1790s voyage of Bruny d'Entrecasteaux. Labillardiere acted as one of the naturalists on this voyage. The French government assigned the voyagers the primary task of searching for the vanished La Perouse expedition, but also wanted them to collect scientific data of all descriptions. It is here that Duyker made the choice to follow their wanderings on a day-by-day basis and, as much as possible, record the daily happenings. He also often provides background information, and in the process makes great leaps forward or backward in time. The author presents much of value, but finding it is no small challenge. One chapter--ironically, the one on the disintegration of the expedition--provides a tantalizing taste of how good the book as a whole could have been with a different approach. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. Libraries with strong history of science collections, upper-division undergraduates and above. R. E. Schreiber Indiana University South Bend
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
