THE SIBLEY GUIDE TO TREES
by David Allen Sibley. Knopf, 2009 ($39.95)
Naturalist and illustrator David Allen Sibley, best known for his guides to birds, turns his attention to the bark, leaves, fruits and flowers of more than 600 species of North American trees, such as the shagbark hickory (detail).

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THE AGE OF EMPATHY: NATURES LESSONS FOR A KINDER SOCIETY
by Frans de Waal. Harmony Books, 2009 ($25.99)
Grieving elephants, sympathetic bonobos, grateful whales—nature is not always red in tooth and claw. In his latest book primatologist Frans de Waal draws on numerous examples from our fellow fauna, such as the chimpanzee in the anecdote below, to make his case that humans are hard-wired to be humane.