80 Student books supplement Nature Vol. 278 I March 1979

ground in no great detail and by means of up the visible earth to the various pro­ Physical geology relentless subsectioning. The geomorpho­ cesses responsible for wearing down and logist will find some of the geomorpho­ shaping the landscape, concluding with Holmes' Principles of Physical Geology logy irritating: rock weathering rates are a panorama of earthquakes, mountain (Nelson: Sunbury-on-Thames, UK; hard­ largely discussed with reference to grave building and plate tectonics-in general, back £14.95, paperback £8.50) is one of stones, karst landscapes seem to consist the processes that continue to elevate the classics of geological education and, of stalagmites, stalactites and water portions of the Earth's Crust". now in its third edition, has been used by witches, there is virtually nothing on the Of the three volumes this is the one generations of advanced school students Pleistocene sequence determined from that f liked best. The structure is logical ; and undergraduates. The new edition is ocean cores, and there is very little on the illustrative material (including colour substantially the same as its predecessor, modern process geomorphology. This is, plates) is original, simple, clear and though the revolution in plate tectonics however, not of course a textbook for striking; there is some attempt at high­ has caused it to have its final chapters geomorphologists but it is disturbing lighting major concepts and important reorganised and rewritten. There have how poor the geomorphic content is . scientists; and the geomorphological com­ also been modifications to the sections on Overall, however, this book is adequate ponent of the book shows signs o f being batholiths, granite, granitization, ring but a little lacking in character. written by somebody who knows about dykes and migmatites. Some of the Students wishing to gain basic instruc­ geomorphology. figures and plates have been changed. tion in the geomorphological component By way of conclusion, all three This does rend to highlight the antiquity of this book would do better to go to volumes will to varying degrees be of some of the material left over from B. W. Sparks' Geomorphology; R . .l. acceptable for good advanced school earlier editions, for the years have not Small's The Study of Landforms; A. L. students in geography and geology and treated some of the illustrations kindly. Bloom's Late Cainozoic Landforms; R. J. they will satisfy some first-year under­ Overa ll, however, the volume seems to be Rice's Fundamentals of Geo~norphology ; graduates in these subjects. Course texts, quite handsome without going in for or A. F. Pitty's Introduction to Geo­ such as these, are not perhaps used as some o f the more flamboyant touches of morphology. widely in British Universities as they arc its American competitors. The references The third volume in physical geology elsewhere, presumably because such have been updated for this edition though to be considered is the third edition of books have to cover too much in too this is more evident in some chapters than Putnam's Geology (revised by P. W. short a span. in others. Birkeland and E. E. Lawson; Oxford Andrew Goudie It is not entirely evident that anyone University Press: Oxford; £12.25). This who owns the second edition needs to go book proceeds in a logical way " from Andrew Goudie is Lf'cturer in Geography at the out for the third, for there are some a discussion of the materials that make University of Oxford, UK. major fields in which important recent developments are not reported. The morphism in general, field relations, geomo rphologist, for example, will find Metamorphic structures and fabrics. The hulk of the that descriptive and evolutionary (cyclic) petrology descriptive work is in the nine chapters geomorphology predominates, whereas of Part I I. Here some dozen areas are the student interested in the Pleistocene Petrology of the Metamorphic Rocks. covered in detail to illustrate various will find many discredited ideas (for By Roger Mason. Pp. 254. (George types of metamorphism. Contact meta­ example, glacial = pluvial) but far too Allen and Unwin; 1978). Hardback morphic rocks are illustrated by the little on ancient ergs or the deep-sea core £10.95; paperback £5.95. Skiddaw, Comrie, and Beinn an record. The desert geomorphologist will Dubhaich aureoles, dynamic meta­ find that siefs and barchans are still the THIS book is Volume 3 of the Textbook morphic rocks by, amongst others, the basic framework for a study of desert of Petrology, which already includes Lochseiten Mylonite, lunar breccias dunes and that salt weathering is not Petrology of the Igneous Rocks (Hatch, and the Ries crater. Regional meta­ considered. Wells and Wells) and Petrology of the morphic rocks of Precambrian shields In sum Holmes' Principles is now Sedimentary Rocks (Greensmith). It is are represented hy the Lewisian, and rather like an old sports coat. It is com­ a most welcome addition to this set ana metamorphism in Phanerozoic belts is fortable and familiar, has been patched is aimed at about the level of the illustrated hy the descriptions of the up rather obviously, and is not such a second-year undergraduate in a three­ Sulitjelma and Galway regions and by good fit as it was, but the basic material year geology course. Dr Mason's parts of the Alps (for example, blue­ is still good for a few more years. At objectives are fairly modest and largely schists). Most of the above sections are £8.50 for 730 big pages the paperback concerned with a description of what excellently done and form the most remains something of a bargain. metamorphic rocks are like. For the useful part of the hook. Much of it is Introduction to Geology: Physical and most part this approach is very suc­ highly readable and the author's per­ Historicai(Prentice-Hall :EnglewoodCiiffs, cessful, aided considerably by the sonal experience of and interest in the rocks comes through. Two short New .Jersey) by W. L. Stokes, S. Judson author's evident desire to be under­ chapters respectively on ocean floor and M. D. Picard is also a new edition stood. The language used is concise and upper mantle rocks seem less rather than a totally new book. It very hut simple, and definitions are given satisfactory, though credit is due for much follows the standard format of careful attention. A particularly good including these topics at all. This basic college texts in physical geology and feature of much of the descriptive central descriptive section of the book seems to be neither greatly better nor writing is the constant supply of useful will probably make it very popular, for greatly worse than some of its com­ tips concerning the actual identification apart from Harker there is no com­ petitors which 1 reviewed in Nature and distinguishing features of minerals under the microscope. From the above parable source of good, meaty descrip­ (266, page 100) this time last year. It has tive writing on metamorphic rocks (the been updated by the addition of the it should be clear that the affinities of this book lie more with Harker's section in the new Petrology for usual material that is put into such new Students hy Nockolds et a!. (Cambridge additions: something on plate tectonics, Metamorphism than with more theor­ etical works, though it is less compre­ University Press: Cambridge, 1978; something on space, and something on hardback £17.50, paperback £6.50) is hazards, environment, energy and re­ hensive in terms of rock types covered. Part I of the book consists of three similar in level but substantially sources. shorter). The book covers a great deal of chapters dealing with definitions, meta- © Macmillan Journals Ltd 1979