The Wild: The World's Most Spectacular Untamed Places (Wonders of Our Planet) Hardcover – June 6, 2023

“Five countries hold 70 per cent of the world’s last remaining wilderness: Russia, Australia, Brazil, Canada and the United States, much of the last country’s wild land lying in Alaska.”This book’s whirlwind trip around the world was fodder for my travel wish list. Divided into sections by geography - Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania & Antarctica, North & South America - the photography highlights various landscapes across the seasons. The isolation and serenity made this the perfect coffee table book for me.Although I almost always love photography books, because there are so many to choose from, I like to get a feel for what to expect before deciding if they’re for me or not. With that in mind, I chose a current favourite photo from each section.Legend says that dragons throwing rocks at one another created the distinctive landscape of the Drakolimni of Tymfi, found in Vikos-Aoös National Park, Greece.The combusting sulphur in the Ijen stratovolcano complex in East Java, Indonesia, causes Api Biru, Blue Fire.“African teak is a deciduous hardwood tree with explosive pods able to spread seeds over several metres.”The teak forest can be found in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe.The world’s largest population of dugongs make their home at Shark Bay, Western Australia.A gorgeous winter scene comes to you from the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska.While this book features some breathtaking landscapes, it also includes photos of animals. My favourite was an American alligator, a species that can reach 4.8m (15.7 feet) in length, chilling out at Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia, USA.Thank you so much to NetGalley and Amber Books for the opportunity to read this book.

In this gorgeous 224-page photography book, travel writer Claudia Martin offers 200 fascinating photographs of national parks and protected wilderness areas from around the world. Each location typically gets a photograph or two along with an informative caption. Locations are featured from each continent, and I loved the diversity of environments shown. What an amazing planet we inhabit!Martin shares interesting facts about the sites’ geography, geology, plants, wildlife, and folklore. There are no maps and the text isn’t detailed enough to function as a travel guide, but this is a wonderful way for armchair travelers to learn more about parks and wilderness areas. If a photograph catches your interest, you can always research that location further. Some of these photographs certainly piqued my curiosity and made me long to see these places in person.At 11.6 by 8.7 inches, this attractive hardcover book would make a wonderful gift or be an interesting addition to your coffee table. Most of the text appears in photo captions, so be aware that the font is small.Thanks to Amber Books for providing me with an ARC through NetGalley. I volunteered to provide an honest review.

The concept behind this book was good, and there was a large collection of beautiful photos. I was very disappointed however to find that most of the photos weren't sharp, it looked as if someone had tried to expend a much smaller photo in many cases. There's really no excuse with the technology we have these days. Such a shame, otherwise this book would have been absolutely brilliant.