No one could describe NATURE JOURNAL as a blank book. Clare Walker Leslie has transformed what could have been an ordinary diary into something truly unique. The text and illustrations offer just the right amount of inspiration and guidance to help the journal-keeper begin and succeed at making this book his or her own. First Clare explains to the budding journal-keeper how to get started and suggests some possible formats to follow. She even includes a few sample pages from her own journal as inspiration. Then come the journal pages themselves. The left-hand page has ghosted-back lines for those who prefer a sense of structure. The right-hand pages are left blank for sketching or writing. Short, inspirational quotes and exercises to help guide the journaling process are scattered among the pages. At the back of the journal is Clare's mini-field guide, packed with essential information on how to recognize (and draw!) basic families of birds, insects, and trees, thus sparing the journal-keeper the trouble of lugging multiple field guides into the wild. An elastic band keeps paper from flapping while you're writing, holds specimens, and acts as a bookmark. Drop it in the mud. Get trail mix stuck between the pages. This journal can take it! Printed on recycled, acid-free paper with a lay-flat binding.