Above, Below and Long Ago: Animals, Plants and Fossils in Hidden Places

Let’s get closer to wildlife that is hard to see.

There are animals and plants in the skies, deep underwater, on clifftops, in caves, underground and from long, long ago that remain hidden from the world. In Above, Below and Long Ago, catch a rare glimpse of a snow leopard stalking its prey high in the mountains and a ghostly pale, eel-shaped olm that can live in underground caves for 10 years without eating. Dive deep into the earth to find out how a mysterious orchid only blooms underground or go back in time to meet the megalodon, one of the largest predators to ever live on Earth. Young readers will explore how these elusive plants and animals adapt to their sometimes extreme environments and how some left their mark in the fossil record.

Illustrated with linocut prints, this book highlights the textures and patterns of the natural world, up high, down low and long ago.

Michael Bright has worked as an executive producer with the BBC’s world-renowned Natural History Unit, based in Bristol, and with its Science Unit in London. He is author of over a hundred books on wildlife, science, travel, and conservation, including many for children. His bestseller Africa: Eye to Eye with the Unknown accompanied the popular television series presented by Sir David Attenborough. He is the recipient of many international radio and television awards, including the prestigious Prix Italia. He is a graduate of the University of London and a corporate biologist and member of the Royal Society of Biology.

Jonathan Emmerson is an illustrator and printmaker. Growing up on Salisbury Plain near Stonehenge led to a lifelong fascination with nature, fossils and all things prehistoric. He studied Fine Art at Birmingham Institute of Art & Design, and lives in St. Albans, making linocut prints inspired by the natural world.