Rating: 
Summary: a disappointment for a long-time window seat passenger
Review: This is a wonderful and desperately needed book, as evidenced by the fact that passengers are asked to close their window shades when flying over the Rocky Mountains so people can watch an insipid "altered for air travel" movie. And by the fact that most people do in fact close their shades and ignore what until a century ago was denied to all humans, a view of the Earth from miles above.I did thumb through this book at a bookstore and bought it instantly. The satellite photos along with descriptions seem very helpful for interpreting landscapes from the air although I have not yet taken it on a flight. It is not a technical book and would be suitable for intelligent teenagers, but unless you can already identify and explain moraines, eskers, drumlins, kettle ponds, and spillways and understand how 100,000 years of glacial action formed the lowland landscapes we see from the air, you will probably find this book educational as well as enjoyable. (The book will of course offer only a first introduction to these and similar matters.) The photos themselves are worth the price of the book. (If you really love aerial photography, consider also getting a book such as EARTH FROM ABOVE by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, which is beautiful, educational, and more expensive.)
Rating: 
Summary: great book for learning more about our world
Review: This is an amazing, brilliant book! How many times have I gazed out of an airplane window wondering what I was viewing down below and wishing I could ask someone? And how many times have I regretted watching the vacuous movie instead of doing something more enriching with my flying time? This well researched, beautifully illustrated book offers the vocabulary and lens I need to bring all of my future flights to life. I especially like the diversity of information the author details - the different "layers" on the earth below (geological, hydrological, ecological, cultural). A must read for all of us who travel a lot and who are curious about the world we live in.
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