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"Following a prompt I put out in my original review of Strata, John Morton has turned his attention to another of the geological 'greats', arguably the greatest of them all, Roderick Murchison.
"In the finest traditions of such books, John has clearly done his homework with this biography of Murchison and his work. He has drawn on many sources and the book includes quite a lot of original correspondence, such as that between Murchison and his arch rival Sedgwick. The primary source is the biography of Murchison published in 1875 shortly after his death.
"Morton clearly gets close to the life and times of Murchison, including visiting the house he was born in and two of the houses he lived in during his later life. You almost get the feeling that Morton knew his subject, so alive is the text.
"This is the story of a remarkable man, a man of privilege who was to become a baronet and President of both the Geological Society and also the Royal Geographical Society, a family man who was often accompanied on his geological travels by his wife.
"Above all, this is a book that maps out Murchison's many remarkable achievements, from his naming of the Silurian, the Devonian and the Permian to his epic journey through Russia. However it was a book published in 1854 for which he will forever be remembered, Siluria. In fact it was three mighty volumes of everlasting value.
"This lively and interesting book fills a gap that should have been filled long ago. Thanks to John Morton everyone can now read about Roderick Murchison and begin to understand what drove the great man to achieve so much. Buy it!"
Chris Darmon, Down to Earth, the magazine of Geo Supplies Ltd.
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