Written primarily by scientists Mary Seely and John Pallett, Namib: Secrets of a Desert Uncovered, also showcases contributions from some of the most outstanding researchers and photographers in the country. It provides a total optical onslaught; an aerial view of sinuous dunes that glow with a gorgeously decadent hue of sensuous apricot, streaked with coal-black shadow, surrounded by flat plains in shades of coffee-brown; at the end of an ephemeral river, terminating in a large pool of sapphire-blue water surrounded by sand.
The colours in the pictures are so vivid and the contours so striking that the overall effect is uncannily three-dimensional.
Namib: Secrets of a Desert Uncovered is destined for more than a quick browse at a coffee table. It is part tour guide, part science, part history, part adventure. It is all you ever wanted to know about the oldest living desert on the planet.