David Mabberley. Painting By Numbers: The Life and Art of Ferdinand Bauer

Painting by Numbers is the epitome of a good book on the history of science illustration. It has superbly reproduced images and an eminently scholarly text, but one that is accessible and engaging, venturing into the present and giving its subject contemporary relevance. This success is perhaps not surprising. Its author, David Mabberley, is a plant specialist and science historian who has undertaken extensive field work in Africa, Asia and Australasia; worked at Royal Botanic Gardens Kew; was CEO of Greening Australia (NSW); is the former director of the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney and was awarded a prize for ‘successful efforts to popularize botany to non-scientists’.