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Nothing graces a coffee table like a stunning book that reminds us visually of the glories of nature, and it is the rare nature book that is as beautiful as "The Wonders of Life." Nature has given us marvellous things - places, plants, animals - that are spectacular of awe-inspiring almost beyond belief. To see them is to be amazed, and to see them in the always stunning photography that is the hallmark of Life is to see them in an entirely new way. The editors travel the world in these pages, visiting exotic locations from the deepest Amazon jungle to the glittering Barrier Reef extending from Australia's Gold Coast.

Here we have an endless stream of exotica-exotic living things growing from the ground and exotic critters of all shapes and sizes, crawling, bounding and flying around. As LIFE's editors put it in their introduction: "This is a wild book. In its pages we have animals as big as trucks and plants as big as small towns. We have flowers that dance for our pleasure and flowers that shyly hide underground, flowers that can kill animals and flowers that can heal animals. We have a teeny tiny bird that is directly descended from T Rex and a truly enormous bird that can't fly but can run 45 miles an hour. We have a lizard king that could rip you apart and a lizard princeling that walks on water. This is a wild, wild book." It is indeed. It is a book that is focused on life at the far fringes-the biggest, toughest, gentlest, rarest and weirdest species. It ultimately creates an astonishing image of the world around us, a world more diverse and sometimes strange than even the most imaginative reader might have expected.

Accompanying the remarkable photography, which is always LIFE's hallmark, are descriptions of each subject that will fairly boggle the mind. Did you know that a carnivorous plant's trapping mechanism often doubles as its stomach, or that an elephant seal can hold its breath for up to two hours when diving in the sea? There are as many amazing facts in these pages as there are sensational pictures. And as with earlier volumes in LIFE's Classic Collection series, Wonders of Life comes with a bonus feature: Five photographic prints from the famed LIFE archive that can be extracted, framed and hung on your wall. When the print is removed, the exact picture is still there on the page beneath, so your deluxe coffee-table book remains intact. It is, as the editors write, "an elegant trick worthy of the dancing flower, and one that our readers have come to expect-and greatly enjoy." Travel along then, around the globe and to the depths of the oceans, as LIFE celebrates the wonders of life-each of them wondrous almost beyond belief.

The King of the Animals in all its richness and character. Stunning black-and-white lion photography

The French photographer Laurent Baheux dedicates his new book to the “King of the Animals” — the lion. Breathtaking black-and-white images create a powerful portrait of one of the most majestic and endangered species in the world.

Think of lions and one might think of the powerful member of the “Big Five,” with a roar that echoes across the planes, and a merciless pursuit of its prey. One might think of the pack animal, surprisingly playful and affectionate within its pride. Or one might think of the endangered lion — long the target of hunters and trophy collectors. In this new photo book, Laurent Baheux journeys across Africa to capture the lion in all its intricate facets. The result is a sensitive and intimate photo portrait that shows the big cat in all its nuance: at once powerful, fragile, and tender. Baheux’s stunning black-and-white lion photographs show this feline animal with the precision and texture of a studio portrait — its many different movements, postures, behaviours, and expressions captured with startling intimacy. Playing among the pride, out hunting its prey, or eyeing us directly from the page, Baheux’s lion photography is as much a tribute to the lion’s character, power, and feeling as it is a haunting reminder that this most impressive of animals is also among the most endangered wildlife on earth.

About the Author:

For over 15 years, Laurent Baheux has been creating a collection of monochrome wildlife photographs, characterized by a contrasting, condensed style. With a unique approach that overrides the laws of nature photography, Baheux seeks to capture the character of each animal as an individual. He is actively involved with environmental organizations, including the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Jane Goodall Institute. In 2013, he served as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in the Wild & Precious campaign against poaching. His photographs are shown in galleries and exhibitions in his native France and abroad and are the subject of numerous books and publications.

What brings a dog happiness? Plentiful walks, healthy food and, of course, human love and affection. Luxurious Design for Dogs is perfect for dog owners who want to treat their best friend to something very special.

Whether a glamourous cushion for a pampered Chihuahua, casual eco-fashion in recycled cashmere for a cheeky Boxer or a luxury collar by a fashion icon such as Louis Vuitton - designers from around the world are creating fabulous luxury products for your four-legged friend. This volume presents exquisite accessories created with love and is an ideal source of inspiration for all who love their dog as much as they value high-quality design.

Award-winning photographer Tim Flach has spent years inquiring into the essential bond we have with animals. Now he presents the culmination of a career-long endeavor, an extraordinary body of work in which each image is more striking and powerful than the last.

Just as did Flach’s highly acclaimed previous books, Equus and Dogs, More than Human will amaze and inspire, in a constant affirmation of the animal, whether it be rare or common, powerful or defenseless, odd or majestic. The book showcases a menagerie of creatures - pandas, tigers, bats, lions, orangutans, cobras, bullfrogs, chimpanzees, wolves, porcupines, elephants, owls, armadillos, among many others - as they have never been seen before. Shedding light on Flach’s images will be an accessible collection of texts, written and edited by author Lewis Blackwell.

81 color and 14 b/w Photographs

Known throughout history as man's best friend, the bond between humans and dogs is a deep and enduring one. Literature and art are studded with tributes to these loyal companions. This charming volume is a heartwarming addition to the tradition of public homage to beloved pets. The German magazine dogs asked their readers to send their best dog portraits. Then members of the editorial voted on their favorites—a kind of doggy beauty pageant if you like! Browse the pages of this endearing book and find your own personal favorite.

* An ideal gift for dog lovers

* An essential addition to any collection of canine memorabilia

From acclaimed animal photographer Elke Vogelsang comes a charming, personal collection of portraits of her three dogs-Noodles, Scout, and Ioli.

Nice Nosing You presents Elke's expressive portraits of her much-loved dogs; a collection compiled over two years in what became a personal and touching project for Elke and her husband, Carsten. One year on Christmas Day, Elke's dogs suddenly started barking outside the bathroom door. Investigating the commotion, Elke discovered Carsten collapsed in the bathroom. He had suffered a major brain haemorrhage and the dogs had in fact saved his life, discovering him at a crucial time.

The months immediately following were filled with much uncertainty and in an attempt to establish some sort of routine and find something to lift her husband's mood, Elke started taking photos of their dogs to show Carsten in the hospital. As Carsten slowly recovered, Elke's project became an obsession. Gathered here in a stunning collection, Elke's photographs are captioned with inspiring quotes, illustrating the personal encouragement she and her husband found in these intimate and playful images. Praised by The Huffington Post-"Elke Vogelsang has taken dog portraits to a new level"-this is truly a collection to treasure.

About the Author

Elke Vogelsang is a photographer specialising in animal portraits. Her images have featured in publications across the globe, including the Daily Mail and Huffington Post. She lives with her husband and their three dogs.

In A Shadow Falls, which features fifty-eight recent images in stunning, oversized tritone plates, Nick Brandt continues his ambitious and ongoing photographic project to memorialize the vanishing natural grandeur of East Africa. Brandt’s wide-screen panoramas of animals and landscapes capture an epic vision of Africa that has not been seen before. His iconic portraits of its majestic animals are filled with an empathy usually reserved for human subjects.

From the opening images in A Shadow Falls, of a verdant world filled with multitudes of animals, to the closing images of small bands of creatures moving across a parched, dusty earth, Brandt portrays a mythic Africa struggling against tragic forces. In years to come, we will look back at these powerful photographs and wonder why humanity did not do more to preserve this rare corner of earthly paradise.

About the author:

Nick Brandt's first book, On This Earth, is one of the most popular photography books of this decade.

Across the Ravaged Land is the third and final volume in Nick Brandt’s trilogy of books documenting the disappearing animals of eastern Africa. The book offers a darker vision of this world, still filled with a stunning beauty but now tragically tainted and fast disappearing at the hands of man.

In addition to a range of starkly powerful animal portraits, Brandt introduces some new themes, as humans make an appearance for the first time. He also contributes two essays summing up his photographic odyssey, which has taken more than a decade of intensive work to complete.

About the Author:

Nick Brandt (b.1964) is an English-born, US-based photographer whose themes always relate to the disappearing natural world. He is the co-founder of the Big Life Foundation, in Kenya, where all of these photographs were shot.

You may not know Belgian artist Thierry Poncelet, but after taking a look at this book, you will quickly come to love him. Art restorer Poncelet has a passion for nineteenth century ancestral portraits and a love for dogs. This blends into an unlikely but fascinating union: he changes the aristocratic heads on the paintings into those of matching dogs. This book presents to you his so-called aristochiens and let them tell their own stories. What is their relationship to the painter? What are their fears and dreams? Oh My Dog! proves that art can be a funny business. At the same time it offers a startling grasp on human psychology and character, because the depicted individuals tell us something about humanity. Barking dogs do bite sometimes, you know...

This title is a celebration of the nature and beauty of penguins as expressed through the exquisite images and unique personal stories of master photographer and naturalist Frans Lanting. In a remarkable portfolio of photographs made during three expeditions to the icy kingdoms of penguins, he reveals both the amazing natural history and the irresistible appeal of the most human of birds. Through his images, he carries us beyond the familiar views of penguins to reveal the stern beauty and dignity of their lives.

"This book is a personal interpretation of the penguins I met, rather than a natural history of all penguins," Frans Lanting writes. "I wanted to create an impression of who these penguins are and what they go through. I hope my work will be seen as an homage to the individual within them all."

At the end of the world - on ice with Frans Lanting. Intense, intimate encounters with penguins

Penguin is a celebration of the nature and beauty of penguins as expressed through the exquisite images and unique personal stories of master photographer and naturalist Frans Lanting. In a remarkable portfolio of photographs made during three expeditions to the icy kingdoms of penguins, he reveals both the amazing natural history and the irresistible appeal of the most human of birds. He first traveled to isolated slivers of land in the Falkland Islands to cover the lives of "little penguins" - rock-hoppers, Magellanics, and gentoos - and then made a rare circumnavigation of South Georgia by yacht, going ashore to camp among colonies of king penguins and capture the summer rush of birds breeding and feeding before the harsh deprivations of winter set in. Finally he flew to the edge of Antarctica and camped on the sea ice for a month to document the epic life story of the emperor penguin, which survives at the outer limits of life. More than 110 photographs illustrate this moving portrayal of the birds many people feel they already know - but will see in a powerful new perspective through Frans Lanting’s eyes. "This book is a personal interpretation of the penguins I met, rather than a natural history of all penguins," Frans Lanting writes. "I wanted to create an impresson of who these penguins are and what they go through. I hope my work will be seen as an homage to the individual within them all."

The photographer:
Dutch-born Frans Lanting has been hailed as one of the great nature photographers of our time. For the past two decades he has documented wildlife and our relationship with nature in environments from the Amazon to Antarctica. Exhibits of his photographs have been shown at major museums in Paris, Milan, Tokyo, New York, Madrid, and Amsterdam.

Journey into the World of Peter Beard. An artist’s life magnified

Pioneering contemporary artist Peter Beard turned his life in New York and on the African continent into a Gesamtkunstwerk; a collage of photography, ecology, and diary writing. The original limited edition may have instantly sold out, but the book is now back to present the artist’s unique world, a realm of art, science, and beauty.

Artist, diarist, collector, and writer Peter Beard (1938-2020) fashioned his life into a work of art; the illustrated diaries he kept from a young age evolved into a serious career as an artist and earned him a central position in the international art world. He collaborated with Francis Bacon and Salvador Dalí, he made diaries with Andy Warhol, worked on books with scientists like Dr. Norman Borlaug, Dr. Richard Laws, and Alistair Graham, and toured with Truman Capote, Terry Southern, and the Rolling Stones — all of whom are brought to life, literally and figuratively, in his work. He delved into the world of fashion for its beautiful women, taking Vogue stars like Veruschka to Africa and bringing new ones back to the U.S. with him.

After spending time in Kenya and striking up a friendship with the author Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen) in the early 1960s, Beard bought 50 acres next to her farm with the stipulation that he would film and write about the land and its flora and fauna. He witnessed the dawn of Kenya’s population explosion, which challenged finite resources and stressed animal populations — including the starving elephants of Tsavo dying by the tens of thousands in a wasteland of eaten trees. So he documented what he saw — with diaries, photographs, and collages. He went against the wind in publishing unique and sometimes shocking books of these works, including The End of the Game. The corpses were laid bare; the facts carefully recorded, sometimes in type and often by hand. Beard used his photographs as a canvas onto which he superimposed multi-layered contact sheets, ephemera, found objects, newspaper clippings that are elaborately embellished with meticulous handwriting, old-master inspired drawings, and often swaths of animal blood used as paint.

In 2006, TASCHEN first published the book that has come to define his oeuvre, signed by the artist and published in two volumes. It sold out instantly and became a highly sought-after collector’s item. In the decade since, the monograph has been revived in two smaller versions; but sometimes, bigger is better. Now, the book you haven’t been able to get your hands on is available in one large-format volume.

The artist:

Peter Beard (1938–2020) began taking photographs and keeping diaries from early childhood. By the time he graduated from Yale University, he had developed a keen interest in Africa. Throughout the 1960s and ’70s he worked in Tsavo Park, the Aberdares, and Lake Rudolf in Kenya’s northern frontier. A constant creator, Beard the chronicler photographed, wrote, drew, collaged, and assembled a history of his life experiences and our own.

The editors:

Nejma Beard is Peter Beard’s agent and Executive Director of the Peter Beard Studio. Her spirit and experience are synchronous with Beard’s—having been born and raised in Kenya. This deep familiarity and a devotion to a place and a people forms their unique collaborative relationship. Primary to her work is a deep concern for the future of the world and a commitment to ecologic efforts. She curates exhibitions, art-directs photoshoots, and edits and assists with all Beard publications.

David Fahey is co-owner of the Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles. During his 31-year career in the field, he has collaborated on over 45 fine art photography books. He is the co-vice president of the Herb Ritts Foundation and serves on the Photography Advisory Council for the J. Paul Getty Museum.

The authors:

Owen Edwards has written about photography for more than 30 years for numerous publications including American Photographer, New York Times Magazine, and Smithsonian.

Steven M. L. Aronson, a former book publisher, is a writer and editor. He edited and published Peter Beard’s book Longing for Darkness and wrote the T.V. special The End of the Game. He is the author of HYPE and the co-author of Savage Grace.

The contributor:

Ruth Ansel is an award-winning art director known for her innovative design at many of America's top fashion and cultural magazines since the 1960s. Ansel Design Studio (est. 1992) has produced international fashion campaigns and books with photographers including Peter Beard, Richard Avedon, and Annie Leibovitz.

Photographer, collector, diarist, and writer of books Peter Beard has fashioned his life into a work of art; the illustrated diaries he kept from a young age evolved into a serious career as an artist and earned him a central position in the international art world. He was painted by Francis Bacon, painted on by Salvador Dalí, and made diaries with Andy Warhol; he toured with Truman Capote and the Rolling Stones, created books with Jacqueline Onassis and Mick Jagger - all of whom are brought to life, literally and figuratively, in his work. As a fashion photographer, he took Vogue stars like Veruschka to Africa and brought new ones - most notably Iman - back to the U.S. with him.

His love affair with natural history and wildlife, which informs most of his work, began when he was a teenager. He had read the books of Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen) and after spending time in Kenya and befriending the author, bought a piece of land near hers. It was the early 1960s and the big game hunters led safaris, with all the colonial elements Beard had read about in Out of Africa characterizing the open life and landscape, but the times were changing. Beard witnessed the dawn of Kenya's population explosion, which challenged finite resources and stressed animal populations - including the starving elephants of Tsavo, dying by the tens of thousands in a wasteland of eaten trees. So he documented what he saw - with diaries, photographs, and collages. He went against the wind in publishing unique and sometimes shocking books of these works. The corpses were laid bare; the facts were carefully written down, sometimes in type, often by hand, occasionally with blood.

Peter Beard's most important collages are included, along with hundreds of smaller-scale works and diaries, magnified to show every detail - from Beard's meticulous handwriting and old-masters-inspired drawings to stones and bones and bits of animals pasted to the page.

Special features:

* Two volumes in a cloth slipcase
* Volume 1: 200 pages of diaries and 294 pages of collages + five fold-outs; introduction by photo critic Owen Edwards. Nearly all the diaries and collages from the original book are included, plus two new collages finished in 2007.
* Volume 2: Image index with captions for all images from Volume 1; personal photos and early work of the artist; interview with the artist by Steven M. L. Aronson; a facsimile reprint of Beard's 1993 handwritten essay from the sold-out debut issue of Blind Spot magazine; extensive bibliography, filmography, and list of exhibitions.

“The deeper the white man went into Africa, the faster the life flowed out of it, off the plains and out of the bush...vanishing in acres of trophies and hides and carcasses.” — Peter Beard

A landmark publication on Africa, The End of the Game combines Peter Beard’s salient text and remarkable photographs to document the overpopulation and starvation of tens of thousands of elephants, rhinos, and hippos in Kenya’s Tsavo lowlands and Uganda parklands in the 1960s and ’70s.

Researched and compiled over two decades, Beard’s work is a powerful and poignant testimony to the damage done by human intervention in Africa. His own images and texts are supplemented by historical photographs of, and writings from, the enterprisers, explorers, missionaries, and big-game hunters whose quest for adventure and “progress” were to change the face of a continent: Theodore Roosevelt, Frederick Courteney Selous, Karen Blixen (Isak Dinesen), Philip Percival, J.A. Hunter, Ernest Hemingway, and J.H. Patterson.

Marking the 50th anniversary of its first publication, TASCHEN now republishes The End of the Game in a limited edition of 5,000 copies, with an updated foreword by internationally renowned travel and fiction writer Paul Theroux. Touching on such themes as distance from nature, density and stress, and loss of common sense, this seminal portrait is as resonant today, amid growing environmental crises, as it was a half-century ago.