The Natural History of Pliny the Elder is one of the largest single works to have survived from the Roman Empire. The full work consists of 37 books, covering more than 20.000 topics ranging from astronomy and mathematics to botany and precious stones. The book became a model for later encyclopaedias and gives a fascinating overview of the state of scientific knowledge almost 2000 years ago. This version of the Natural History (or, the "Pliny") has been adapted for a younger audience. This fourth volume contains Book VII (The Natural History of Birds) and Book VIII (The Various Kinds of Insects) out of a total of 9 books. - Summary by Foon