Take a look at the big picture of geology! Hamblin and Christiansen explore the global view of Earth by structuring the book around two themes. The first examines Earth as a geologic system with vast interconnected subsystems, while the second theme focuses on how the human species fits into Earth's integrated system. This book also fully integrates the two major energy systems of the plate tectonic system and the hydrologic cycle. The Ninth Edition offers a stunning and sophisticated art program that is virtually unmatched by any other geology book. Features new State of the Art sections that explore the newest methods of gathering information about Earth. The stellar art program includes new panoramic photographs at the beginning of each chapter that provide a wider perspective on the world, compound art that breaks down geologic processes into step-by-step illustrations, and more. A CD-ROM packaged with each copy of the text provides videos, animations, and "telestrated" Chalk Talks to aid in visualizing key concepts. For those entering the fields of geology, Earth science, or environmental science, or looking for a refresher on the basics.
The book itself does its job, but the version we used in my geology class was the freely downloadable online release. This does not include scans of the covers, and some exercises want the maps that are supposedly in them. I've never seen them.
The absolute best geology text book. It has great pictures and diagrams, plus it's just plain awesome. Honestly, it's one of my favorite non-fiction books.