A contemplation of nature and the animals of the woodlands, The Lay of the Land encapsulates and effuses the poetic beauty of the forests, woods and rivers.

Meditative yet vivid in description, Dallas Lore Sharp describes the behaviors of the birds and creatures of the woodlands and rivers of North America. Between his observations we find nuggets of folksy wisdom, gentle humor and snatches of verse. The narration is without doubt educative - Sharp worked as a professor at Boston University, writing short books and magazine articles upon the quirks and wonders of nature for a popular audience.

The passage of the seasons, and how new life begins in the spring, how animals in hibernation emerge from their slumber. How muskrats and birds gather materials to build their homes, and how the weather, cold and warmth induce change to the landscape. Professor Sharp manages to unite the scientific aspects of the natural world with its embracing majesty, in an entertaining treatise, effusive with passion and bursting with cadences of the great outdoors.