Vintage Observer's Books British Wild Flowers, Geology, Small Craft and Tropical Fishes Set in Orange, Teal, Blue and Yellow

Rocks underfoot, wild flowers along the path, boats out on the water and something altogether more exotic in the fish tank at home. These four vintage Observer's Pocket Books cover a lot of ground for their size, and look wonderful doing it, in rust orange, teal, cobalt and mustard yellow.

British Wild Flowers is the elder statesman here. Wild Flowers was among the very first titles Warne published, in 1937, alongside Birds, and this copy was printed in 1949, still carrying W.J. Stokoe's original text and the earlier British title, before the book was revised and renamed. Geology has a long history in the series too, while Small Craft and Tropical Fishes both arrived in 1976, catching the decade's enthusiasm for weekend sailing and home aquariums. Together they make a lively cross section of what the Observer's books set out to do: give curious people a reason to look a little more closely.

Each book measures roughly 14.5 x 9.5cm (5.75 x 3.75 inches). We like them stacked beneath a large shell, as in our photos, on a bathroom shelf or landing windowsill. Stood upright between a pair of pebbles they suit a coastal scheme, and the cobalt and teal look particularly good against white painted wood. They would also make a lovely present for a sailor, a fishkeeper or a walker who likes to know the name of every flower.

All four are hardbacks in their original boards and come without dust jackets. There is some rubbing to edges and corners, light fading to the spines and a little toning to the pages, which are clean and readable throughout. British Wild Flowers has a previous owner's name in pencil on the front endpaper and a small spot to one early page, a nice reminder that it was carried and used. Please see the photos for the full condition.

A small, bright stack with the whole outdoors packed inside.