Sebastian Kinder und Hail Thomas Porada (Hg.): Brandenburg an der Havel und Umgebung. Eine landeskundliche Bestandsaufnahme im Raum Brandenburg an der Havel, Pritzerbe, Reckahn und Wusterwitz. Köln, Weimar, Wien 2006 (Landschaften in Deutschland 69). 457 S.

Volume 69 follows the proved structure which is typical of his well-known series. The first part (pp. 1-83) consists of an overview about the region as a whole and is subdivided into three subchapters. The first one gives an overview about the physical landscape (geomorphologic forms, geology, soils, climate, hydrography, vegetation, animals, protected areas), the second describes the history of the region

(beginning with early history and ending with the most recent developments of settlements and the economy in the time period since 1990), the third one deals with cultural aspects (interpretation of the names of settlements and other locations, types of rural settlements, cultural aspects like everyday life and celebrations, history of art, protection of monuments and historical buildings). This part offers comprehensive and interesting information about the introduced area, supported by several coloured maps which are included in the text.
The second part (pp. 85-338) is a detailed description of the places (mostly settlements, but also lakes, canals, railroad lines and highways) in their historical background and their development up to the present. It is enriched with photos and other impressive materials (graphs, maps) and offers a lot of information for those, who are especially interested in these places.
A bibliography and other sources are indicated on pp. 339-374; pp. 375-422 is an annex with some statistical data, listings of plants and animals which can be found in the
region, a long list with historical data and some more topics. Eventually, nine routes of field trips are presented (pp. 423-433), therefore and to be able to localize other places of interest in the region the attached folded little map is of great help.
This carefully edited book is a highly valuable source and can be recommended for those, who are interested in this region and plan to visit it.    
Autor: Werner Klohn

Quelle: Erdkunde, 61. Jahrgang, 2007, Heft 3, S. 298-299