The Face of the Earth by G Dury.
 
The young natural science of geomorphology - the study of the form of the ground - is much less forbidding than its name. It is developing fast, and already promises to achieve some independence both of geology and of physical geography. In this book a professional geomorphologist tells how knowledge in this field is advancing, examines some of the hotly-disputed problems which have to be solved, and discusses the processes by which construction and erosion affect the physical landscape.
 
Among the topics receiving attention are the weakening of rocks by weathering, their removal by the forces of erosion, the cyclic development of the land-surface, the evolution of river-systems, the effects of volcanic action and of glaciers, and the surface forms of deserts.
 
In choosing his examples, the author has been able to select freely from the results of his own field work. There are 102 diagrams in the text and 48 pages of plates.
 
Cover design by Germano Facetti