From Antiquity down to our own time, theologians, philosophers and scientists have often compared nature to a book, which might, under the right circumstances, be read and interpreted in order to come closer to the 'author' of nature, God. The 'reading' of this book was not regarded as mere idle curiosity, but it was seen as leading to a deeper understanding of God's wisdom and power, which legitimated and promoted a positive attitude towards nature and its study. A selection of the papers delivered at a conference on this subject has been edited in two volumes. The first book was published as The Book of Nature in Antiquity and the Middle Ages; this second volume is devoted to the history of that concept after the Middle Ages.