BlogaBook

Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier (Find this book in our catalog)
This new novel by Tracy Chevalier is bound to be as memorable as her other novels of women caught up in pivotal historical events. The story is of a young impoverished girl, Mary Anning, in mid-19th century England. It is based on a true story of how Mary, a gifted amateur scientist and fossil-hunter found prehistoric fossils on a beach in England. Her discoveries, coming as they did before Darwin, challenged the authority of the church and brough opprobrium on her, as did her impertinance in challenging the scientific world, the exclusive preserve of men. She continued to bid for scientific legitimacy, despite the damage to her reputation and her hopes for love, helped by a more upper class friend, Elizabeth Philpot. This is the story of their friendship. Tracy Chevalier creates a unique setting, as she did in The Girl with a Pearl Earring. She, "captures the atmosphere of a chilly, blustery coast and an oppressive social hierarchy in real Dickensian fashion" (LJ review in our catalog). "Remarkable Creatures is a stunning novel of how one woman's gift transcends class and social prejudice to lead to some of the most important discoveries of the nineteenth century. Above all, is it a revealing portrait of the intricate and resilient nature of female friendship" (catalog summary).

If you like stories of adventure, travel, and scientific discovery, and also stories of remarkable women, you may also like this true story:
The Sisters of Sinai : how two lady adventurers discovered the hidden Gospels by Janet Soskice.

Labels: fossils, Mary Anning, Tracy Chevalier, women scientists