Today we continue the Nonfiction Authors Dig Deep series with an essay by author Pamela S. Turner. Thank you, Pam.
My
first memory: reaching through the wooden bars of a playpen, trying to drag a
puppy in by his ears. Although my dog-handling skills have improved, I’m still drawn to
animals in a way I can’t fully explain. Perhaps it’s their otherness, the
presence of a gulf that seems almost crossable but isn’t.
As
writers, our subjects often
define us. I never get tired of exploring the complex, contradictory, and
continually fascinating relationship we humans have with other animals.
writers, our subjects often
define us. I never get tired of exploring the complex, contradictory, and
continually fascinating relationship we humans have with other animals.
When
casting about for a subject for my first children’s book I thought: Dog stories! I love dog stories! The
result was Hachiko: The True Story of a
Loyal Dog, a fictionalized account of a tale I discovered while living in
Tokyo. (Warning: you might want to have Kleenex nearby).
casting about for a subject for my first children’s book I thought: Dog stories! I love dog stories! The
result was Hachiko: The True Story of a
Loyal Dog, a fictionalized account of a tale I discovered while living in
Tokyo. (Warning: you might want to have Kleenex nearby).
The
dog was the first species domesticated and is still probably our best-beloved. Our
relationship with wild animals, however, is the one I’ve grown most committed
to probing.
dog was the first species domesticated and is still probably our best-beloved. Our
relationship with wild animals, however, is the one I’ve grown most committed
to probing.
In my most recent book, Crow
Smarts: Inside the Brain of the World’s Brightest Bird I wanted to help
readers appreciate a much-maligned, underappreciated group of animals that
combine astonishing intelligence and solid family values.
Smarts: Inside the Brain of the World’s Brightest Bird I wanted to help
readers appreciate a much-maligned, underappreciated group of animals that
combine astonishing intelligence and solid family values.
New
Caledonian crows, the academic stars crow family, make and use multiple kinds
of tools and on some cognitive tasks can outperform six-year-old children. This
is striking evidence of convergent evolution: two groups of animals that have
gone down different paths but arrived at a similar destination.
Caledonian crows, the academic stars crow family, make and use multiple kinds
of tools and on some cognitive tasks can outperform six-year-old children. This
is striking evidence of convergent evolution: two groups of animals that have
gone down different paths but arrived at a similar destination.
Crow Smarts was a very personal
book for me because I volunteer as a wildlife rehabilitator specializing in
crows and ravens. At the moment, in fact, I have a juvenile crow recuperating
in my aviary after being trapped in a chimney for a week and losing about half
its body weight. I have no idea how this crow got into the chimney, but intelligent
animals are sometimes too curious for their own good!
book for me because I volunteer as a wildlife rehabilitator specializing in
crows and ravens. At the moment, in fact, I have a juvenile crow recuperating
in my aviary after being trapped in a chimney for a week and losing about half
its body weight. I have no idea how this crow got into the chimney, but intelligent
animals are sometimes too curious for their own good!
Many
animals, like crows, are in dire need of good PR. But a few are in need of corrective PR. I wrote The Dolphins of Shark Bay in order to
smash a few myths about bottlenose dolphins, probably the most popular wild
animal species on the planet. They perform amazing tricks! They play with
swimmers! They save drowning people!–etc. etc.
animals, like crows, are in dire need of good PR. But a few are in need of corrective PR. I wrote The Dolphins of Shark Bay in order to
smash a few myths about bottlenose dolphins, probably the most popular wild
animal species on the planet. They perform amazing tricks! They play with
swimmers! They save drowning people!–etc. etc.
In
Dolphins of Shark Bay, I sought to show that their relationships with each other
are far richer, more complex, and more interesting than their relationship with
us. We don’t need to turn dolphins into noble elves in wetsuits because these
animals are astonishing enough on their own. (And by the way, as a scuba diver
who has been on dives involving both sharks and dolphins…I always assume Flipper’s
got other priorities.)
Dolphins of Shark Bay, I sought to show that their relationships with each other
are far richer, more complex, and more interesting than their relationship with
us. We don’t need to turn dolphins into noble elves in wetsuits because these
animals are astonishing enough on their own. (And by the way, as a scuba diver
who has been on dives involving both sharks and dolphins…I always assume Flipper’s
got other priorities.)
I
hope to continue writing books for children and young adults that strive to
educate, enlighten, and entertain by putting animals in a realistic behavioral
and environmental context. I hope that by doing so I’m also placing humans in a
realistic context.
hope to continue writing books for children and young adults that strive to
educate, enlighten, and entertain by putting animals in a realistic behavioral
and environmental context. I hope that by doing so I’m also placing humans in a
realistic context.
The
famous environmentalist and myrmecologist E.O. Wilson put it best:
“The more we know of other forms of life, the
more we enjoy and respect ourselves. Humanity is exalted not because we are so
far above other living creatures, but because knowing them well elevates the
very concept of life.”
famous environmentalist and myrmecologist E.O. Wilson put it best:
“The more we know of other forms of life, the
more we enjoy and respect ourselves. Humanity is exalted not because we are so
far above other living creatures, but because knowing them well elevates the
very concept of life.”
Pamela S. Turner was an international
health consultant and health policy researcher before turning to writing about
science and history for children and young adults. She has lived in Kenya,
South Africa, the Marshall Islands, the Philippines, and Japan. Each of her
three children was born in a different country.
health consultant and health policy researcher before turning to writing about
science and history for children and young adults. She has lived in Kenya,
South Africa, the Marshall Islands, the Philippines, and Japan. Each of her
three children was born in a different country.
Pamela’s
books, including Hachiko,
Gorilla Doctors, The Dolphins of Shark Bay, A Life in the Wild, The Frog Scientist, and Crow
Smarts, have won such honors as the Society of Children’s Book Writers and
Illustrator’s Golden Kite Award, the American Association for the Advancement
of Science (AAAS) Science Writing Prize, and an Orbis Pictus Honor. Her most
recent book, Samurai Rising: The Epic Life of Minamoto Yoshitsune is an ALA Notable Book, a YALSA Excellence in
Nonfiction Award Finalist, and was named a “Best of the Year” by Kirkus,
Booklist, and School Library Journal. Pamela lives in Oakland,
California. www.pamelasturner.com.
books, including Hachiko,
Gorilla Doctors, The Dolphins of Shark Bay, A Life in the Wild, The Frog Scientist, and Crow
Smarts, have won such honors as the Society of Children’s Book Writers and
Illustrator’s Golden Kite Award, the American Association for the Advancement
of Science (AAAS) Science Writing Prize, and an Orbis Pictus Honor. Her most
recent book, Samurai Rising: The Epic Life of Minamoto Yoshitsune is an ALA Notable Book, a YALSA Excellence in
Nonfiction Award Finalist, and was named a “Best of the Year” by Kirkus,
Booklist, and School Library Journal. Pamela lives in Oakland,
California. www.pamelasturner.com.
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