Elliott Coues: NATURALIST AND FRONTIER HISTORIAN [Paperback]

Paul Russell Cutright (Author), Michael J Brodhead (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 23, 2001

Best known as the author of the pioneering Key to North American Birds, Elliott Coues (1842-99) was one of America's most renowned but least understood ornithologists and historians - as well as a naturalist, anatomist, taxonomist, writer and editor, Army surgeon on the American frontier, occultist, and the youngest person ever to become a member of the National Academy of Sciences. Now available in paperback, this comprehensive biography of a brilliant, ambitious, and phenomenally productive man ranks as the definitive life of Elliott Coues.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"[A] lively and informative account of one of the great ornithologists of the nineteenth century... [The] authors not only portray the life of a fascinating, inquisitive, and exacting scientist but also give a vivid account of American life from 1840 to the turn of the century... Superbly written, this book should be on the required reading list of anyone interested in the development of science and natural history of America." - Jeffrey L. Malter, Science Books and Films "Coues was a fascinating man... It is all here: travels, discoveries, brushes with the Indians, loves, feuds, failures, triumphs, honors. Coues was the giant of the last half of the nineteenth century." - American Birds "[This] account of [Coues's] life will do much to bring him back into the public eye... Capturing Coues in all his diversity, this book is for everyone; it is easy reading, yet informative and-not least-entertaining." - Clayton M. White, Nature "There are three great subjects here: Elliott Coues, the American West, and North American birds. This is the kind of biography that delights the scholar-a study of an active, intelligent, controversial character who left his mark and came close to being a Renaissance man." - Donald Jackson, editor of Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition

From the Inside Flap

"[A] lively and informative account of one of the great ornithologists of the nineteenth century. . . . [The] authors not only portray the life of a fascinating, inquisitive, and exacting scientist but also give a vivid account of American life from 1840 to the turn of the century. . . . Superbly written, this book should be on the required reading list of anyone interested in the development of science and natural history of America." – Jeffrey L. Malter, Science Books and Films

"Coues was a fascinating man. . . . It is all here: travels, discoveries, brushes with the Indians, loves, feuds, failures, triumphs, honors. Coues was the giant of the last half of the nineteenth century." – American Birds

"[This] account of [Coues's] life will do much to bring him back into the public eye. . . . Capturing Coues in all his diversity, this book is for everyone; it is easy reading, yet informative and–not least–entertaining." – Clayton M. White, Nature

"There are three great subjects here: Elliott Coues, the American West, and North American birds. This is the kind of biography that delights the scholar–a study of an active, intelligent, controversial character who left his mark and came close to being a Renaissance man." – Donald Jackson, editor of Letters of the Lewis and Clark Expedition

Product Details

• Paperback: 536 pages
• Publisher: University of Illinois Press (April 23, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0252069870
• ISBN-13: 978-0252069871
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,929,504 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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