Life in the Treetops: Adventures of a Woman in Field Biology (Yale Nota Bene) [Paperback]

Margaret D. Lowman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 11, 2000 | ISBN-10: 0300084641 | ISBN-13: 978-0300084641

A pioneering tree canopy scientist for more than twenty years, Margaret D. Lowman here describes her challenges as a working wife, single parent, and field biologist studying forest treetops around the world.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Margaret D. Lowman is executive director at the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, where she also holds the Jessie B. Cox Chair in Tropical Botany.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (August 11, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300084641
• ISBN-13: 978-0300084641
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.6 x 7.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #578,403 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #13 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Ecosystems > Tropical
  • #29 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Rain Forests

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An absolutely wonderful book. August 31, 2000

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Life in the Treetops is an absolutely wonderful book. Please take a look at the customer and press reviews for the hardcover edition of this book. They are far more eloquent reviewers that am I. This book was on the cover of the New York Times Book Review. It was an Editors Selection in Scientific American and in New Scientist(UK. Because of the book, Dr. Lowman has been featured in German GEO, in Sydney Morning Herald, in Italian Elle and in Seoul Korea's daily, all in their own languages. She has been interviewed on NPR's Fresh Air Living on Earth and the BBC. You are wondering if all of this is important? It is when the book is a memoir. I found Dr. Lowman to be a role model for me and for my child. Please read it. It will be important to you.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars My thoughts on this book January 1, 2002

A Kid's Review

Format:Paperback

This unique book is about Margaret Lowman's life as a self-described field biologist who studies the mysteries of forest canopies, one of the last biotic frontiers on Earth. In Life in the Treetops, Lowman is a pioneer canopy scientist she describes the little known worlds of the treetops, their inhabitants, flowers and fruits, growth and mortality, patterns of diversity, and plant and animal interactions. Lowman writes about how, in order with the scientific hypothesis she was focusing on, a different canopy access technique was used. She's particularly good at exposing the life of a field biologist from a woman's perspective, what it was like to cope: with the demands of a challenging career; with marriage to an Australian sheep farmer; with housewifery; with motherhood to two young sons; with conflicting cultural differences about gender roles; and with divorce and single parenthood. Lowman's descriptions of her various arboreal ecological projects were fascinating. She emphasized the pleasures and intellectual rewards of studying the natural world without ignoring the projected vicissitudes of researching in wilderness settings. In the end Lowman is the director of research and conservation at the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota, Florida. This is an inspiring story for everyone, not just for women or those interested in careers in science, but for everyone.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Well-written account of a life in science June 25, 2001

By Matthew A. Bille

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Margaret Lowman is a gifted biologist with a knack for finding ways to teach others the importance of her field and the need for conservation. Her adventures range from the humorous to the frightening and are guaranteed to hold the reader's interest. I held off a five-star rating only because I would have liked a little more information on some of the animals she's studied. Her impressions of Nature's little-known and often-overlooked creatures are valuable and fascinating, and I wish more space had been devoted to them. That's a minor quibble, though. As a writer on nature myself, I came away from reading this book with an improved understanding of how complex the "web of life" is, not to mention a determination to get my own children out into the forests more often.