Customer Reviews

Rachel Carson: A Twentieth-Century Life (Up Close Series)

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I ended up checking this book out from the library because it seemed to be the only decent biography on Rachel Carson. I didn't realize until I got home that it was written for middle schoolers. I read it anyway because I hadn't read any biographies on her.

This a great introduction to Rachel Carson, especially for children and young adults who have more than a passing interest in marine biology or environmental issues and who might even be considering devoting their lives to one, the other or both. If nothing else, it would be a good source for a paper or report that needs to be written.

This book was written in a way that reminds the reader that women weren't always treated as first class citizens - even after we got the vote. Ellen Levine does a great job illuminating Rachel Carson as a person, scientist and author of her generation without providing a history lesson or going into details that her audience might find boring.

The book contains many excerpts of Rachel Carson's work so you get an idea of how she wrote if you haven't read any of her books yet. There are also excerpts from letters to and from Rachel. (If you're interested in reading more of Rachel's letters, Always, Rachel: The Letters of Rachel Carson and Dorothy Freeman, 1952-1964 - The Story of a Remarkable Friendship (Concord Library) is a fabulous book of letters written between Carson and her best friend, Dorothy Freeman.)

There is a helpful bibliography at the end of the book that will point you in the right direction if you want to read more about Rachel Carson - and this book should really whet your appetite when it comes to learning more about the woman who pretty much single handedly sparked the environmental movement.

Update: I finally got a comprehensive biography on Rachel Carson that is simply awesome! Rachel Carson: Witness for Nature

Up Close:Rachel Carson is really a good book. She was an amazing individual. This book really brings her to life and explains her lifes work.... Love of the natural world and writing about it.