Peter Lourie

I have been waiting with thinly-veiled impatience for the newest Scientists in the Field book to arrive in my library system. It's finally here!

This is not just the story of an Arctic whale scientist (who just happens to be Jean Craighead George's son) it's also the story of the Inuit people who live in Barrow, Alaska, and whose lives revolve around the bowhead whales.

Peter Lourie details the everyday life of the Inuit and of John Craighead George's life as a whale scientist. We learn about show more the life cycle of a bowhead whale and how Inuit culture and economics are centered on these huge and fascinating creatures. We learn how "Craig" became a scientist and how he came to study whales in Alaska; a job he's been doing for twenty years. We even discover something of the way whales were studied in the past and how scientists now listen to the native peoples' insights and knowledge of the whales, built over centuries of hunting and living with these giant creatures.

And for reluctant readers, I have only one final thing to say: bloody whale eyeball the size of a softball. What more do you need?

Verdict: Highly recommended

ISBN: 978-0618777099; Published November 2009 by Houghton Mifflin; Borrowed from the library; Purchased for the library show less

This is the story of a year in the life of John Craighead George (Craig), a whale scientist who lives in Barrow, Alaska among the Inupiaq Eskimo people. The Inupiat are an indigenous people who are allowed by law to hunt bowhead whales as they have for thousands of years. Author Peter Lourie details how Craig has over the years earned the respect and trust of the Inupiat so that he may live among them and gather important data on the whales they catch before they divide them up and use them. show more One almost feels as though one has been to Barrow and seen the whales after viewing the very informative and well integrated photographs. In a science classroom, this book would be helpful in getting students to understand the sacrifices some scientists make in order to follow their passion (i.e. living in a remote and isolated region), how scientists must work hard to earn the trust of different peoples, how scientists can learn much from indigenous people, as well as information about the life cycles and behaviors of bowhead whales. show less

Synopsis:
This is a non-fiction book covering Jack London's life specifically while he was involved with the Klondike gold rush.

My rating:

4/5

I loved how fun this book was to read. Non-fiction can be a drag or can be filled with extraneous detail. This book felt more like reading an adventure story than a non-fictional biography. The book also stayed surprisingly on point.

It doesn't have much to say about London's early life, except those tidbits important to his choice to leave for the show more Klondike, nor does it give more than passing information about London's later life. There are mentions of how this or that which happened in the Klondike related to stories he wrote later but the book is heavily set in the stories here and now.

There were very few digressions in this book except for those vital to move the book forward. I truly appreciated that because shortly after reading this book I read another non-fiction which I couldn't get through due to the vast digressions. This book remains on point throughout which, for me, was its second greatest strength. The first greatest being how enjoyable it was to read.

Overall, I enjoyed this read very much. My only minor point of complaint is that the author of the book did take some liberties in filling in gaps of London's story. I am assuming he did this for the sake of storytelling. The book probably would be worse for it if he hadn't taken any liberties but I did knock a star off my rating because of it.

The copy of the book I read included amazing photographs and a timeline of London's life.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for an easy to read and inspiring book on Jack London. I would also highly recommend this to authors who are looking for inspiring tales to help them combat the frustrations of the early failures prevalent in most author careers. London went through so many hardships with the dream of writing his novels. He wrote 1k words a day and he pushed on even when times were tough and he was struggling physically and financially. London is an excellent role model for aspiring authors. show less

Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com

When you pick up a book by author Peter Lourie, you'll realize two things right away. First, he loves history, and his love for the subject comes through in his writing. Secondly, Mr. Lourie doesn't just write about the past. He's a hands-on type of person, and that's clearly evident in HIDDEN WORLD OF THE AZTEC.

In 1512, the two-hundred year history of the Aztecs was brought to a close when Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes captured the capital city of show more Tenochtitlan. That ancient city, the hub of the Aztec culture, now lies buried beneath a larger, much more modern city--that of downtown Mexico City.

Mr. Lourie followed a team of archaeologists, led by Leonardo Lopez Lujan, as they conducted new excavations at both the Great Temple and the Pyramid of the Moon. The work done at the Great Temple was the first attempted in seven years. At the more ancient Pyramid of the Moon, located thirty miles north of Mexico City, a new opening was made at the top of the pyramid, and Mr. Lourie followed a team down into never-before explored tunnels.

HIDDEN WORLD OF THE AZTEC is filled with beautiful full-color photographs, maps of the ancient Aztec world, and photos of actual archaeological finds discovered during their time in Mexico City. This first-hand account of what the ancient Aztec culture was like is not to be missed, especially by those with a love of history. show less