The First Female Fossil Hunter (Hardback)

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“This book is a must-read for anyone with an interest in paleontological history.”

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The Birdbooker Report

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book explores the geological wonders of England's Jurassic Coast and the life of Mary Anning, a working-class woman who became a pioneering paleontologist. Discover how Anning and other trailblazing women challenged societal norms, revolutionized science, and left an enduring legacy of curiosity and discovery. Both history and biography, the book is entertaining, informative, and easy to read.

NetGalley, Andrea Romance

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I had read about Mary Anning in several children's books while reading to my son, and have always wanted to know more about her. This was a great read about the life of a trailblazing woman.

NetGalley, Lindsay Goodman

A well researched book on fossil hunting in Britain and particularly the life and works of Mary Anning. Great to see in print the documented stories of a number of female contributors to the field in the 1800s.

NetGalley, Debbie Jaggers

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This was so easy to read, while being super engaging and packed with information. All the tangents (and there are many) are gathered together neatly later in each chapter and there’s a personal thread running through the book which I appreciated. I feel like there should be more books on female scientists and historical women’s contributions to scientific fields, so this is a book I’m grateful to have in my collection and to share.

NetGalley, Shannon Gillespie

A great dive into the life and times of an overlooked pioneer, Mary Anning.

This book is more than just a simple retelling of her life however. It also goes into the evolution of the town she lived in, Lyme Regis, detailing the many reasons that allowed it to become such a focus of fossils, as well as discussing the history of this growing science and how dinosaurs became known. I really enjoyed the way in which the writer portrayed the harmonious relationship between faith and science. One of the leading figures in this book is a Reverend. We could learn a lot from that today, in our polarised world.

It was infuriating to read how she was overlooked at the time, partly because of her sex, and partly because of her class - in an age where science was considered the domain of a gentleman scholar, who learnt for the sake of learning, Mary had the nerve to be a working class woman who sold many of her discoveries in order to survive. Despite this however, her contributions were many and she clearly enjoyed learning and science in their own right. She didn't simply dig up fossils, she experimented and theorised. Her theories were then passed off to men who took the credit.

Well researched and easy to read, a fascinating book and well worth your time.

NetGalley, Sarah Aspden

An informative book about Mary Anning and the early days of paleontology. I was hooked from the very first page and eager to learn more. This was a very easy and interesting read.

NetGalley, Michelle Czerniawski

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

What an incredible story about the godmother of fossil exploration: Mary Anning! The Victorians were very fascinated by dinosaurs and Mary was one of the many. Not only did she change the way we approach and understand several aspects around science but also sociologically by stepping outside the norm and not being afraid to express herself as a woman of science in a primarily male dominating field of study.

This was an truly fascinating and inspirational read and I'm very thankful I was given the opportunity to read this ARC.

NetGalley, Megan Beech

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This book appeared at the right moment in my life because I wanted to know more about Mary Anning and her discoveries. I'm glad the editor granted my wish because I really enjoyed this book.

It starts by giving the reader a brief yet thorough account of the geology of Lyme Regis and the area where Mary found her fossils. The language was clear and simple and the style conversational, and even those who are not experts in this field (like me) will find it easy to understand the scientific context of this book.

We then move to the historical and social context. Mary Anning lived during the Georgian era but also during the Victorian era. This was the age of industrial revolutions and where a lot of scientific fields as we know today were recognized as such and given authority and importance. Mary's discoveries contributed a lot to geology and paleontology but she wasn't the only one, so I liked that other famous women geologists where included and it was emphasized how they supported each other in a time where women were still considered unfit to pursue a scientific career and were often overlooked in favor of their husbands or colleagues. Such a thing happened to Mary as well.

The last chapters are about Mary's life. We find out more of what her family did, her relationship with her mom and her brother and her friends and acquaintances from the emerging field of paleontology and geology too. All of these people helped shape Mary's character and supported her during difficult moments of her life which were several.

For a long time Mary Anning was not given the recognition she deserved. In the latest 15 years or so, she was finally given the space and importance she should've had while she was alive. She is a role model for young girls who want to get a career into stem and also an example of resilience and determination in following her path despite the stigma of the time.

NetGalley, Titti Capasso

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book. The discussion around Mary Anning was excellent as was the discussion of science and society at the time. I found the writing very conversational and I really liked some of Kowinsky’s turns of phrase. I also enjoyed the author’s journey and the great images.

NetGalley, Stephen Goldberg

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

I so enjoyed this book for its bringing to the fore a contribution of a woman whose efforts in fossil identification was extremely important. In this age of DEl in the US, we should honor the efforts of everyone's contributions, not just white mens.

NetGalley, Janine Skavnak