A voyage of discoveries, a meeting of two remarkable women, and extraordinary time and place enrich bestselling author Tracy Chevalier's enthralling new novel
Dutton
January 2010
On Sale: January 5, 2010
Featuring: Elizabeth Philpot; Mary Anning
320 pages ISBN: 0525951458 EAN: 9780525951452 Hardcover Add to Wish List
From the moment she's struck by lightening as a baby, it is
clear that Mary Anning is marked for greatness. On the
windswept, fossil-strewn beaches of the English coast, she
learns that she has "the eye"-and finds what no one else can
see. When Mary uncovers an unusual fossilized skeleton in
the cliffs near her home, she sets the religious fathers on
edge, the townspeople to vicious gossip, and the scientific
world alight. In an arena dominated by men, however, Mary is
barred from the academic community; as a young woman with
unusual interests she is suspected of sinful behavior.
Nature is a threat, throwing bitter, cold storms and
landslips at her. And when she falls in love, it is with an
impossible man.
Luckily, Mary finds an unlikely
champion in prickly Elizabeth Philpot, a recent exile from
London, who also loves scouring the beaches. Their
relationship strikes a delicate balance between fierce
loyalty, mutual appreciation, and barely suppressed envy.
Ultimately, in the struggle to be recognized in the wider
world, Mary and Elizabeth discover that friendship is their
greatest ally.
Remarkable Creatures is a
stunning novel of how one woman's gift transcends class and
social prejudice to lead to some of the most important
discoveries of the nineteenth century. Above all, is it a
revealing portrait of the intricate and resilient nature of
female friendship.