This balanced portrait of a pioneering environmentalist will be of great interest to anyone with an interest in ecology or nature writing. Few people have had as great an impact on the modern environmental movement as has the great writer and scientist Rachel Carson. This readable and up-to-date biography traces the famous environmentalist's development as a writer from earliest childhood through the publication of her best-known work, Silent Spring (1962). In this absorbing account of her life, Carson emerges as a talented scientist and exceptional writer who shared her sense of wonder about nature with both scientists and the general public. The author brings to life the "small, solemn-looking woman" whom the New York Times described as having "the steady forthright gaze of a type that is sometimes common to thoughtful children who prefer to listen rather than to talk." The author recounts Carson's lifelong love of both nature and writing, her years of working in relative obscurity for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and then her late breakthrough as a writer of books about the sea that brought her critical acclaim. The culmination of her life was, of course, the publication of Silent Spring, which not only brought her lasting fame but also harsh criticism from spokespersons for industry and government. In the wake of the one hundredth anniversary of Carson's birth in 2007, this fascinating story concludes with an assessment of Rachel Carson's legacy as a writer and a champion of the environmental movement. The author also addresses the lingering controversies regarding the use of pesticides as well as continuing criticisms of Carson's ideas.

Most students faced with writing a research paper probably start at the same place--Google. Here's a cutting-edge guide that will save your students from fruitless, random web searching. Arlene Quartiello, formerly an academic librarian who now teaches college English, and Jane Devine, coauthor of Going Beyond Google, provide up-to-date guidance for using traditional and online sources. Students will learn to select a topic, effectively find and evaluate the best information in both print and electronic formats, and produce accurate and complete citations based on current versions of important styles guides and web resources. Each chapter includes exercises that reinforce the instruction and guidance. A companion website accompanies this new edition to give readers hot links for all of the book's URLs, and supplementary materials including additional exercises and examples that help clarify how to apply the techniques. Written in an easy, breezy style and filled with real-world examples, illustrative diagrams, and screen shots, this is the ideal guide for anyone aspiring to write an excellent research paper on their own or following this text in a research skills or information literacy course. Instructors: Interested in adopting this textbook? Neal-Schuman Publishers is happy to tell you more about the book or arrange an exam copy. E-mail [email protected] for more information.