collected essays on evolution nature and the cosmos loren eiseley

After decades of fieldwork and discovery as a “bone-hunter” and professor, Eiseley turned late in life to the personal essay, and beginning with the surprise million-copy seller The Immense Journey (1957) he produced an astonishing succession of books that won acclaim both as science and as art. Now for the first time, the Library of America presents his landmark essay collections in a definitive two-volume set. Beginning with close observation and vivid detail, Eiseley is fearless and imaginative in pursuit of the cosmological dimensions of the phenomena he describes.An eminent paleontologist with the soul and skill of a poet, Loren Eiseley (1907–1977) was among the twentieth century’s greatest inheritors of the literary tradition of Henry David Thoreau, Charles Darwin, and John Muir, and a precursor to such later writers as Stephen Jay Gould, Richard Dawkins, and Carl Sagan. Eiseley?s subjects are wide-ranging, curious, and meticulously realized- the role of flowering plants in evolution a disturbing insect, seen in childhood the questions raised by a new fossil a forgotten episode in the history of science. Here, for the first time in a single collector?s edition, are all of Eiseley?s beloved, thought-provoking, sometimes darkly lyrical essay collections, from The Immense Journey to the posthumous The Star Thrower (1978).

Now for the first time, the Library of America presents his landmark essay collections in a definitive two-volume set.Beginning with the surprise million-copy seller The Immense Journey (1957), Eiseley produced an astonishing succession of books that won acclaim both as science and as art.

Weaving together anecdote, philosophical reflection, and keen observation with the soul and skill of a poet, Eiseley offers a brilliant, companionable introduction to the sciences, paving the way for writers like Carl Sagan, Stephen Jay Gould, and Neil deGrasse Tyson. At the height of a distinguished career as a 'bone-hunter' and paleontologist, Eiseley turned from fieldwork and scientific publication to the personal essay in six remarkable books that are masterpieces of prose style. To read Loren Eiseley (1907-1977) is to renew a sense of wonder at the miracles and paradoxes of evolution and the ever-changing diversity of life. A modern Thoreau explores the mysteries of the universe in this deluxe collector's boxed set.

Collected essays on evolution nature and the cosmos loren eiseley