Thursday, December 10, 2015

Essay by Beth Armstrong, ZACC Steering Committee



"Whenever you read a good book, somewhere in the world a door opens to allow in more light" -Vera Nazarian 


I love books - the incredible power of the written world to transform and transport the reader. Each year I host a conservation mentoring weekend at my home. The intent is to bring together like-minded folks that work at zoos and field projects in order to form alliances and partnerships, to create firm friendships that hopefully will last a lifetime as well as encourage those attending to mentor others that may have an interest in conservation issues as well. I bring this up because inevitably we spend the first evening discussing books  - indeed one of the gifts for all of my guests is a hand-picked book that I think they might enjoy.


It seems to be a common theme amongst many of my field and zoo colleagues - this love of reading.  I have also noticed that at ZACC conferences we often greet one another with “ What have you read lately?” Below is a sampling of books I simply could not put down.


Non-fiction:
Tales of a Shaman’s Apprentice  - by Mark Plotkin
The Blue Sweater - by Jacqueline Novogratz
Bird by Bird - by Anne Lamott
The Origin (the story of Darwins’s voyage on the SS Beagle) - by Irving Stone
Shadow of Man  - by Jane Goodall
Gorillas in the Mist - by Dian Fossey
Gorillas In our Midst - by Jeff Lyttle

Fiction:
The Origin - by Irving Stone

Short Stories:
Jaguars ripped my flesh - by Tim Cahill
A wolverine is eating my leg - by Tim Cahill


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