Dinosaurs in the Attic: An Excursion into the American Museum of Natural History

by Douglas Preston

Overview

Dinosaurs in the Attic is a chronicle of the expeditions, discoveries, and scientists behind the greatest natural history collection every assembled. Written by former Natural History columnist Douglas J. Preston, who worked at the American Museum of Natural History for seven years, this is a celebration of the best-known and best-loved museum in the United States.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312104566
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	11/15/1993
Edition description:	Reissue
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	244,079
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.62(d)

About the Author

Douglas J. Preston is the co-author with Lincoln Child of the celebrated Pendergast series of novels, including such best-selling titles as Fever Dream, The Book of the Dead, The Wheel of Darkness, and Relic, which became a number one box office hit movie. His solo novels include the New York Times bestsellers Impact, Blasphemy, The Codex, and Tyrannosaur Canyon. His most recent nonfiction book, The Monster of Florence, is being made into a film starring George Clooney. Preston is an expert long-distance horseman, a member of the elite Long Riders Guild, and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. He has travelled to remote parts of the world as an archaeological correspondent for The New Yorker. He also worked as an editor and writer at the American Museum of Natural History in New York and taught nonfiction writing at Princeton University. Preston is the Co-president of International Thriller Writers, and serves on the Governing Council of the Authors Guild.

Place of Birth:

Cambridge, Massachusetts

Education:

B.A., Pomona College, 1978

Website:

http://www.prestonchild.com

Editorial Reviews

A rare treat...utterly wonderful to museum buffs.” —Publishers Weekly

“Conveys the feeling of excitement and unflagging curiosity of those working behind the scenes to add to mankind's knowledge of the natural world.” —Lorin Nevling, Jr., Director Emeritus, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago

“Dinosaurs in the Attic is not just chronicle, or even history-it is literature, and a damn good read!” —Charles R. Crumly, Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University

“The raucous and heroic history of one of America's best-loved museums...a beguiling book.” —Chicago Tribune

“Preston writes...with breezy wit and insight.” —Boston Globe

“A delightful book filled with fascinating stories, anecdotes, and personalities.” —Library Journal

From the Publisher

New York's American Museum of Natural History, one of the outstanding science museums in the world, contains an extraordinary collection of objects: dinosaur skeletons, human mummies, tiny beetles, birds of paradise, and massive totem poles. Only a tiny fraction of the millions of catalogued specimens is on public view, and Douglas, with a series of judicious choices, takes us on a tour of the great labyrinth of storerooms and vaults that houses the bulk of the collection. Of equal interest are the people who built up and continue to maintain this extraordinary collection. This is a delightful book filled with fascinating stories, anecdotes, and personalities. Highly recommended. Walter P. Coombs, Jr., Biology Dept., Western New Engalnd Coll., Springfield, Mass.

Library Journal