Overview

From award-winning author Merilyn Simonds, a remarkable biography of an extraordinary woman--a Swedish aristocrat who survived the Russian Revolution to become an internationally renowned naturalist, one of the first to track the mid-century decline of songbirds. Referred to as a Canadian Rachel Carson, Louise de Kiriline Lawrence lived and worked in an isolated log cabin near North Bay. After her husband was murdered by Bolsheviks, she refused her Swedish privilege and joined the Canadian Red Cross, visiting her northern Ontario patients by dogsled. When Elzire Dionne gave birth to five babies, Louise became nurse to the Dionne Quintuplets. Repulsed by the media circus, she retreated to her wilderness cabin, where she devoted herself to studying the birds that nested in her forest. Author of six books and scores of magazine stories, de Kiriline Lawrence and her loghouse nest became a Mecca for international ornithologists. Lawrence was an old woman when Merilyn Simonds moved into the woods not far away. Their paths crossed, sparking Simonds's lifelong interest. A dedicated birder, Simonds brings her own songbird experiences from Canadian nesting grounds and Mexican wintering grounds to this deeply researched, engaging portrait of a uniquely fascinating woman.

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Reviews

Elizabeth Wiley's warm voice and audible enthusiasm welcome listeners to the remarkable story of Louise de Kiriline Lawrence, a Swedish aristocrat who became a WWI front-line nurse, then a Canadian wilderness nurse, and finally a pioneering bird-watcher known as Canada's Rachel Carson.-- AudioFile A marvelous biography of a true pioneer of ornithology. -- Booklist (starred review) A stellar, adventure-filled biography. -- Foreword Reviews Elizabeth Wiley's warm voice and audible enthusiasm welcome listeners to the remarkable story of Louise de Kiriline Lawrence...She switches seamlessly among lively readings of the letters with a hint of de Kiriline Lawrence's Swedish accent; well-paced and lilting narration of the biographical sections; and cheerful performances of Wiley's personable memories. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award. -- AudioFile Simonds's prose shines and brings the reader into the remarkable moments bird-watchers live for. This brilliant account does justice to a pioneering figure who merits wider recognition. -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Author Information

Merilyn Simonds is the author of eighteen books, including the non-fiction classic The Convict Lover, Gutenberg's Fingerprint, and most recently, the novel Refuge. The founder and first artistic director of the Kingston WritersFest, Simonds is an influential champion of writers and writing. She lives with writer and translator Wayne Grady and divides her time between Kingston, Ontario, and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. AudioFile Earphones Award winner Elizabeth Wiley is a seasoned actor, dialect coach, theater professor, and dedicated narrator. In addition to her growing portfolio of audiobooks, her voice can be heard in The Idea of America, Colonial Williamsburg's virtual learning curriculum; in Paul Meier's e-textbook Speaking Shakespeare; and modeling U.S.-English on one of the world's top language learning products.

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