Overview

Twenty-five years ago, a young curator of mammals from the Australian Museum in Sydney setout to research the fauna of the Pacific Islands. Starting with a survey of one of the mostinaccessible islands in Melanesia-Woodlark, in the Trobriands Group-that young scientistfound himself ghost-whispering, snake wrestling, Quadoi hunting and plunged waist-deep into asludge of maggot-infested faeces in search of a small bat that turned out not to beearth-shatteringly interesting. With accounts of discovering, naming and sometimes eating new mammal species; beingthwarted or aided by local customs; and historic scientific expeditions, Tim Flannery takes us onan enthralling journey through some of the most diverse and spectacular environments on Earth. Among the Islands is the third book in a loose trilogy of Flannery's adventures, following on fromthe bestselling Throwim Way Leg (1998) and Country (2004).

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9781921922923

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Reviews

‘A rollicking adventure story that will entertain amateur zoologists young and old. By populating the narrative with interesting characters as well as fascinating creatures and spectacular environments, Flannery also keeps the story interesting for those without a deep interest in science.’ * Australian Bookseller & Publisher * 'This is an entertaining and informative account of the author's expeditions to research mammals of the Pacific Islands. Writing in a witty, anecdotal, confessional style, Tim Flannery takes us with him on his search for elusive critters in exotic places, and along the way we learn a lot about nature, humankind's devastating arrogance, the politics of the Pacific and, most surprisingly, ourselves. Flannery is about as close as you can get to a living national treasure.' * Courier-Mail * ‘Flannery is a gifted writer, able to bring the musty backrooms of museums to life. It will be a hardened reader who can finish the book and escape without a romantic appreciation for island life and the mysterious beauty of evolution.’ * Dominion Post * 'A ripping yarn.' * Sunday Tasmanian * 'A rollicking adventure for young and old.' * Sydney Magazine * 'There is an 18th or 19th century explorer inside Tim Flannery, trying to get out. And doing a damn fine job of it too in this rather ripping yarn, which combines a passion for science with a zeal for adventure...It's all part of the rich tapestry of a lively book based on fairly vivid recollections, notebooks and Flannery's scientific writings from the period. Like any decent colonial explorer Flannery (whom David Attenborough has compared to David Livingstone, no less) and his colleagues suffered privations and hardships along the way, although the arduous conditions were always rewarded with the wonders of the natural world, and few are better qualified to write about that.' * Weekend Australian * 'Among the Islands documents the ground-breaking work that resulted in the first book on the mammals of the south-west Pacific and allowed the International Union for the Conservation of Nature to rank their vulnerability to extinction. Flannery's recollection is part adventure romp and part political history but above all a love letter to nature and science...In practice, science can be a slow, repetitive beast but Flannery's dexterity as a storyteller means the pace rarely slackens...In an age when respect for science is diminishing, it is a reminder that knowledge is hard-earned.' * Age * ‘Tim Flannery is in the league of the all-time great explorers like Dr David Livingstone.’ * Sir David Attenborough * ‘One of the world’s greatest zoologists...who’s probably discovered more new species than Darwin. He’s a remarkable man.’ * Redmond O'Hanlon *

'Among the Islands is not a polemic about environmental destruction nor a dissertation on the discovery of hitherto unknown species. It is above all an easily read and often surprisingly funny recounting of Flannery's early adventures. However, it also provides the reader with insights into how Flannery developed the logic behind the theories he espoused in The Future Eaters and particularly The Weather Makers.' - Gippsland Times

`One of the world's greatest zoologists...who's probably discovered more new species than Darwin. He's a remarkable man.' * Redmond O'Hanlon * `Tim Flannery is in the league of the all-time great explorers like Dr David Livingstone.' * Sir David Attenborough * 'Among the Islands documents the ground-breaking work that resulted in the first book on the mammals of the south-west Pacific and allowed the International Union for the Conservation of Nature to rank their vulnerability to extinction. Flannery's recollection is part adventure romp and part political history but above all a love letter to nature and science...In practice, science can be a slow, repetitive beast but Flannery's dexterity as a storyteller means the pace rarely slackens...In an age when respect for science is diminishing, it is a reminder that knowledge is hard-earned.' * Age * 'There is an 18th or 19th century explorer inside Tim Flannery, trying to get out. And doing a damn fine job of it too in this rather ripping yarn, which combines a passion for science with a zeal for adventure...It's all part of the rich tapestry of a lively book based on fairly vivid recollections, notebooks and Flannery's scientific writings from the period. Like any decent colonial explorer Flannery (whom David Attenborough has compared to David Livingstone, no less) and his colleagues suffered privations and hardships along the way, although the arduous conditions were always rewarded with the wonders of the natural world, and few are better qualified to write about that.' * Weekend Australian * 'A rollicking adventure for young and old.' * Sydney Magazine * 'A ripping yarn.' * Sunday Tasmanian * `Flannery is a gifted writer, able to bring the musty backrooms of museums to life. It will be a hardened reader who can finish the book and escape without a romantic appreciation for island life and the mysterious beauty of evolution.' * Dominion Post * 'This is an entertaining and informative account of the author's expeditions to research mammals of the Pacific Islands. Writing in a witty, anecdotal, confessional style, Tim Flannery takes us with him on his search for elusive critters in exotic places, and along the way we learn a lot about nature, humankind's devastating arrogance, the politics of the Pacific and, most surprisingly, ourselves. Flannery is about as close as you can get to a living national treasure.' * Courier-Mail * `A rollicking adventure story that will entertain amateur zoologists young and old. By populating the narrative with interesting characters as well as fascinating creatures and spectacular environments, Flannery also keeps the story interesting for those without a deep interest in science.' * Australian Bookseller & Publisher *

Among the Islands is not a polemic about environmental destruction nor a dissertation on the discovery of hitherto unknown species. It is above all an easily read and often surprisingly funny recounting of Flannery's early adventures. However, it also provides the reader with insights into how Flannery developed the logic behind the theories he espoused in The Future Eaters and particularly The Weather Makers.' - Gippsland Times

Author Information

Tim Flannery has written over a dozen books, including Here on Earth; the award-winning bestsellers The Future Eaters, The Eternal Frontier and The Weather Makers; and his accounts of adventures in Papua New Guinea and Australia, Throwim Way Leg and Country. Tim was the 2007 Australian of the Year.

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