Meet the Author at PPL: Eric Jay Dolin
Books / Literature - Lecture/Discussion
Saturday, October 20, 2007
2:00 PM-3:30 PM
Providence Public Library, Central
Barnard Room (3rd floor)
150 Empire Street
Providence, RI 02903
Google Maps - MapQuest
Eric Jay Dolin author of Leviathan -- The History of American Whaling, will discuss his latest book (published June 2007) and give a slide presentation on the epic history of the "iron men in wooden boats" who built an industrial empire through the pursuit of whales.
Whaling Exhibit to Feature items from PPL's Nicholson Whaling Collection
Nicholoson Whaling Collection online
Discussion
PPL Special Collections Librarian Philip Weimerskirch will conduct a brief discussion of the Nicholson Whaling Collection at 1:00 pm on Saturday, October 20, prior to Author Eric Dolan's presentation.
About the author and his work
Eric Jay Dolin chronicles the rise and fall of a once mighty American industry. Leviathan is the most original and stirring history of American whaling in many decades.
Dolin grew up in New York and Connecticut and since an early age was fascinated by the natural world and, in particular, the ocean. When he left for college he wanted to become a marine biologist or more specifically a malacologist (seashell scientist). At Brown University, he shifted course turning toward the field of environmental policy, first earning a double-major in biology and environmental studies, then getting a masters degree in environmental management from Yale and a Ph.D. in environmental policy and planning from MIT, where his dissertation focused on the role of the courts in the cleanup of Boston Harbor. Dolin's professional career followed a similar path, including jobs as a program manager at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, an environmental consultant stateside and in London, an American Association for the Advancement of Science writing fellow at Business Week, a curatorial assistant in the Mollusk Department at Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology, and an intern at the National Wildlife Federation, the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management, and the U.S. Senate. He is currently employed as a fisheries policy analyst at the National Marine Fisheries Service. In addition to books, Dolin has written more than 60 articles for magazines, newspapers, and professional journals. For more on his works: EricJayDolin.com.
Praise for Leviathan
"Engrossing account . . . at once grand and quirky, entertaining and informative."
Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review)
"The best history of American whaling to come along in a generation."
Nathaniel Philbrick, author of In The Heart of the Sea & Mayflower
"I thought I learned everything I needed to know about whaling from Melville, but I was wrong. Eric Jay Dolin's Leviathan exposes the rise and fall of the industry inspired by the great beasts of the deep . . . The excitement of the stories in this magnificently researched saga build and build - until crude oil replaces whale oil, and the copper-sheathed planking from the hulls of old ships gets sold for novelty firewood. I read every word."
Dava Sobel, author of Longitude & Galileo's Daughter
"Dolin compellingly examines whaling's importance to America's early growth and wealth . . . A densely researched and comprehensive portrait, enhanced by fascinating archival paintings and photos."
Kirkus Reviews
"Leviathan is a tale as epic as its subject, chronicling the heroic, tragic, and largely untold role of the whaling industry in America's history."
Dick Russell, author of Eye of the Whale & Striper Wars
"Eric Jay Dolin has written a remarkable book, broad in its scope but sharp in focus. . . . Numerous attempts have been made in the past 100 years to cover the subject all at once, however, only Dolin has managed to synthesize the enormous array of historical sources into one cohesive narrative. He not only reports the facts but he also contextualizes them, looks to their veracity and sensationalizes nothing. This is good popular history . . . No book is perfect, except perhaps The Old Man and the Sea, but Dolin has provided a beautiful renovation for an old structure."
Michael P. Dyer, librarian and maritime historian, New Bedford Whaling Museum
Cost: Free
Suggested Audiences:
Elders, Adult, College
Website: http://www.provlib.org/happening/events/author2.html
E-mail:
jchoiniere@provlib.org
Phone: 401-455-8090
Last Modified: October 4, 2007 at 9:28 AM
Powered by the Social Web - Bringing people together through Events, Places, & Common Interests
Meet the Author at PPL: Eric Jay Dolin
Books / Literature - Lecture/Discussion
Saturday, October 20, 2007
2:00 PM-3:30 PM
Providence Public Library, Central
Barnard Room (3rd floor)
150 Empire Street
Providence, RI 02903
Google Maps - MapQuest
Eric Jay Dolin author of Leviathan -- The History of American Whaling, will discuss his latest book (published June 2007) and give a slide presentation on the epic history of the "iron men in wooden boats" who built an industrial empire through the pursuit of whales.
Whaling Exhibit to Feature items from PPL's Nicholson Whaling Collection
Nicholoson Whaling Collection online
Discussion
PPL Special Collections Librarian Philip Weimerskirch will conduct a brief discussion of the Nicholson Whaling Collection at 1:00 pm on Saturday, October 20, prior to Author Eric Dolan's presentation.
About the author and his work
Eric Jay Dolin chronicles the rise and fall of a once mighty American industry. Leviathan is the most original and stirring history of American whaling in many decades.
Dolin grew up in New York and Connecticut and since an early age was fascinated by the natural world and, in particular, the ocean. When he left for college he wanted to become a marine biologist or more specifically a malacologist (seashell scientist). At Brown University, he shifted course turning toward the field of environmental policy, first earning a double-major in biology and environmental studies, then getting a masters degree in environmental management from Yale and a Ph.D. in environmental policy and planning from MIT, where his dissertation focused on the role of the courts in the cleanup of Boston Harbor. Dolin's professional career followed a similar path, including jobs as a program manager at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, an environmental consultant stateside and in London, an American Association for the Advancement of Science writing fellow at Business Week, a curatorial assistant in the Mollusk Department at Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology, and an intern at the National Wildlife Federation, the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management, and the U.S. Senate. He is currently employed as a fisheries policy analyst at the National Marine Fisheries Service. In addition to books, Dolin has written more than 60 articles for magazines, newspapers, and professional journals. For more on his works: EricJayDolin.com.
Praise for Leviathan
"Engrossing account . . . at once grand and quirky, entertaining and informative."
Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review)
"The best history of American whaling to come along in a generation."
Nathaniel Philbrick, author of In The Heart of the Sea & Mayflower
"I thought I learned everything I needed to know about whaling from Melville, but I was wrong. Eric Jay Dolin's Leviathan exposes the rise and fall of the industry inspired by the great beasts of the deep . . . The excitement of the stories in this magnificently researched saga build and build - until crude oil replaces whale oil, and the copper-sheathed planking from the hulls of old ships gets sold for novelty firewood. I read every word."
Dava Sobel, author of Longitude & Galileo's Daughter
"Dolin compellingly examines whaling's importance to America's early growth and wealth . . . A densely researched and comprehensive portrait, enhanced by fascinating archival paintings and photos."
Kirkus Reviews
"Leviathan is a tale as epic as its subject, chronicling the heroic, tragic, and largely untold role of the whaling industry in America's history."
Dick Russell, author of Eye of the Whale & Striper Wars
"Eric Jay Dolin has written a remarkable book, broad in its scope but sharp in focus. . . . Numerous attempts have been made in the past 100 years to cover the subject all at once, however, only Dolin has managed to synthesize the enormous array of historical sources into one cohesive narrative. He not only reports the facts but he also contextualizes them, looks to their veracity and sensationalizes nothing. This is good popular history . . . No book is perfect, except perhaps The Old Man and the Sea, but Dolin has provided a beautiful renovation for an old structure."
Michael P. Dyer, librarian and maritime historian, New Bedford Whaling Museum
Cost: Free
Suggested Audiences: Elders, Adult, College
Website: http://www.provlib.org/happening/events/author2.html
E-mail: jchoiniere@provlib.org
Phone: 401-455-8090
Last Modified: October 4, 2007 at 9:28 AM
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