The Snake Charmer: A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.25 (949 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 1401302130 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 272 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-02-13 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
. He has lived in Indonesia since 1999 , where he continues to write for top American newspapers and magazines, including the New Yorker, Atlantic Monthly, Conde Nast Traveler, New York Times, Los An
But the snake's potent neurotoxin did its work, and Slowinski died deep in the jungle. Different snakes—from the first black rat snake he encountered at age five to the cobras on which his professional success was built—anchor different phases in Slowinski's life, as James paints a portrait of a man filled with ambition, intelligence, passion and recklessness. (June)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. . 8 pages of color and 8 pages of b&w photos. The account of the expedition into an unexplored region of northern Burma is chilling—it set a new standa
Immediately, he winced with pain and yanked out his hand. Although it was still too dark to see well, Joe absentmindedly thrust his right hand into the sack to extract the specimen and have a look. Joe Slowinski, at forty already one of the most brilliant biologists of our time. Exhaustively researched in interviews with Slowinski's colleagues and family, and the author's own trek into the wilds of Burma, this is narrative nonfiction in the tradition of Into the Wild and The Perfect Storm.. In the moment he pulled his hand from the specimen bag and saw the krait, Joe knew that his life was in grave and imminent peril. Thus began one of the most remarkable wilderness rescue attempts of modern times, as Joe's teammates kept him alive for thirty hours by mouth-to-mouth respiration, waiting for a rescue that never came.A daredevil obsessed with venomous snakes since his youth, Slowinski was a modern-day adventurer who rose quickly to the top of his field, discovering many previously unidentified snake species in his brief yet exhilarating career. The bold undertaking
"An Entertaining Three-in-One True Story" according to A. Sutono, a.k.a., Birdey The Observer. Author Jamie James shot three birds with one bullet in "The Snake Charmer." While the story is about a world's renowned herpetologist, the late Joe Slowinski, James managed to cover along almost seamlessly two other fascinating topics closely intertwined with the life of Joe Slowinski. The first one is the basics of snake taxonomy with illustrated examples of exotic snakes. This is an impressive crash course on the classification in the snake world that brings back the memory of the goo. A Must for Snake People I love a good biography of an interesting, over-the-top eccentric. One could possibly argue that Joe Slowinski was equal parts madman and genius; we all know the old adage, "There is a fine line between genius and insanity"but honestly, I don't think Joe was insane. As portrayed by Jamie James, Joe Slowinski comes across as over-the-top, a bit immature and selfish, and most assuredly obsessive about the snakes he so adores. But we need folks like him whose very obsessive natures contrib. "GOOD BOOK - BUT NOT A PAGE TURNER" according to M. McClain. This book provides a peak inside the world of herpetology via the life and work of Dr. Joe Slowinski. It's a good read, but not a great read. I came away feeling sorry for Slowinski, evidently a fine herpetologist but a very dysfunctional man. Nevertheless, if you're interested in the subject matter, or Myanmar, then definitely pick up the book. If not, don't feel like you've got to add this book to your "Must Read" list.