Spying on Whales

‘If you don’t care about whales you should still read Spying on Whales. I didn’t give two hoots about them last week but after reading Pyenson’s book, I’m obsessed. Pyenson writes engagingly … this is a lively survey of the past, present and future of these magnificent animals … great stuff.’ The Times

‘Spying on Whales represents the best of science writing. The subject is inherently fascinating, the author is an authentic scientist by virtue of his personal research on the subject, and the text reads like the epic it truly is.’ Edward O. Wilson, Pulitzer Prize-winner and New York Times bestselling author of The Origin of Creativity and The Meaning of Human Existence

‘Reading Spying on Whales leaves a strong impression, based on the principles of ecology, evolution and physiology, that a world including whales seems awesomely improbable. And, of course, wonderful. Nick Pyenson guides us through this world, and in the process achieves that rare state of grace for a writer of science – producing prose that is both scientific and beautiful. This is a moving, informative, evocative book.’ Robert Sapolsky, author of Behave

Nick Pyenson is the curator of fossil marine mammals at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. His writing and discoveries frequently appear in the New York Times, Washington Post, and The Economist and on the BBC. A National Geographic Explorer, he has done scientific fieldwork on every continent and has led over a dozen scientific expeditions during the last decade.