Overview

"2017 Silver Nautilus Book Award in Science and Cosmology Written by a critically-acclaimed natural-history author Shares author's fun journey to understanding clouds Written for the curious--but non-science--minded Author Maria Mudd Ruth fell in love with clouds the same way she stumbles into most passions: madly and unexpectedly. A Sideways Look at Clouds is the story of her quite accidental infatuation with and education about the clouds above. When she moved to the soggy Northwest a decade ago, Maria assumed that locals would know everything there was to know about clouds, in the same way they talk about salmon, tides, and the Seahawks. Yet in her first two years of living in Olympia, Washington, she never heard anyone talk about clouds--only the rain. Puzzled by this lack of cloud savvy, she decided to create a 10-question online survey and sent it to everyone she knew. Her sample size of 67 people included men and women, new friends in Olympia, family on the East Coast, outdoorsy and indoorsy types, professional scientists, and liberal arts majors like herself. The results showed that while people knew a little bit about clouds, most were like her--they had a hard time identifying clouds or remembering their names. As adults, they had lost their curiosity and sense of wonder about clouds and were, essentially, not in the habit of looking up. A Sideways Look at Clouds acknowledges the challenges of understanding clouds and so uses a very steep and bumpy learning curve--the author's--as its plot line. The book is structured around the ten words used in most definitions of a cloud: ""a visible mass of water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere above the earth."" A captivating story teller, Maria blends science, wonder, and humor to take the scenic route through the clouds and encourages readers to chart their own rambling, idiosyncratic course. Whether you are outside under the clouds, inside planning your next adventure, or curled up anywhere with a good book, A Sideways Look at Clouds will engage, inform, and inspire."

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9781680511185

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Reviews

A delightful exposition on clouds. [Ruth's] personal experiences and asides enrich the well-explained technical details. A great recommendation for popular science readers, this book will also appeal to those who enjoy memoirs and learning about the writing process.--Library Journal After reading this book, I feel I've been to the Grand Opera of Clouds. As much as the subject justifies the superlative, so does the librettist: Maria Ruth's writing is as witty and wise as it is timeless. From the cumulus fractus I watching this morning in bed to the cirrus uncinus that followed me home tonight, I am newly accompanied by clouds.--Robert Michael Pyle, author of Sky Time in Gray's River and Where Bigfood Walks Here's somebody who is down-to-earth enough to talk to the 99.9 percent of us who walk underneath clouds all the time, but don't have a clue about how they form, why they assume different shapes and different colors, and what makes them precipitate.--Barbara McMichael Kitsap Sun Maria Mudd Ruth's irresistible journey to understand, appreciate, and explain clouds homehow makes the daily sky more fascinating and beguiling. What a gift! I'd recommend this book to anyone who's curious about the natural world, anyone who appreciates precise writing, any with a sense of humor. A book to read again and again.--Jim Lynch Author of Before the Wind This book is a true delight: a beautifully written, lyrical account of the drama and mystery of clouds.--Richard Hamblyn Author of The Invention of Clouds This Northwest transplant assumed locals were experts in the many forms of fluffy white or aggressively gray clouds that are a near constant in the Pacific Northwest. However, she found Washingtonians knew precious little about identifying the clouds. Her book blends science, wonder, and humor to take a scenic route through the clouds. --425 Magazine A Sideways Look at Clouds, is an irresistible invitation into cloud land. Now you can walk with [Maria Mudd Ruth] --your neck flexing, shoulders back, and eyes searching upward. Her book guides you through the sky, an opportunity to rediscover floating beauty every day.--Marietta McCartney, New York Times Bestselling Author

A Sideways Look at Clouds, is an irresistible invitation into cloud land. Now you can walk with [Maria Mudd Ruth] --your neck flexing, shoulders back, and eyes searching upward. Her book guides you through the sky, an opportunity to rediscover floating beauty every day.--Marietta McCartney, New York Times Bestselling Author

Author Information

MARIA MUDD RUTH has written more than a dozen books on natural history topics, including volumes on butterflies, beetles, snakes, rain forests, deserts, and oceans. Her work has appeared in publications produced by the National Geographic Society, where she worked as a researcher and editor for seven years. She grew up in the Washington, D.C., area and moved to Southern California in pursuit of the marbled murrelet. In 2006, Maria moved with her family to Olympia, Washington. Learn more at her websites http: //mariaruthbooks.blogspot.com and http: //www.mariaruthbooks.com

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