Diane Ackerman (born October 7, 1948) is an American poet, essayist, and naturalist known for her wide-ranging curiosity and poetic explorations of the natural world.[1]
A collection of her manuscripts, writings and papers (the Diane Ackerman Papers, 1971–1997—Collection No. 6299) is housed at the Cornell University Library.[10]
Booksedit
Her works of nonfiction include, most recently, The Human Age: The World Shaped by Us, which celebrates nature, human ingenuity, and explores how we've become the dominant force of change on the planet;[11][12] her memoir One Hundred Names for Love, about stroke, aphasia, and healing;[13][14]Dawn Light, a poetic meditation on dawn and awakening;[15][16]The Zookeeper's Wife, narrative nonfiction set in Warsaw during World War II, a tale of people, animals, and subversive acts of compassion;[17][18]An Alchemy of Mind about the marvels and mysteries of the brain, based on modern neuroscience;[19]Cultivating Delight, a natural history of her garden;[20]Deep Play, which considers play, creativity, and our need for transcendence;[21]A Slender Thread, about her work as a crisis line counselor;[22][23]The Rarest of the Rare and The Moon by Whale Light, in which she explores the plight and fascination of endangered animals;[24][25]A Natural History of Love, a literary tour of love's many facets;[26]On Extended Wings, her memoir of flying;[27] and A Natural History of the Senses, an exploration of the five senses.[28][29]
Her poetry has been published in leading literary journals, and in collections, including Jaguar of Sweet Laughter: New and Selected Poems.[30] Her first book of poetry, The Planets, A Cosmic Pastoral was gifted by Carl Sagan to Timothy Leary while Leary was imprisoned.[31] Her verse play, Reverse Thunder, celebrates the passionate and tragic life of the 17th century nun, and fellow poet and naturalist, Juana Inés de la Cruz.[32] Ackerman also writes nature books for children.[33]
In 1995, Ackerman hosted a five-part Nova miniseries, Mystery of the Senses, based on her book, A Natural History of the Senses.[36]On Extended Wings was adapted for the stage by Norma Jean Giffin, and was performed at the William Redfield Theater in New York City (1987).[37] A musical adaptation (by Paul Goldstaub) of her dramatic poem, Reverse Thunder, was performed at Old Dominion University (1992).[38]
The Great Affair
The great affair, the love affair with life,
is to live as variously as possible,
to groom one's curiosity like a high-spirited thoroughbred,
climb aboard, and gallop over the thick, sun-struck hills every day..
It began in mystery, and it will end in mystery,
but what a savage and beautiful country lies in between.
— Diane Ackerman, "found poetry" from A Natural History of the Senses[50]
Poetryedit
The Planets: A Cosmic Pastoral (1976)
Wife of Light (1978)
Lady Faustus (1983)
Reverse Thunder (1988)
Jaguar of Sweet Laughter: New and Selected Poems (1991) ISBN 9780307763389
Why Leaves Turn Color in the Fall essay by Diane Ackerman, middletownhs.org — A version of this essay was published as a chapter in the 1990 book A Natural History of the Senses in the section on vision.
Dawn Light: Dancing with Cranes and Other Ways to Start the Day (2009)
One Hundred Names for Love: A Stroke, a Marriage, and the Language of Healing (2011) ISBN 9780393341744
The Human Age: The World Shaped By Us (2014)[53]ISBN 9781443423014
Children's booksedit
Monk Seal Hideaway (1995)
Bats: Shadows in the Night (1997)
Animal Sense (poetry), illustrated by Peter Sis. (2003) ISBN 9780375923845
Referencesedit
^Ackerman, Diane. "The Poetry Foundation". Retrieved 14 February 2015.
^Richards, Linda L. (August 1999). "Interview: Diane Ackerman". January Magazine. Retrieved 2013-08-31. I didn't want to be a scientist. I just felt that the universe wasn't knowable from only one perspective. I wanted to be able to go exploring: follow my curiosity in both worlds. So I had a poet on my doctoral committee. And I had a scientist -- Carl Sagan. And I had someone in comparative literature. Essentially, they all ran interference for me so that I could -- ultimately -- write a dissertation that was about the metaphysical mind: science and art and be teaching and be in school while I was writing books.
^Ackerman, Diane. "The Poetry Foundation". Retrieved 14 February 2015.
^Granucci, Alison. "Diane Ackerman". Blue Flower Arts Literary Speakers Agency. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
^Ackerman, Diane (1991). The Moon By Whale Light. New York: Random House. ISBN 9780394585741.
^Ackerman, Diane (1995). The Rarest of the Rare. New York: Random House. ISBN 9780679403463.
^"Journalist in Space". World Space Flight. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
^Rosenstiel, Thomas. "Journalist-in-Space Plan Postponed Indefinitely". LA Times. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
^Whyte, Authrine; et al. "Reptilian Chemistry: Characterization of dianeackerone, a secretory product from a crocodile". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
^Ackerman, Diane. "Collected Papers". Cornell University Library.
^Nixon, Rob (5 September 2014). "Future Footprints". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Hirtle, Stephen C. "'The Human Age': Diane Ackerman Explains How We Are Creating Our Future". The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Verghese, Abraham (15 April 2011). "How Language Heals". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^McAlpin, Heller. "In "One Hundred Names for Love," Diane Ackerman explains the effects of a massive stroke on her writer-husband"". The Washington Post Book Review. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Smith, Wendy. "'Dawn Light' by Diane Ackerman". The Washington Post Book Review. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^"Dawn Light: Dancing With Cranes and Other Ways to Start the Day". Kirkus. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Max, D.T. (9 September 2007). "Antonina's List". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Seaman, Donna (2 September 2007). "Strange Sanctuary". The Los Angeles Times Book Review. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Warner, Marina (29 August 2004). "Circuits". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Seymour, Miranda (21 October 2001). "'Cultivating Delight': A Poet's Green Plot". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Gallagher, Winifred. "May the Force Be With You". The New York Times Book Review. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^"A Slender Thread". Kirkus. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Popova, Maria (14 November 2014). "Diane Ackerman on What Working at a Suicide Prevention Hotline Taught Her About the Human Spirit". Brainpickings. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^"The Rarest of the Rare". Kirkus. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^"The Moon by Whale Light and other Adventures among Bats, Penguins, Crocodilians, and Whales". Kirkus. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Popova, Maria (29 April 2013). "A Natural History of Love". Brainpickings. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^"On Extended Wings: An Adventure in Flight". Kirkus. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Lehmann-Haupt, Christopher (2 August 1990). "Books of the Times: A Sensualist's Ramble in the Realm of the Senses". The New York Times. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Popova, Maria (10 April 2014). "The Science of Smell: How the Most Direct of Our Senses Works". Brainpickings. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
^Kirby, David (3 November 1991). "Home and Hut". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
^Popova, Maria (19 February 2013). "Cosmic Pastoral: Diane Ackerman's Poems for the Planets, Which Carl Sagan Sent Timothy Leary in Prison". Brainpickings. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
^Ackerman, Diane. "Official Website". Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
^Stark, Monica. "Child of the Senses". January Magazine. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
^"Diane Ackerman". Official website. Archived from the original on 2022-05-15. Retrieved 2015-02-15.
^Grimes, William (2015-10-22). "Paul West, Writer Who Shoveled Absurdity Into His Books, Dies at 85". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
^"Diane Ackerman". Poetry Foundation. 2021-05-23. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
^Ackerman, Diane (1990). A Natural History of the Senses. Vintage. p. 309. ISBN 0-679-73566-6.
^Quammen, David (December 29, 1991). "Up to Her Elbow in Alligators (review of The Moond by Whalelight)". The New York Times on the Web.
^Seymour, Miranda (October 21, 2001). "Review of Cultivating Delight: A Natural History of My Garden by Diane Ackerman". The New York Times. p. 17, section 7.
^Nixon, Rob (September 5, 2014). "Future Footprints (review of The Human Age by Diane Ackerman)". The New York Times.
Further readingedit
Becher, Anne, and Joseph Richey, American Environmental Leaders: From Colonial Times to the Present (2 vol, 2nd ed. 2008) vol 1 online p. 4.
External linksedit
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