Thomas Say: New World Naturalist

Immortalized by scientists in the names of birds (Say's phoebe), reptiles, mammals, insects and shells, Thomas Say (1747-1834) himself named some 15,000 North American insects and identified many crop predators. He helped found the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences in 1812 and pioneered American entomology and conchology. The author, former editor of Frontiers magazine and a member of the Say family, portrays her subject as a person totally devoted to his work, one of the first true professionals in science. In 1825 Say moved with his patron, wealthy Scotsman William Maclure, to Robert Owen's utopian colony in New Harmony, Ind., where he married and completed his work on shells. But the move exacted a heavy price, as it took Say out of the scientific mainstream for the rest of his life. Readers who enjoyed Joseph Kastner's A Species of Eternity will find this biography to their liking. ( July )