The Natural World

Sy Montgomery is a naturalist, documentary scriptwriter, and author of twenty acclaimed books of nonfiction, including the memoir The Good Good Pig, a New York Times bestseller. She is the recipient of numerous honors, including lifetime achievement awards from the Humane Society and the New England Booksellers Association. Her latest book, The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness (Atria Books), has been long-listed for a National Book Award in nonfiction. In this astonishing book Montgomery explores the emotional and physical world of the octopus—a surprisingly complex, intelligent, and spirited creature—and the remarkable connections it makes with humans. Montgomery's popular 2011 Orion magazine piece, "Deep Intellect," about her friendship with a sensitive, sweet-natured octopus named Athena and the grief she felt at her death, went viral, indicating the widespread fascination with these mysterious, almost alien-like creatures. Since then, Montgomery has practiced true immersion journalism, from New England aquarium tanks to the reefs of French Polynesia and the Gulf of Mexico, pursuing these wild, solitary shape-shifters. By turns funny, entertaining, touching, and profound, The Soul of an Octopus reveals what octopuses can teach us about consciousness and the meeting of two very different minds. NOMINATED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD 2015

Cynthia Barnett has worked for newspapers and magazines for twenty-five years. Her numerous journalism awards include a national Sigma Delta Chi prize for investigative magazine reporting and eight Green Eyeshades, which recognize outstanding journalism in eleven southeastern states. Barnett's first book, Mirage: Florida and the Vanishing Water of the Eastern U.S., won the gold medal for best nonfiction in the Florida Book Awards and was named by the Tampa Bay Times as one of the top-ten books that every Floridian should read. Her Blue Revolution: Unmaking America's Water Crisis was named by the Boston Globe as one of the top-ten science books of 2011. In her latest, Rain: A Natural and Cultural History (Crown), Barnett examines one of the great, yet overlooked, forces in the world. The Miami Herald writes, “In a state where the governor has prohibited the discussion of climate change, Rain is as welcome as a summer afternoon shower on a hot day." NOMINATED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD 2015

Susan Casey is the author of New York Times bestseller The Devil’s Teeth: A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America’s Great White Sharks and The Wave. Casey is editor in chief of O, The Oprah Magazine. She is a National Magazine Award-winning journalist whose work has been featured in the Best American Science and Nature Writing, Best American Sports Writing, and Best American Magazine Writing anthologies; and has appeared in Esquire, Sports Illustrated, Fortune, Outside, and National Geographic. Her latest, Voices in the Ocean: A Journey into the Wild and Haunting World of Dolphins (Doubleday) is a breathtaking look into the mysterious world of dolphins and their conflicted history with (and connection to) man.