Lloyd Spencer Davis received the PEN (NZ) Best First Book Award for Nonfiction for Penguin: A Season in the Life of the Adelie Penguin. He is the author of Looking For Darwin, which won the CLL Writer's Award, New Zealand's most significant nonfiction award. Lloyd has been a recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship, an Anzac Fellowship, and a Prince and Princess of Wales Science Award.
"The spirit and soul of the penguin is entwined with the factual
information in this first-person account so that it is rather like
reading a novel or an autobiography." * American Bookseller, "Pick
of the Lists" (Praise for Lloyd Spencer Davis) *
"Davis combines history and science seamlessly in this enthralling
look at pioneering scientist George Murray Levick and his
discoveries about the diversity of animal sexuality. Davis injects
his own research findings into the narrative, producing a
biography/popular science book that will appeal equally to polar
expedition buffs and zoology enthusiasts." * Kirkus Reviews *
"Fascinating. How does Levick's work alter our canonical stories of
polar exploration? And are penguins really so different from human
beings? Insightful and bawdy. Davis offers an absorbing history of
his own Antarctic fieldwork and a glimpse into the private lives of
Levick and several important polar explorers of the era. A timely
illumination of a mysterious and vital ecosystem." * The New York
Times Book Review *
"A tremendous resource." -- Vaughan Turekian, American Association
for the Advancement of Science
"Davis serves it all up with wit and a wry, irrepressible sense of
humor, while imparting everything there is to know about penguins."
* BookPage (starred) *
"In A Polar Affair, an interesting blend of polar history
and natural history, a penguin biologist weaves his own story with
that of George Murray Levick, Capt. Robert Falcon Scott's top
penguin man. In these pages, one sees human knowledge inching
forward. Gripping. The reader marvels at what the human spirit can
endure." * Wall Street Journal *
"Striking and audacious." * The Globe and Mail (Praise for Lloyd
Spencer Davis) *
"An engaging detective story, Davis' search for the truth also
enfolds the social history of the Victorian era, changing theories
in the fields of evolution and animal behavior, the human side of
scientific research, and tales of Antarctica." * Booklist *
"Victorian morals, the sex lives of penguins and Antarctic
exploration combine in this unusual natural history and
travelogue." * Shelf Awareness *
"A gonzo-journalistic retelling of the Antarctic expeditions of the
early twentieth century. The climax of what might otherwise have
been routine field work is a harrowing trek...intercut with
evolutionary insights Davis gleaned from his own observations. A
welcome look behind the scenes, representing Levick as a brilliant
explorer and a keen observer of nature." * Natural History Magazine
*
"A rip-roaring read on research at the edge." * Nature *
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