Dinosaur in a Haystack
{{Short description|Collection of essays by Stephen Jay Gould}}
{{Infobox book|
| name = Dinosaur in a Haystack
| image = File:Dinosaur in a Haystack (first edition).jpg
| caption = Cover
| author = Stephen Jay Gould
| country = United States
| language = English
| subject = Natural history
| publisher = Harmony Books
| pub_date = December 12, 1995
| media_type = Print (hardcover and paperback)
| pages = 480
| isbn = 0-517-70393-9
| dewey = 575 20
| congress = QH366.2 .G659 1995
| oclc = 33892123
| preceded_by = Eight Little Piggies
| followed_by = Leonardo's Mountain of Clams and the Diet of Worms
}}
Dinosaur in a Haystack is a 1995 book by the paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould. It collects essays culled from Gould's monthly column "The View of Life" published in Natural History magazine, which Gould contributed for 27 years. The book deals with themes familiar to Gould's writing: evolution, science biography, probabilities, and strange oddities found in nature.
His essay "Poe's Greatest Hit" analyzes the controversial conchology textbook The Conchologist's First Book (1839), edited by Edgar Allan Poe. Poe's volume on natural history sold out within two months, and was his only book republished during his lifetime. Essay "Dinomania" is a review of Michael Crichton's novel Jurassic Park and Steven Spielberg's blockbuster film of the same name.
Reception
The book received favorable reviews in Publishers Weekly{{cite magazine | url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-517-70393-9 | title=Dinosaur in a Haystack review |author=Publishers Weekly |author-link=Publishers Weekly | magazine=Publishers Weekly | accessdate=May 17, 2015}} and The New York Times.Lopate, Phillip (1996). [https://www.nytimes.com/1996/01/21/books/snails-frankenstein-and-king-lear-s-daughter.html "Snails, Frankenstein and King Lear's Daughter."] The New York Times (Jan. 21): 007009.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.nybooks.com/articles/1996/10/17/up-against-the-wall/ Up Against the Wall] - by Steve Jones
- [http://www.sjgouldessays.com/content/nh_essay_summaries_content/07%20Dinosaur%20In%20a%20Haystack.pdf Essay Summaries] - by Lawrence N. Goeller
- [http://dannyreviews.com/h/Dinosaur_in_a_Haystack.html Dinosaur in a Haystack Review] - by Danny Yee
- [http://www.assemblage.group.shef.ac.uk/2/2denni3.html Book review] by Kathryn Denning
- [http://www.innovation.cc/book-reviews/two-cultures.htm Two Cultures] - by Howard A. Doughty, Innovation Journal
- [http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_dinosaurs-haystack.html Dinosaur in a Haystack]
- [http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_leviathan.html Hooking Leviathan by Its Past]
- [http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2483 Dinomania]
- [http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_cordelias-dilemma.html Cordelia's Dilemma]
- [http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_cambrian-uniqueness.html Of Tongue Worms, Velvet Worms, and Water Bears]
- [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/books/chap1/dinosaur.htm Happy Thoughts on a Sunny Day in New York City]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20020721062122/http://www.dilettantepress.com/Essayisthtdocs/Stephen_Jay_Gould.html Dousing Diminutive Dennis's Debate]&
- [http://samples.audible.com/bk/dove/000188/bk_dove_000188_sample.mp3 Audio from the Prologue] - MP3
{{SJGould}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dinosaur in a Haystack}}
Category:1995 non-fiction books
Category:American essay collections
Category:English-language non-fiction books
Category:Works originally published in Natural History (magazine)