This is the first Chevalier book I've read - well, actually, I listened to it on CD - and I have mixed feelings. I enjoyed the story and Chevalier's writing style. It was easy to picture the setting and to imagine fossil-hunting with Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpot. And I was very, very happy to learn that Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpot actually lived, and that Mary Anning blazed the trails that Chevalier says she did.

I'm torn, though. I'm a purist where history is concerned, so this book made me squirm. Again, Mary Anning was a real person, as were all of the primary characters of Chevalier's novel. I'm uncomfortable with the dramatization of their lives. Lieutenant Birch, who also existed, did, in fact, auction his fossil collection to raise money for the Anning family. But there is no evidence that the two had an affair. In the author's note, Chevalier acknowledges this and says that this is where the fiction writer has to step in. Really? Is it necessary to fictionalize such a significant event in the life of an individual? Or, rather, could Chevalier instead have created fictional characters, modeled after people who lived? It would be, in my opinion, more responsible than dramatizing the already-fascinating life of a living, breathing person.

Okay, so you could certainly call this just a hang-up of mine, and you'd be right. That said, I'll congratulate Chevalier on having written a lovely book, and for having introduced Mary Anning to those of us who did not know her. But if this is the way in which Chevalier comes up with her novels, I don't think I can read any more of them.

This sat on my to read self for years based on my wife's positive review but for some reason I had problems cracking the cover. Once i did I was very grateful to have done so. Very nicely presented biographical fiction of remarkable women who deserve more acclaim than they received in life. Realistic and somewhat downbeat without being mawkish or maudlin, the author made several very good calls (such as not slotting in a Jane Austin sequence when such a historical meeting may have occurred) that made the story real while the prose from time to time bordered on lyrical. Chevalier's deft hand at capturing the voices of these two women, so there was never doubt as to who's thoughts we were following, deserves mention. Very enjoyable.

I read this some time ago .. just decided to add a review …… and because, having gathered this little bit of historical knowledge, I then managed to visit Mary’s house/ now museum .. truly wonderful.

Hidden in place n sight is the phrase that reminds me of this excellent read .. fossils, friendship, family and the physical environment all come through the pages of this book .. great writing and well worth digging into a fascinating story.

My first introduction to Chevalier's writing and I'll definitely be trying more of her work. This is the fictionalized account of the friendship between Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpott, both amateur natural philosophers in the Napoleonic era. The story jumps between their points of view and voices, as they both examine the natural world around them, discovering fossils of sea creatures from different eras. Mary looks at the fossils as a means of financial gain and, ultimately, renown. Elizabeth wants to learn more about the world around her and is raising all the questions about God's creation, quoting Hutton and other learned geologist of the time as they raise other questions.

This novel is based on the real life story of Mary Anning, finder and seller, and Elizabeth Philpot, finder and collector of the fossilized remains of extinct fishes and as well as early dinosaur skeletons. The pages embellish on their relationship and discoveries during the years 1805 through about 1830 in the Lyme Regis area in southwest England. At that time women were easily dismissed as having any importance in the study of paleontology, and it is a wonder that they have received any credit for their enormous contributions. I deeply appreciate Chevalier’s work which brings their story to light. It is always good to read tales of women who were stronger than they thought themselves, standing up to men concerning issues they care about.

Mary Anning is a young girl combing the cliffs and beaches of Lyme Regis when we first meet her. While she enjoys finding “curies” (curiosities) on the shoreline, she is a dependable source of income for her impoverished family by supplying them with these fossils which she then cleans to be sold to as collectable souvenirs. When the family loses her father, it becomes even more imperative for her to continue her work.

When Elizabeth Philpot and her sisters move to Lyme Regis finding fossils during her walks on the beach helps her to adjust to the relocation from London. She meets and quickly befriends Mary. She acts as a mentor to Mary educating and advising her, always with Mary’s best interests at heart. Up against a community of men she finds her voice and is instrumental in Mary being given credit for her work.