Ordinary is what most people are and I am not. I am not ordinary at all. I am a scientist.
One stormy night, a group of villagers are struck by lightning. The only survivor is a baby—Mary Anning. From that moment on, a spark is lit within her.
Growing up poor but proud on the windswept Dorset coast, Mary follows after her father, hunting for fossils uncovered by waves and landslips: ancient creatures, turned to stone. Ignoring other people's taunts, Mary faces danger to bring back valuable treasures to help feed her family. But tragedy and despair is never far away. Mary must depend upon her unique courage and knowledge to fulfill her dream of becoming a scientist in a time when girls have no opportunities for such ambitions. What will happen when she makes her greatest discovery of all? With a factual section about Mary Anning, her life, and the discoveries she made.
Mary Anning (1799-1847) was an English fossil collector, dealer, and paleontologist who became internationally known for important finds she made in Jurassic marine fossil beds in the cliffs along the English Channel in Lyme Regis, Dorset county. Her discoveries became key pieces of evidence for extinction.
She became well known in geological circles in Britain, Europe and US, but as a woman, was not allowed to join the Geological Society of London or even attend meetings as a guest, and did not always receive full credit for her scientific contributions. After her death, the president of the Geological Society wrote a eulogy that he read to a meeting of the society and published, the first such eulogy given for a woman. Charles Dickens wrote an article about her life in his literary magazine in Feb 1865.
In 1999, on the 200th anniversary of her birth, an international meeting of historians, scientists, and others interested in her life was held in Lyme Regis.
In 2007, American playwright Claudia SlC0
![Lightning Mary [Paperback]](/itemImage/2/6/1/4/2_4430217.jpg "Lightning Mary [Paperback]")