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| The Snowflake Man A Biography of Wilson A. Bentley by Duncan C. Blanchard |
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The Snowflake Man is a biography of Wilson Alwyn Bentley, the farmer from Jericho, Vermont, who took more than five thousand photomicrographs of ice, dew, frost, and — especially — snow crystals. Although his photographs were taken between 1885 and 1931, they have never been equaled and are in great demand today.
Bentley’s story is one of courage and persistence against tremendous odds. He taught himself how to photograph snow crystals through a microscope while still in his teens and then pursued his obsession for years before having the beauty and scientific value of his work recognized by others. The Snowflake Man lays open the life of a simple, self-educated, sensitive man who pursued natural beauty with microscope and camera for nearly fifty years.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Duncan C. Blanchard holds degrees in engineering (B.S., Tufts, 1947), physics (M.S., Penn State, 1951), and meteorology (Ph.D., MIT, 1961), and has conducted research in the atmospheric sciences at General Electric, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, and the Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, SUNY-Albany. He has published more than 150 articles and books. His book From Raindrops to Volcanoes, written for a popular audience, has been printed in seven languages.
Blanchard has long held an interest in Bentley's life. A natural affinity developed due to Bentley's work with snow crystals and Blanchard's interest in the development and growth of snowflakes, snow crystals, raindrops, and the seeding of clouds.
REVIEWS
"This book is obviously a labor of love, both well written and attractively designed." (Northern New Hampshire Magazine, November, 1998)
"Two special qualities have made Duncan Blanchard a consistently outstanding writer among meteorologists. First, he apparently has never forgotten the flush of excitement that we all get when some mysterious beauty of nature is revealed to us for the first time. Second, with his gift for graceful prose, this premiere scientist easily makes his delight in nature ours as well." (Weatherwise, July/August 1999)
"The saying, 'No two snowflakes are alike!' was originally
coined by Wilson A. Bentley, a farmer, scientist and photographer from Jericho, Vermont.
Just about everyone has seen one or more of the stunning photographs of snowflakes
taken years ago by this amazing man....The Snowflake Man is a biography of
Wilson Bentley who spent a lifetime studying the beauty and science of snow
crystals. Anyone who loves nature and the snows of winter, as well as the fine sense
of what life was like in those times, would like this read." (Windswept,
the Quarterly Bulletin of the Mount Washington Observatory, Winter 1998)