An Obsession With Butterflies

The story of man's fascination with butterflies, as symbols, as objects of beauty, and of obsession. In the tradition of Susan Orlean's The Orchid Thief.

'A delightful love letter to Lepidoptera.'

Sharman Apt Russell has admirably tackled the difficult question of why butterflies should fascinate us so much... Russell succeeds with verve... An Obsession with Butterflies is a delight, an object lesson in the public understanding of science.

Sharman Apt Russell is the author of Anatomy of a Rose. She teaches writing at Western New Mexico University and at Antioch University in Los Angeles, California.

From Hindu mythology to Aztec sacrifices, butterflies have served as a metaphor for resurrection and transformation. Even during World War II, children in a Polish death camp scratched hundreds of butterflies onto the wall of their barracks. But as Sharman Apt Russell points out in this rich and lyrical meditation, butterflies have above all been objects of obsession. 
 
From the beastly horned caterpillar whose blood helps it count time, to the peacock butterfly with wings that hiss like a snake, Russell traces butterflies through their life cycles, exploring the creatures' own obsessions with eating, mating, and migrating. She reveals the logic behind our endless fascination with butterflies as well as the driving passion of such legendary collectors as the tragic Eleanor Glanville, whose children declared her mad because of her compulsive butterfly collecting, and the brilliant Henry Walter Bates, whose collections from the Amazon in 1858 helped develop his theory of mimicry in nature. 
 
Russell also takes us inside some of the world's most prestigious natural history museums, where scientists painstakingly catalogue and categorize new species of Lepidoptera, hoping to shed light on insect genetics and evolutionAn Obsession with Butterflies is a luminous journey through an exotic world of strange beauty; a book to be treasured by anyone who's ever watched a butterfly mid-flight.

Sharman Apt Russell

A truly engaging book on the extraordinary world of flowers into which the writer takes us with wry wit and fearsome knowledge... Fascinating stuff, and will ensure you never look at your garden in the same way again.

'The amazing story of how plants evolved, hoe they survive and how they heal... a wonderful tale written simply but elegantly and with a true scientist's clarity. The gardeners of this world will find it wonderful armchair reading'

'This book is a treasure-trove of information that aims to prevent flowers being sidelined as purely decorative features in our gardens, and reminds us that they are vital and hardworking objects of wonder. We uncover their secret lives: the dirty tricks they play, their sex-lives, and their ability to heal. Despite the use of some excessively flowery prose, this is a fascinating book that will defy you to walk unthinkingly past a summer meadow or a florist's window again.'

…the effect of this book is to make us look anew at our gardens or rush out and buy a bunch of flowers

It is a wonderful tale written simply but elegantly and with a true scientist’s clarity. The gardeners of this world will find it wonderful armchair reading

The Secret Life of Flowers

An acclaimed nature writer reveals the secret life of flowers. In Anatomy of a Rose, Sharman Apt Russell eloquently unveils the "inner life" of flowers. From their diverse fragrances to their nasty deceptions, Russell proves that, where nature is concerned, 'wonder is not only our starting point, it can also be our destination.' 
 
Throughout this botanical journey, she reveals that the science behind these intelligent plants - how they evolved, how they survive, how they heal - is even more awe-inspiring than their fleeting beauty. Russell helps us imagine what a field of snapdragons looks like to a honeybee, and she introduces us to flowers that regulate their own temperature, attract pollinating bats, even smell like a rotting corpse. She also delves into cutting-edge research on everything from flower senses to their healing power. 
 
Long used to ease everything from depression to childbirth, flowers are now our main line of defence against childhood leukaemia and the deadly Ebola virus. In this wonderful book, which combines graceful writing with a scientist's clarity, Russell brings together the work of botanists around the globe, and illuminates a world at once familiar and exotic.

Anatomy Of A Rose

About us

About Us (Header 4)

Best-Jane-Austen-quotes_Online-Desktop_Penguin

James-Baldwin

Marian-Keyes

haruki-murakami-320×320-1

Richard-Osman

Malorie Blackman

Lisa-Jewell

Charlie-Mackesy

Authors (Header 3)

Children&#039;s

Company

Discover

Fiction

Non-fiction

Penguin Classics

Penguin Shop (Header 5)

Useful links

Work with us

sectionTitle

isEnabled

anchor

anchorLabel

prhuk/featured-book

prhuk/praise-section

maxBooks

showViewMore

prhuk/books-section

hideAuthorAlert

formName

iterableDivision

iterableBrand

buttonText

description

heading

legalText

successHeading

successText

image

alignment

variation

prhuk/email-section

prhuk/series-section

prhuk/biography-section

prhuk/articles-section

prhuk-authors

Join our newsletter for 10% off at the Penguin Shop

The Odyssey

Doctor Who: The Kaleidoscope: Circuit Breaker

Little Black Classics Box Set

Knit Repair

Summer

Sharman Apt Russell

Praise for Anatomy Of A Rose

A truly engaging book on the extraordinary world of flowers into which the writer takes us with wry wit and fearsome knowledge... Fascinating stuff, and will ensure you never look at your garden in the same way agai ...

'The amazing story of how plants evolved, hoe they survive and how they heal... a wonderful tale written simply but elegantly and with a true scientist's clarity. The gardeners of this world will find it wonderful a ...

'This book is a treasure-trove of information that aims to prevent flowers being sidelined as purely decorative features in our gardens, and reminds us that they are vital and hardworking objects of wonder. We uncov ...

A truly engaging book on the extraordinary world of flowers into which the writer takes us with wry wit and fearsome knowledge... Fascinating stuff, and will ensure you never look at your garden in the same way agai ...

'The amazing story of how plants evolved, hoe they survive and how they heal... a wonderful tale written simply but elegantly and with a true scientist's clarity. The gardeners of this world will find it wonderful a ...

'This book is a treasure-trove of information that aims to prevent flowers being sidelined as purely decorative features in our gardens, and reminds us that they are vital and hardworking objects of wonder. We uncov ...

A truly engaging book on the extraordinary world of flowers into which the writer takes us with wry wit and fearsome knowledge... Fascinating stuff, and will ensure you never look at your garden in the same way agai ...

'The amazing story of how plants evolved, hoe they survive and how they heal... a wonderful tale written simply but elegantly and with a true scientist's clarity. The gardeners of this world will find it wonderful a ...

'This book is a treasure-trove of information that aims to prevent flowers being sidelined as purely decorative features in our gardens, and reminds us that they are vital and hardworking objects of wonder. We uncov ...

Books by Sharman Apt Russell

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter