Sy Montgomery

Sy Montgomery is a lifelong explorer: she has made four trips to Peru and Brazil to study the pink dolphins of the Amazon; and on other expeditions, she was chased by an angry silverback gorilla in Zaire; bitten by a vampire bat in Costa Rica; undressed by an orangutan in Borneo; and hunted by a tiger in India. She also worked in a pit crawling with eighteen thousand snakes in Manitoba; handled a wild tarantula in French Guiana; and swam with piranhas, electric eels, and dolphins in the Amazon.

She has collaborated for years with photographer Nic Bishop, and together they launched Houghton Mifflin's award-winning "Scientists in the Field" series with The Snake Scientist, published in 1999. This series takes young reader into the fascinating world of scientists whose 'laboratories' are in the wild, often in some of the most remote corners of the world.

Sy has written more than 15 books for both adults and children. The Good, Good Pig, a moving memoir of life with her remarkable pig, Christopher Hogwood, is an international bestseller. Her book for children, Quest for the Tree Kangaroo: An Expedition to the Cloud Forest of New Guinea was the recipient of the 2007 Orbis Pictus Award and was selected as an Honor book for the ALA Sibert Award. In April 2010, she was awarded the Children's Book Guild of Washington, D.C.'s Nonfiction Award for her distinguished body of work.

She is a 1979 graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in journalism, French, and psychology. She lives in Hancock New Hampshire with her husband, and of course, lots of animal friends.

Books by This Author

A Good Good Pig

By: Sy Montgomery
The addition of a runt pig to their New Hampshire farm — as a pet, not for the plate — allowed the author to observe close-up how affection (even inter-species) builds community and friendship. Personal recollections of family, how Christopher Hogwood (the pig named after the British conductor) helped develop camaraderie is combined with animal fact in this engrossing memoir.

Birdology

By: Sy Montgomery
Respect for all species and a long-term fascination with birds in particular come together in this richly revealed look at a range of birds. From ubiquitous pigeons and chickens to the living ancestor of dinosaurs, the author's insight and appreciation are both inspiring and contagious, all presented in an informal, accessible style.

Encantado: Pink Dolphin of the Amazon

By: Sy Montgomery
Age Level: Middle Grade
The author joins several field scientists to find the mysterious encantado, the pink dolphins of the Amazon said to seduce people to an enchanted city underwater. An informal narration draws readers into the rainforest travelogue to introduce amazing animals, environmental issues, and more. Full color photographs add rich detail. Montgomery's experiences are also detailed for adults in Journey of the Pink Dolphins: An Amazon Quest.

Encantado: Pink Dolphin of the Amazon

By: Sy Montgomery
Age Level: 6-9

"Naturalist Sy Montgomery traveled to South America to satisfy her curiosity about the mysterious pink dolphins called encantado, or 'enchanted.' She met with locals and experts to gather information, and she made several valiant efforts to locate the encantado herself. In the end, however, the creatures remained elusive.

Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World's Strangest Parrot

By: Sy Montgomery
Age Level: Middle Grade
After five years, the call came allowing the author/photographer team to travel to an island off the coast of New Zealand to study highly endangered, rare, flightless parrots. There they meet volunteers who stay to help the animals and describe an accidental encounter with a kakapo in the wild in a breathtaking telling and arresting photographs.