John James Audubon (1785–1851) is one of America’s premiere wildlife artists. His book The Birds of America is considered one of the greatest picture books ever produced, and his monumental The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America has been hailed as an American classic. Daniel Patterson is a professor of English at Central Michigan University. He is the author and editor of several books, including John James Audubon’s Journal of 1826: The Voyage to “The Birds of America” (Nebraska, 2011) and Early American Nature Writers: A Biographical Encyclopedia.
Patterson's volume is a model of its kind: meticulous, patient scholarship with some carefully balanced but revealing conclusions of great general interest. -Jeremy Mynott, Times Literary Supplement -- Jeremy Mynott Times Literary Supplement By far the liveliest and most extensive account of Audubon's late-life trip on the Upper Missouri River. -John Knott, professor emeritus of English at the University of Michigan and author of Imagining Wild America -- John Knott With his discovery of a John James Audubon journal long believed to have been intentionally destroyed, Patterson provides new insight into the life of America's iconic artist and naturalist. An exceptional book. -William Benemann, author of Men in Eden: William Drummond Stewart and Same-Sex Desire in the Rocky Mountain Fur Trade -- William Benemann