Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier

The author of Girl with a Pearl Earring has written a remarkable novel about nineteenth century fossil hunters in England. Told from the point of view of a middle class spinster named Elizabeth, the story focuses on a real person named Mary Anning (1799-1847), a poor girl who spent years scouring beaches for "curies" that were sold to tourists. Elizabeth, also a fossil fan, brings some education to Mary and helps her to connect with the greater world of science which was just then speculating that there may have been "creatures" that are now extinct. This idea was not immediately accepted by the public as it seemed to be in contradiction to the Bible. Good fact-based story, well written.