Search for the Golden Moon Bear: Science and Adventure in Southeast Asia

by Sy Montgomery

Book Overview

Join Sy Montgomery as she travels far and wide in search of the golden moon bear. Along with her research companions, she delves deep into the jungles of the Elephant Mountains, visits the bustling... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743205847
• ISBN13: 9780743205849
• Release Date: September 2002
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.3" x 9.7"

Customer Reviews

Scientific adventuring through Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand.

Whether she is "Walking With the Great Apes: Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, Birute Galdikas," canoeing the Sundarbans for tigers (Spell of the Tiger: The Man-Eaters of Sundarbans), or, in this case, exploring Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos seeking the golden moon bear, Sy Montgomery single-mindedly seeks out rare animals, refusing to limit her searches to "safe" areas. Facing land-mines in Cambodia, warring tribes on the Thai border with Myanmar (Burma), poachers in Laos, and a poverty-stricken Laotian society in which people eat virtually all insect and animal life, Montgomery attempts to track down a golden bear with Mickey-Mouse-type ears and a black mane, thought to be a variety of moon bear, and unlike any other bear known to science, possibly "the scientific finding of a lifetime." Frustrated by a search in which all the animals she seeks are found in cages in the city or living, confined, in remote refuges and zoos, Montgomery tries to identify and find the bears' native habitats, describing the bears' importance in local culture and the myths and legends which have grown up around them. Through interviews with native wildlife experts, local tribes, and even Hmong refugees in Skokie, Illinois, she tries to capture their fading memories of bear types to see if there is, in fact, an unknown bear species. A writer, rather than a hard scientist, Montgomery is often lyrical in her descriptions, romantic (some would say excessively so) in her observations and imagery: "Emerging from the deathly still of hibernation, out of gravelike dens, bears rise, Christlike from the dead." She tends to anthropomorphize her subjects--a bear "reminded me of a street waif," a civet "stared at us defiantly," and a pleated gibbon was "stunned and hopeless." Less clearly focused and concentrated than her other books, Search for the Golden Moon Bear becomes less a search than a travelogue by the midpoint of Montgomery's book, as she and the scientists and aides who accompany her continue their explorations into remote and dangerous areas of southeast Asia. Montgomery fans will undoubtedly find this latest adventure fascinating, despite its disappointing conclusions and ominous implications for the future. Mary Whipple Quest for the Tree Kangaroo: An Expedition to the Cloud Forest of New Guinea (Scientists in the Field Series) The Wild Out Your Window

A great book on bears and zoology in Southeast Asia

I would say half of this book is on bears, half on journeys throughout Southeast Asia. This suited me find since I love both topics. Montgomery deals with both well, and explains both the wildlife trade and scientific concepts in clear language. I also like how she does not reveal the conclusion of the search until the end, allowing for a suspensful read. I have to admit, I have read many books about environmental issues in Southeast Asia, but was surprised by a lot in this book (including the extent of keeping bears in hotels in Phnom Penh). A great story of discovery in Southeast Asia.

A lively travelogue and natural history adventure

It's unusual to see a specialize blend of science and adventure which has the potential to reach all the way into adult audiences, but Sy Montgomery's Search For The Golden Moon Bear is such a title, detailing a hunt for a rare golden bear. Montgomery doesn't just use third party references; she travels herself in search of the bear, entering jungles of Asia and conducting her own quest. A lively travelogue and natural history adventure results for readers in grades 5-7 and beyond, backed by Montgomery's prior background as a reporter and naturalist for kids and adults alike.

Well done

This is the children's version of naturalist writer Sy Montgomery's longer volume of the same name, and it is just as enjoyable. Filled with colorful photographs, it describes the author's search for what may be a previously unknown species of bear in the tropics of southeast Asia, and the subsequent DNA tests that shed further light on this mystery. Montgomery weaves travelogue, science, and culture together wonderfully. She does not shy away from issues such as poverty, landmines, and cruel treatment of animals in southeast Asia, but her tone is one of wonder and hope. Above all this book may help inspire young readers to care about wild animals and to inquire what they themselves can do to help the environment. Appendices offer extra facts about many kinds of bears as well as organizations, books, and web sites for further investigation. A magic book about a magical, and previously obscure, creature.

A wild ride !

Search for the Golden Moon Bear is a wild ride! Montgomery takes us through unexplored jungles, war-torn Cambodia, bomb-strewn Laos, and corrupt Thailand to meet some of the most bizarre and beautiful creatures on earth in search of what could prove to be a new species. I won't give away the ending, but it's not what you (nor Montgomery and her scientist-companion Northwestern biologist Gary Galbreath) expect! This book has everything: travel, mystery, science, and gorgeous pictures (the first ever published in the Western hemisphere) of a bear previously unknown to science. But it is about so much more than bears, and so much more than science. Those who don't understand animals might criticize Montgomery for anthropomorphizing the creatures about whom she writes. But this is one of those rare books that combines science, story and spirit--as truth usually does. Search for the Golden Moon Bear is a book full of surprising truths. Although it takes place in a former war zone, this is a book full of hope--as well as humor. It is a testament to the glorious fact that great discoveries still await us in the new century. If you care about science, adventure, travel or animals, this is the book for you--read and rejoice!--A reader from California