Virginia Morell is the author of four books, and a contributing correspondent for Science and National Geographic. Her latest book, Animal Wise: How We Know Animals Think and Feel, is a New York Times bestseller, and a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Animal Wise grew out of her article “Animal Minds” (the March 2008 National Geographic cover story), which was selected for the Best American Science and Nature Writing 2009. She’s written more than 30 stories for National Geographic since 1998, and also writes for the online news site. Her love of the natural world and her reporting keep her in close contact with leading scientists in ethology, biology, and conservation. She has a B.A. cum laude in English Literature from Pomona College, Claremont, CA; an M.A. in English Literature from McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; and an M.Sc in Environmental Science from California State University, Dominguez Hills. She lives in Ashland, Oregon with her husband, writer Michael McRae, and their collie, Buckaroo, and his cat-pal, Scout. “I like to keep in mind the words of John Muir when I’m writing about animals: ‘Any glimpse into the life of an animal quickens our own and makes it so much larger and better in every way.’ My travel and writing have afforded me many such glimpses, and I love sharing these with my readers.”