Diane Ackerman, a poet, essayist, and naturalist, received her M. A. , M. F. A. , and Ph. D. from Cornell University. Her poetry has been published in leading literary journals, and in the books The Planets: A Cosmic Pastoral; Wife of Light; Lady Faustus; Reverse Thunder: A Dramatic Poem; and Jaguar of Sweet Laughter: New and Selected Poems.
Her works of nonfiction include A Slender Thread; The Rarest of the Rare; A Natural History of the Senses; A Natural History of Love; the critically acclaimed The Moon by Whale Light and Other Adventures Among Bats, Crocodilians, Penguins, and Whales; and On Extended Wings, her memoir of flying. Monk Seal Hideaway and Bats: Shadows in the Night are two of her books for children.
She has received many prizes, including the Lavan Award from the Academy of American Poets. She has taught at a variety of universities, including Columbia and Cornell. Her essays about nature and human nature have appeared in National Geographic, The New Yorker, The New York Times, and Parade.
