Snakebit: Confessions of a Herpetologist

"Snakebit" traces author Leslie Anthony's journey from a childhood fascination with snakes and amphibians through academic flirtation to professional association with some of the world's greatest herpetologists. In this book, he leads the reader on a rollicking ride through desert, swamp, jungle -- and a few laboratories -- to reveal the strange world of these cryptic creatures and the often-stranger fraternity that pursues them. Detailing his travels to New Orleans, Mexico, Fiji, Vietnam, Armenia, and Canada, Anthony offers a headlong, fun-for-all read packed with personalities, history, geography, culture, and adventure. Along the way, readers are served a generous helping of saccharine-free science, from modern evolutionary theory to uni-sexuality and biodiversity, always seasoned with more than a dash of humor.