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Mary Batten

Goodreads Author

Born

Smithfield, VA, The United States

Website

http://www.marybatten.com

Genre

Nonfiction, Children's Books, Science

Influences

Eudora Welty, Flannery O'Connor, Stephen Jay Gould, Edward O. Wilson ...more

Member Since

December 2011

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/marybatten

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Mary Batten is an award-winning writer for television, film and publishing. Her many writing projects have taken her into tropical rainforests, astronomical observatories, scientific laboratories, and medical research centers.

She is the author of many books for children and adults. The most recent are A Matter of Breeding: Race & Racism in Old School Southern Stories (2024); Together: Nature's Amazing Partnerships (2024); Life in Hot Water: Wildlife at the Bottom of the Ocean (Peachtree 2021), NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students K-12; and Life in A Frozen World: Wildlife of Antarctica (Peachtree 2020). Other books include: Spit: What's Cool About Drool (Firefly 2019); Baby Orca (Penguin Random House 2016); Rattler (Penguin Rand Mary Batten is an award-winning writer for television, film and publishing. Her many writing projects have taken her into tropical rainforests, astronomical observatories, scientific laboratories, and medical research centers.

She is the author of many books for children and adults. The most recent are A Matter of Breeding: Race & Racism in Old School Southern Stories (2024); Together: Nature's Amazing Partnerships (2024); Life in Hot Water: Wildlife at the Bottom of the Ocean (Peachtree 2021), NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students K-12; and Life in A Frozen World: Wildlife of Antarctica (Peachtree 2020). Other books include: Spit: What's Cool About Drool (Firefly 2019); Baby Orca (Penguin Random House 2016); Rattler (Penguin Random House 2016); Please Don't Wake the Animals: A Book about Sleep (Peachtree 2008); Who Has A Belly Button (Peachtree 2004); Aliens from Earth ((Peachtree 2003) – 2006 Isaak Walton Conservation Book of the Year Award; Selected by New York City Public Schools in support of 4th grade science requirement for the study of ecosystems (Revised & updated edition Peachtree 2016); Hey, Daddy! Animal Fathers and Their Babies – Named Outstanding Science Read Aloud 2003 by the National Association for the Advancement of Science (Peachtree 2002); Wild Cats (Penguin Random House 2002); Anthropologist: Scientist of the People -- Named Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children by the National Science Teachers Association and the Children's Book Council (Houghton Mifflin 2001); Hungry Plants (Penguin Random House 2000); The Winking, Blinking Sea -- Named one of the Best Children's Books for 2001 (Millbrook Press, 2000); Extinct! Creatures of the Past (Golden Books, 2000); Baby Wolf (Grosset and Dunlap, 1998); Sexual Strategies: How Females Choose Their Mates, (Tarcher/Putnam, 1994; reprinted with new introduction by iUniverse 2008); Nature's Tricksters (Sierra Club Books/Little Brown, 1992), Discovery By Chance (Funk and Wagnalls) and The Tropical Forest: Ants, Ants, Animals and Plants (T.Y. Crowell). She has appeared on OPRAH. TOM SNYDER and various other television shows and done many radio interviews.

Her magazine articles are published in a variety of publications, including the online journal Pie & Chai, and print ppublications Cosmopolitan, Ladies Home Journal, Modern Maturity, Shape, International Wildlife, National Geographic World, ZooNooz, Science Digest, Calypso Log, and Dolphin Log.

Mary Batten was nominated for an Emmy for her work on the Children's Television Workshop's science series 3-2-1-CONTACT, and she has written some 50 nature documentaries for television series, including the syndicated WILD WILD WORLD OF ANIMALS (Time-Life Films) and others for National Geographic and Disney Educational Films.

Her magazine article for Science Digest, "Sexual Choice: The Female's Newly Discovered Role," won The Newswomen's Club of New York's Front Page Award for best feature story.

She was editor of The Cousteau Society's award-winning membership magazine, Calypso Log, for six years.

She was married to the late composer Ed Bland. They have two children.

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Average rating: 4.08 · 673 ratings · 111 reviews · 39 distinct works • Similar authors

	Hungry Plants by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Paul Mirocha (Illustrator) 4.20 avg rating — 275 ratings — published 1999 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Life in a Frozen World: Wildlife of Antarctica by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Thomas Gonzalez (Illustrator) 4.07 avg rating — 59 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Anthropologist: Scientist of the People by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Magadalena Hurtado (Photographer), Kim Hill (Photographer) 3.87 avg rating — 61 ratings — published 2001 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wild Cats (Step into Reading, Step 4) by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Mary Batten (Goodreads Author) 4.10 avg rating — 49 ratings — published 2002 — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Life in Hot Water: Wildlife at the Bottom of the Ocean by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Thomas Gonzalez (Illustrator) really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 47 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Baby Wolf (Penguin Young Readers, Level 3) by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Jo Ellen McAllister Stammen (Illustrator) 4.29 avg rating — 41 ratings — published 1998 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sexual Strategies: How Females Choose Their Mates 4.24 avg rating — 17 ratings — published 1992 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Who Has a Belly Button? by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Higgins Bond (Illustrator) 3.68 avg rating — 19 ratings — published 2003 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Please Don't Wake the Animals: A Book About Sleep by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author), Higgins Bond (Illustrator) 3.78 avg rating — 18 ratings — published 2008	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Aliens from Earth: When Animals and Plants Invade Other Ecosystems 3.56 avg rating — 18 ratings — published 2003 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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SPIT featured on Salimetrics

I am so honored to have my book featured on Salimetrics' website. Salimetrics is an international company that delivers the most accurate salivary (spit) assays for scientific researchers in many different fields. These assays are designed to detect and measure hormones, such as cortisol (the stress hormone), enzymes and other substances in saliva. Salimetrics' role as a leader in standardizin Read more of this blog post »

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Necessary Trouble: Growing Up at Midcentury

by Drew Gilpin Faust

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Feb 29, 2024 02:24PM

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Mary Batten has read The Typewriter and the Guillotine: An American Journalist, a German Serial Killer, and Paris on the Eve of WWII by Mark Braude (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Fascinating documentary-style writing moves back and forth between two parallel stories. One is the development of an early New Yorker journalist living in Europe. The other is the murderous rampage of a vicious serial killer on the loose. This nonfi ...more
Jun 13, 2026 04:09PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Typewriter and the Guillotine by Mark Braude. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Typewriter and the Guillotine by Mark Braude <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Mary Batten rated a book really liked it The Vegetarian by Han Kang	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Unusual plot and characters. When one family member, the main character, stops eating meat, the entire family is traumatized. Han Kang's sparse, simple prose moves the book through twists and turns. ...more
Jun 13, 2026 03:09PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Vegetarian by Han Kang. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Vegetarian by Han Kang <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Mary Batten rated a book it was amazing Getting Back Our Stolen Bootstraps (Shingle Creek Sagas Book 4) by David R. Yale	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
David R. Yale’s novel, Getting Back Our Stolen Bootstraps, has everything—murder, class warfare, struggle for justice, romance, and sex, including one of the most sensuous love scenes you’ll ever read. With a cast of characters headed by 19-year-old ...more
Jun 24, 2025 09:47AM · like · see review
Mary Batten rated a book it was amazing Getting Back Our Stolen Bootstraps: The Third Paul Makinen Novel (Shingle Creek Sagas) by David R Yale	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Mary Batten has read Together: Nature’s Amazing Partnerships by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Mary Batten has read Father Time: A Natural History of Men and Babies by Sarah Blaffer Hrdy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Brilliant book presenting new neuroscience proving caring for babies changes a man biologically, bringing out his nurturing capacity.
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Mary Batten has read The Last Trial (Kindle County Legal Thriller, #11) by Scott Turow (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Mary Batten rated a book it was amazing The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Mary Batten rated a book it was amazing A Matter of Breeding: Race & Racism in Old School Southern Stories by Mary Batten (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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