Hidden Worlds

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    There are hidden worlds in nature - places you can visit only with a microscope. For more that twenty-five years, Dennis Kunkel Ph.D. has been exploring these worlds. Through the lenses of powerful microscopes, he has examined objects most people have never even thought about: a mosquito's foot, a crystal of sugar, a grain of pollen, the delicate hairs on a blade of grass.

    For Dennis, science has always been an adventure, and microscopes have given him the chance to make discoveries and explore new frontiers. Scientists from all over the world send him specimens to examine and photograph. Like a detective, he's never sure where his work will lead. Hidden Worlds takes you behind the scenes of Dennis's work and explains how he captures his remarkable images of microscopic life and objects. You will learn how Dennis became interested in microscopes as a boy, how he prepares specimens for study, and how different kinds of microscopes work. You will also have the chance to follow Dennis as he collects in the field - from ash-covered slopes of Mount St. Helens to the lava tubes, rainforests and beaches of his home state of Hawai'i.

    Stephen Kramer's engaging text and Dennis Kunkel's dramatic photographs provide a fascinating look at the work of a microscopist and the remarkable worlds he explores.

Awards for Hidden Worlds

Best 100 Children's Books of the Year 2001 - The New York Public Library. 11/17/01
Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children for 2002 - National Science Teachers Association / Children's Book Council. 12/4/01
2002 Notable Book - Association of Library Service to Children - American Library Association. 1/25/02
2001 John Burroughs List of Nature Books for Young Readers - John Burroughs Association. 3/18/02
2002 Orbis Pictus Recommended Books List for Outstanding Nonfiction - National Council of Teachers of English. 3/26/02
The Best Children's Book of the Year 2002 - Children's Book Committee, Bank Street College of Education. 4/29/02

Selected Reviews for Hidden Worlds

"Outstanding photographs invite the reader into the world of microscopist Dennis Kunkel ... Photographs on every page show vividly colored specimens from minute dust mites magnified 560 times to the neuroglial cell from an Asian tiger mosquito magnified 22,925 times. An excellent addition to the science, biography and careers sections." --- Kirkus Reviews 8/15/2001

"An illuminating look at the work of a microscopist. ... It's fascinating to see the magnified pictures of jellyfish, dust mites and other creatures... this title offers a wealth of scientific information along with an insightful look at the world of an individual scientist." --- School Library Journal 9/29/2001

"The text nicely illustrates how a scientist explores, discovers, and formulates questions. The stunning color photographs provided by scientist, Dennis Kunkel, are the books real strength. ... Substantive, readable and visually outstanding." --- Booklist 8/1/2001

"As a microscopist, Kunkel has examined and photographed objects most of us have never stopped to think about: a mosquito's foot, a grain of sugar. His work allows everyone to perceive the invisible splendors that surround us." --- Smithsonian 10/31/01

"Dennis Kunkel is a microscopist, bringing his explorer's zeal to the usually invisible world. The book traces his career from his early interest in science. discussing enroute the different kinks of microscopes and the processes he uses. Kunkel's photographs are a considerable draw; the emphasis here is in the beauty rather than the ickiness of the microscopic world. The detailed and elaborate structure of plants, animals and basic cells achieves a genuine elegance through Kunkel's pictures, with their artificially contrasting hues subdued by the underlying gray scale coloration, leaving texture and structure at their most distinct." --- The Bulletin, December 2001

"Dennis Kunkel has a cool job. Unlike the content specialists profiled in the previous books in the Scientists in the Field series, Kunkel's expertise lies in the use of a sophisticated scientific tool - microscopy. As a result, he gets to be a modern Renaissance man, dabbling in a variety of science areas beyond his training in botany, muscle cells, post-volcanic eruption pond life, dust mites and critters in his own back yard. This uniquely kaleidoscopic focus allows author Kramer both to explain scientific equipment and procedures and to highlight the important role of technical equipment in scientific research. The profile of this scientist and his work includes typical biographical components, such as Kunkel's early interest in science, but also much detail on the nature of microscopic images and the reliance of science on observation. A particularly illuminating section on mosquitoes compares the images produced by increasingly powerful microscopes. Appropriately, the book prominently features Kunkel's breathtaking colorized microphotographs, a presentation enhanced by the sharp layouts. The clarity and detail in these images is remarkable." --- The Horn Book, December, 2001.