b'THE GIRL NO ONELISTENED TOSouth Orange resident pens an inspiring book about a 12-year-old fossil hunterBY CINDY PERMANAliketosearchjournalistandauthorwhowritesabouthealth,capable of such a find. So, what did they do? They lotofkids for treasures such as shellsanimals and the environment. The book is gearedinitially credited someone else!orglasswhentheyreonto kids ages 8 to 12, but adults will enjoy it, too.Hollowweavestogetherawonderfultaleof thebeach.For12-year- It tells of Annings adventures searching for fossilsAnnings pur-oldMaryAnning,thosewith her trusty dog, Tray, by her side. Her firstsuit,discov-treasuresweremarinefos- big discovery was the skeleton of an ichthyosaur,ery,setback sils. Her discoveries woulda fish-like creature that lived during the Jurassicandeventual change history. period, more than 100 million years ago. The skel- triumphthat Anning grew up in the early 1800s in Lyme Re- eton was more than 17 feet long and took monthswill have you gis, a resort town along Englands southern coastto extract from the cliff.turningpage bordering the English Channel. Known now asIt was a dazzling find that set the townandafterpageto the Jurassic Coast, the area is famous for marinethe Geological Society of Londonabuzz. Therefind out what fossils that wash up on the beach and are embed- was just one problem: The experts in the fieldhappens next.ded in cliffs high above the sea. As a young girl,(the men from the Geological Society) didnt be- Hollow, Anning had a natural curiosity and loved to collectlieve her. They called her a fraud. Why? This waswhosework fossils with her father and brother and then sellthe 1800s and Anning was female, 12 years old,hasappeared them at the store her family ran out of their home. poor and lacked a formal education. Women (andinTheNewMichele Hollow wrote a middle-Jurassic Girl is a wonderful new book by Southgirls)werentallowedintheGeologicalSociety.YorkTimes,grade book based on the true story of a 12-year-old female fossil Orange resident Michele C. Hollow, a freelanceThe members simply couldnt fathom that she wasAARP,Thehunter.40/ matters magazine / fall 2024'