Fossils fuel Raham's restless passion for new book

By Dan MacArthur
North Forty News

Gary Raham has a humor nearly as dry as the fossils featured in his most recent book.

That wry wit has served him well in presenting weighty scientific matters in a painless and even enjoyable way to young--and not so young--readers through a wide variety of venues

"I like to write things that educate people and give them a laugh as well," he acknowledges in his typically understated style.

The prolific writer, illustrator, graphic designer and amateur paleontologist seems to have succeeded in his goal of merging those disciplines. He has authored 13 books and some 200 articles in addition to filmstrips, video scripts and a couple of science fiction short stories. A compilation of his publications, illustrations and awards fills three single-spaced pages. Too vast to do it justice here, that accounting and bits of Raham's work can be viewed at his web site www.biostration.com

The Wellington resident has built this considerable cottage industry all the while toiling at "real" jobs including 27 years at a Fort Collins printer and most recently as graphic designer and nature columnist at the North Forty News.

Not bad for a guy who never imagined such a life possible growing up in modest surroundings in Michigan. Raham said he wrote and sketched as a child. Despite those telling tendencies, he resisted any attempt to escape the reality of the work-a-day world.

"I came from a middle class family and didn't think an artist could make a living," Raham explained.

After earning bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Michigan, Raham headed west because "Colorado seemed like a cool place."

He landed a real job as a middle school and high school science teacher in the Eastern Plains town of Akron. He got the job, Raham deadpans, because his name was pronounced the same as the school's mascot: The Fighting Rams.

It was there he met the physical education teacher who would become his wife and most steady supporter. They moved to Greeley so Sharon could complete her PE degree while the fighting Raham carved out a second career writing when not working at that real job.

Raham's first pieces published in biology education journals even then reflected his characteristic whimsical sense of humor with titles such as "Pill Bugs: A Spider's Spinach, But a Biologist's Delight."

He turned to science fiction and he sold a couple of short stories before settling into the juvenile genre that has served him so well. It taps into his encyclopedic biological knowledge of virtually everything currently or once living.

The source of his success? "I make a real effort not to talk down to kids," Raham explained.

That intent is apparent in his latest book, "The Restless Earth: Fossils." While directed at middle school students, the book is an enlightening romp through pre-history for all, even for those who might think of Fossil only as a brand of trendy fashion accessories.

Raham addresses the evolving understanding of how fossils offer insight into the Earth's deepest history by providing glimpses into lost worlds and documenting major evolutionary changes. Plainspoken prose introduces important principals, followed by boldface text that delivers the knockout and drives home the point.

Raham will be manning a table at the Fort Collins Gem and Mineral Show from 4 to 6 p.m. on March 28 and will have order forms for the book, which will be published in April.

Readers can also e-mail Raham at GRahamBios@aol.com for details.