The Lady and the Octopus: How Jeanne Villepreux-Power Invented Aquariums and Revolutionized Marine Biology

by Danna Staaf

Jeanne Villepreux-Power was never expected to be a scientist. Born in 1794 in a French village more than 100 miles from the ocean, she pursued an improbable path that brought her to the island of Sicily. There, she took up natural history and solved the two-thousand-year-old mystery of how the argonaut octopus gets its shell.

In an era when most research focused on dead specimens, Jeanne was determined to experiment on living animals. And to keep sea creatures alive for her studies, she had to invent a contraption to hold the aquarium. Her remarkable life story is told by author, marine biologist, and octopus enthusiast Danna Staaf.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Biography, Animals, History, France, Nature

136 pages, Hardcover

First published October 4, 2022

About the author

When Danna Staaf met an octopus at the age of ten, it changed her life. She set up a saltwater aquarium to keep eight-armed pets in her bedroom, learned to scuba dive off the coast closest to her home in Southern California, and eventually earned a PhD in the biology of squid babies. Currently working as a science writer, she also wields words in the world of fiction, and helps her husband raise two story-hungry children.

Reviews

[Elentarri · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and nicely written, if short, biography of the woman who invented the aquarium and did some of the first real-time, scientific observations of her (usually live) animal subjects (mostly the Argonauts), instead of just dissecting specimens. The book was written specifically with teenagers in mind, but manages to do this without infantalizing the subject, and so would be perfectly adequate reading material for adults. The sections are short, alternating between Jeanne's life, other historical occurrences of note happening during the same time period, and interesting information about other relevant side-topics (e.g. argonauts, metric system) that make for interesting reading. The audiobook includes a timeline at the end, which provided a very useful summary and endcap to the biography. Apparently, the paper book has photographs and illustrations, so I'm on a mission to track that down.

[Ken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although ostensibly writing for the ages 10- 18 demographic, Danna Staaf really wrote
just for me. Way, way, way older me. Inquisitive me. Educated me. Male me.

Using a scrapbook style format, Staaf has created a colorful, imaginative book about scientific
inquiry, world history in 18th-19th century Europe, a diminutive mollusk (the argonaut) and the
little known biography of an inspiring woman in a man's world. I was entertained and drawn in
to the history, the geography, the biology, the scientific community politics.
And the story of a very modern woman born over 225 years ago.
A married, career oriented, literate, multilingual traveler, self-taught naturalist, and creative
field biologist, she was determined to make herself known in that scientific community.

Never once did I feel the author was talking down to, or patronizing in any way, her intended
audience. I never felt I, a rumored adult, was reading a kiddie book. Nor as a male, feeling a
Nancy Drew-vibe.

Coming in at around 130 pages and oversized format, THE LADY AND THE OCTOPUS is a very
fascinating accomplishment. This is my third foray into Staaf's books on cephalopods. Never
a feeling of deja vu, of re-hash, of blah blah blah. The writing is always refreshingly "new."
She is a mom, a PhD, field biologist and teacher: an accomplished woman.
And consummate science writer.

Jeanne Villepreux-Power (1794 - 1871) was ahead of her time.
Danna Staaf in the 21st century is right on time for ours.

[Emily Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most people probably don’t know I wanted to be a marine biologist. Then took AP Literature and the rest was history. Reading this fantastic book sparked that love of science and marine biology in me again! All of the side tangents and historical context were great for someone like me who asks a million questions when they’re reading a nonfiction book or biography. I loved learning about this incredible scientist and some very cool little octopuses 🐙

[George Ilsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a large format book intended for the educational market, and younger readers. It has sidebars or full pages, scrapbook style, explaining tangents, and history, minor characters, the meaning of this or that; at times these digressions are interesting but others might be skippable.

I did learn quite a bit about the octopus, especially the one which fascinated the scientist named in the title: the argonaut, a mysterious shell dwelling creature, the subject of much rumour and fanciful speculation. Villepreux-Power constructed cages in which to keep aquatic creatures (which came to be known as "aquaria" —the plural of aquarium) so they could be studied. Some of the experiments were a bit gruesome, of the sort where you cut the head off a snail to see if it grows back (the thing is, it will! this regenerative process is still being studied for the secrets to be revealed).

From her base in Sicily, this French woman, married to an Irish merchant, became a skilled, determined, observant scientist, one who (it is said) is rediscovered every 20 years. I confess it has taken me much longer than 20 years to discover her for the first time.

[A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the organization of this book. Kids can have short attention spans, so I like that this offers information in short sections. I also like the vivid colors and photographs. There's a diagram of an argonaut, which follows the montessori method of learning about animals.

It's also nice that it has lots of historical fact to tie in more information for the period. I think this is a great book for kids that is both fun and educational. I will definitely be purchasing a hard copy to add to my daughter's homeschool library.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really appreciate the full context given by the author here. Staaf doesn’t just tell us about the life of Jeanne Villepreux Power, she tells us of her relationships with other scientists, and in turn their relationship with today’s scientific community. And it’s not just a hagiographic ode to girl power. Jeanne Villepreux Power is portrayed flaws and all, including incorrect scientific conclusions and a mixed approach to ethics in experimentation.

A touch dry, but the information is broken up pretty well and the visual accompaniments (diagrams, illustrations, portraits) complement the text.


Items of note:
The metric system emerged from the French Revolution.

Jeanne Villepreux Power essentially invented the aquarium and promoted fish farms for food.

“If [the argonaut] is irritated, it becomes furious… I saw it die of irritation.” (Jeanne Villepreux-Power)

Scientific work doesn’t always need a hypothesis, like when simply making observations. The scientific method is useful, but ultimately not the entirety of the scientific process.

[Elizabeth Mellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and Lerner Publishing for the ARC of this!

This was especially fascinating both because it taught me about a female scientist that I wasn’t familiar with and for the contextualizing that the author did - explaining where inferences need to be made to complete a biography without many reliable sources, how a well-off woman would’ve lived at the time, etc. The images included were very interesting. Perfect for an older MG and up reader who is interested in science, female biographies or octopuses!

[Libby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This fascinating YA nonfiction title introduced me to Jeanne Villepreux-Power, born during the French Revolution, who not only invented the aquarium but also led the way in studying live animals, not just dead specimens. Although her interests and scientific studies were wide-ranging, she is best known for her observations about argonauts, a little-known but wide-ranging type of octopus. Staaf includes many explanatory inserts about both nature and history; she does an excellent job of identifying what we actually know and what is surmised about Jeanne's life and work. Recommended for ages 10 and up.
Review based on an eARC received through NetGalley.

[AK · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a well done teen nonfiction title, and this is a great example. A fascinating narrative, written knowledgeably, and beautifully formatted and illustrated to make reading more enjoyable. Highly recommend.

[Alexandria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love cephalopods

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but beautiful, a semi biography of one of the inventors of the aquarium, including some of her early work with the nautilus.Wish must of her papers had not been lost at sea, but what remained was still very interesting

[Teresa Grabs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful look into Jeanne Villepreux-Power's life and contributions to science. Each chapter is highly engaging and can used/read independently of the others, which greatly expands how the book can be used in the classroom. This is a must-have for any junior high or high school library or classroom.

Thank you NetGalley and Lerner Publishing Group, Carolrhoda Books for the opportunity to read an advance reading copy.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll take any excuse to add a new science book to my collection, so thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

Each chapter in this book focuses on a different time in Jeanne Villepreux-Power's life. It felt like each one could be taken on its own if someone chose to skip through the text. Each chapter includes at least one little aside- the first one in the book is on the metric system- that could also be read individually. For these reasons, I think it would be a great book to use in a classroom setting. It would be easy to break down into sections for directed readings. The asides could be assigned to be a cold read in class for a period. The chapters could be shuffled around to address only her interest in science development.

The Lady and the Octopus would be a great addition to a classroom or school library.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Celebrating female scientists in this biography of science featuring Villepreux-Power and her Argonauts showcase how being a woman in science was a hard thing to be so long ago. She had an interest and a passion, she published works, but it was hard-fought and laid the foundation for observation-based scientific discovery. She built what amounts to aquariums to observe. She collected specimens. She questioned what she saw and sought to learn more. As the subtitle includes: she revolutionized marine biology.

The short chapters, illustrations and art, and brief interludes about science and discovery make it a perfect biography of science.

[Anny · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting short biography about the woman scientist who invented aquariums to study marine biology. Written in short succinct chapters the author described Jeanne's early life, her career as seamstress who made the gown for a queen!, and her life as scientist after marriage provided her with plenty of leisure time and money to pursue her interest at observing nature.

And Jeanne was truly an enterprising scientist, her first wild pet, a turtle, was a result of a failed experiment to kill it. At first she wanted to kill the turtle by drowning it in alcohol for three days, probably to dissect it later, but upon finding the turtle still alive, she decided to adopt it as her pet instead. Strangely enough, it came to like her so much that it would follow her everywhere and would came to her when called by name.

Her next experiments were martens. She wanted to observe their behavior and thus bought a pair and kept them at her house. She tamed them by feeding them and using sticks to discipline them. When they became tame enough she let them roam freely at her house, going so far as providing them with a tree inside a house.

Her chief achievements however, were her works with marine animals, notably with Argonaut, a kind of shelled octopus. As octopi should have lost the ability to grow a shell million years ago, how Argonaut ended up with a shell was a mystery at that time. A mystery that Jeanne was determined to solve using her invention, aquarium.

The book also delved into the condition at Jeanne's time, where science was a male dominated field and how Jeanne struggled to earn her place among her male peers. There was an occasion where her work was appropriated by other male biologist but thankfully her work had been recognized in other scientific circle so she could make a strong case for her finding. Another tragedy was the sinking of the ship which carried most of her research works, which was why there was only a few of her writings that survived today. Fortunately, due to recent interest, one of her book on natural science was being reprinted, so if you read French (not sure if there was any translated version) you could probably order one and actually read the words written by this female scientist almost two hundred years ago.

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE LADY AND THE OCTOPUS: How Jeanne Villepreux-Power Invented Aquariums and Revolutionized Marine Biology
Danna Staaf

For those readers who don't need dialogue, personal life experiences, and fluffy stuff, this is for you! This is a straight-up biography of Jeanne Villepreux-Power and it is super, super interesting. I read it and then listened to it because I wanted to hear the pronunciation of the French words and names.

It was just that good! Jeanne Willepreux-Power was born in 1794 and lived her life there until she was a teen. This was one tough little lady for sure. She walked from her hometown to Paris, about 100 miles, and became a famous inventor and scientist. She was amazing.

But lucky her, she married right, a powerful and progressive man that allowed her to follow her own road. She loved the water... and sea creatures....

This is almost a MUST-read. I was exploring the web about these great little creatures and found this line,

"Then in the 1830s, a French seamstress-turned-naturalist named Jeanne Villepreux-Power conducted rigorous experiments on argonauts and discovered that females create their own shells by secreting a calcite substance from two elongated tentacles (https://blog.nature.org/science/2021/...)."

But it seems that almost 200 years have not answered all of the questions about why they wash up on beaches every few years, or "why argonauts sometimes ride jellyfish or seaweed, or group together in large rafts. And how do males and females find one another in the open ocean? How and why did they evolve their shells?" (https://blog.nature.org/science/2021/...)

5 stars

Happy Reading!

[Michelle Cusolito · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore this book.

Of course, the content appeals to this cephalopod-loving, ocean science writer. But it's Staaf's fantastic prose that drew me in from the start. Her passion for the subject comes through in every word. I deeply appreciate the way Staaf clarified what we know for a fact, what is reasonable conjecture, and what’s a guess when it comes to the facts of Villepreux-Power's life and research. Much of her history was lost in a shipwreck, but Staaf did a fantastic job of building a complete picture without inventing dialogue or making things up.

I also appreciate the sidebars that put Villepreux-Power's life in historical context and consider the implications for modern day people. For example, one sidebar titled "Wild Animals as Pets" examines the fact that Villepreux-Power kept pine martens as pets and then examines that practice through a modern lens. Among other things, Staaf contrasts taming with domestication to help young readers make sense of it, and hopefully make good choices regarding the animals they will choose to keep as pets.

This is a book for readers of all ages, from about ten years old and up. Adults will learn as much from it as kids.

[Katie Lawrence]

Pausing on page 53. I think Jeanne was a genius and we owe so much to her development of aquariums and insistence on observing living animals and their behavior. I also acknowledge that she was living in a different time when animal rights with regard to scientific study were none existent. With all of that said, when she's trying to decapitate a marine snail for science I had to stop. Just made me too squeamish. Not the book for me, but I think it's an important story to be told. It does make me appreciate all the rules that govern studying animals now and that a great deal of scientific learning can be done observing animals in their natural habitat these days. I found this a little bit dry until you get to Jeanne's beginnings as a marine biologist, but I think that's due in large part to the lack of clear record of her past prior to then. The author is forced to make a lot of conjectures based on the time period.

[Kelly Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I greatly enjoyed “The Lady and the Octopus,” a middle grade biography of self-taught 19th century naturalist, Jeanne Villepreux-Power. This well-researched biography places the events in the historical context of the time while also describing Villepreux-Power’s successes and challenges as a female scientist. Young people will be fascinated by the descriptions of Villepreux-Power’s inventions and anecdotes of the animals she studied and lived with. Some of the scientific descriptions will be challenging for younger middle grade readers, but would be fine with the support of an adult and for older readers. I highly recommend “The Lady and the Octopus” for fans of marine biology, eminent historic women, and general nonfiction.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC for review.

[Martha Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is both a biography of the inventor of the aquarium and a study of her scientific methods with argonauts, the octopi that create their own shell with two arms! She is a founder of Marine Biology, an amazing and accomplished scientist who insisted on her rights. A hero for our time, even though she did her experiments back in the 1830’s. Ms Staaf has done a brilliant job, being clear when she doesn’t know something about Jeanne and also creates excellent back matter including a timeline of her life and of science at the time, an author’s note and an update of current research into argonauts! This book may launch many careers of young scientists… Some reviews agree that the reading level starts at about 5th grade and continues to 12th grade. I am thinking it would be great read-aloud in 4th -5th grade classrooms. m2

[Alexandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

learning about badass revolutionary women in stem is my jam. This one I barely remember though.

“To study marine life rather than marine death, Jeanne [Villepreux-Power] needed two things: a source of animals and a place to keep them alive.”

“Jeanne’s struggles against sexism probably helped inspire her experimentalism. Established male scientists could publish opinions on natural history from their drawing rooms. But Jeanne lacked that legitimacy. [Gabahn?] says ‘she had to grab this power of experimentation to confront them because she was a woman and they thought she cannot be trusted.’ Jeanne’s fierce determination to not only discover the answers to her questions but to be believed by her colleagues led her to inventions both physical and intellectual. Her engagement with the scientific community is as much a part of her legacy as her experiments with argonauts.”

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent biography about a fascinating woman. The subtitle explains why she is the subject - "How Jeanne Villepreux-Power Invented Aquariums and Revolutionized Marine Biology" - but the book makes it clear just how extraordinary she was. Her lifespan was 1794 - 1871 and women didn't do science research in those days. In fact, men didn't go out and do research about marine animals in their habitat. Research was done looking at dead and preserved animals. Jeanne changed all that and invented aquariums in the process.
The other very useful aspect of this book is that the author explains how she researched the life of her subject. This included how/why she reinterpreted some other works about her subject.

[Norma Peters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brief review of a wonderful book.
New author: check.
Book under 250 pages: check.
Biography of someone I knew nothing about: check.
Interesting/engaging information and well written: check.
Book font, feel of book, and layout: great, check.
Would I recommend this book? Yes, check.
Would I re-read this book? Oh yes definitely, check.
A brief and yet jam packed biography about a fascinating woman who was ahead of her time and did not let anything or anyone stop her from doing what she wanted to do. Danna Staaf's writing makes me wish I could invite both herself and Jeanne Villepreux-Power to dinner, how entertaining and fun that would be!

[Nina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating biography of a woman scientist who studied a fascinating animal, packed with fantastic illustrations. I also really enjoyed the sidebars that helped provide additional historical and scientific context, including topics such as the ethics of animal experimentation. It provided a thoughtful, balanced view of Jeanne, discussing the sexism working against her at the time but also her privilege as a wealthy woman married to someone in a position of power. The book is targeted toward middle-grade readers, but the book is enjoyable and informative for adults too!

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is biography with a heavy progressive slant, which I found inappropriate because Jeanne Villepreux-Powers’ life was not politically focused. Way too much interjecting of the author’s opinions on, among others, sex, eating vegan, and animal experimentation. I much prefer a biographer to stick to the facts and allow the subject to live in her own time and place (1794-1871 in England and Sicily). I cringe when I think of the intended audience, young readers, getting so much more than plain history.

[Sesana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written bio of a 19th century woman scientist. Villepreux-Power's life is interesting in and of itself, and the science is also fascinating. Staaf does a great job of covering her discoveries in an interesting way, including historical context, the impact of her studies, and even the current state of research o the argonaut octopus. This is aimed at a YA audience, but that's mostly visible in the length of the book and the number of illustrations. Staaf doesn't talk down to her audience at all, and this could be a great bridge to more academic nonfiction.

[Dana Berglund · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a cephalopod and I love a good book about cephalopods. This is more about Jeanne, the 19th century French woman studying mollusks (and many other kinds of animals, but it is fascinating. It is also frustrating that most of her evidence and writings went down in a shipwreck in the latter part of her life, and so much of her work is lost to history. I appreciate the work of Danna Staaf and the other writers she cites for doing as much digging as they can into Jeanne's life and work.
I hope that some young people are inspired to continue studying the mysterious argonauts!

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

19th Century Marine Naturalist Biography – A Young Adult book. Within the backdrop of the French Revolution, Jeanne Villepreaux-Power was born in France and moved with her husband to Messina, Sicily, where she invented and built aquariums in the sea, which she called “cages,” to study octopi in their natural environment in the 1830s. She had a questioning mind and had to fight for her place as a scientist. Finally, almost two hundred years later, she is being recognized for her contribution in the field of cephalopods. An easy, quick read, and an interesting woman of her time.

[Csenge · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely book. I didn't realize it was supposed to be "YA nonfiction", it is a fascinating, beautifully researched and illustrated biography for any age. The author's style is clear, the highlighted pages about historical and scientific context were especially useful, there are notes at the end. Jeanne Villepreux-Power and the creatures she admired get equal attention, creating a detailed picture of her life and work.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Biography of Jeanne Villepreux-Power who defied societal norms to pursue her study of the natural world. Her passion was the argonaut, a shelled octopus. While living in Sicily, she developed caged tanks to study argonauts in the ocean and aquariums to study marine life in her home. She is credited with the invention of the aquarium and a major impact on the world of marine biology by studying living animals, not fossils and specimens.