Wolman, David

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Wolman, David

PERSONAL: Married Nicola Pinson. Education: Attended college in Vermont; also attended graduate school.

ADDRESSES: Home—Portland, OR. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Da Capo Press, 387 Park Ave. S., 12th Fl., New York, NY 10016.

CAREER: Writer. Worked in corporate planning offices of an international manufacturing firm in Japan, c. late 1990s. Also worked in Apia, Western Samoa; County Kildare, Ireland; Jackson, WY; Stanford, San Francisco, and Berkeley, CA; and Denver, CO.

AWARDS, HONORS: Fulbright journalism fellow to Japan, 2003.

WRITINGS:

A Left-Hand Turn around the World: Chasing the Mystery and Meaning of All Things Southpaw, Da Capo Press (Cambridge, MA), 2005.

Also contributor of articles to numerous publications, including Newsweek, Discover, New Scientist, Outside, San Jose Mercury News, Northwest Airlines World Traveler, Science & Spirit, Forbes, Wired, and TechnologyReview.com.

SIDELIGHTS: David Wolman has contributed articles to a variety of well-known publications, writing on topics ranging from Russo-Japanese relations to snow science. In his first book, Wolman attempts to decipher the mystery of what makes a person left handed.

In A Left-Hand Turn around the World: Chasing the Mystery and Meaning of All Things Southpaw, Wolman sets forth to make an important discovery: why ten to twelve percent of people throughout the world prefer to use their left hand rather than their right. Through visits to geneticists, psychologists, palm readers, and a handwriting expert, Wolman uncovers interesting theories about left-handedness. He even pays a visit to a man who lost his right hand in an accident and had his left hand successfully transferred to his right arm.

Describing the book as "an idiosyncratic world tour in pursuit of an understanding—and celebration—of lefthandedness," Janet Ingraham, writing in Library Journal, went on to call A Left-Hand Turn around the World "entertaining" and "intriguing." In a review for Booklist, Kristine Huntley pointed out that "Wolman … provides a lively account to those interested in the significance of being a lefty or a righty." A contributor to Kirkus Reviews commented that "Wolman's narrative is robust," and noted that the book is "a nicely balanced blend of pop science and personal essay, and just the thing for the family southpaw."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, November 1, 2005, Kristine Huntley, review of A Left-Hand Turn around the World: Chasing the Mystery and Meaning of All Things Southpaw, p. 6.

Kirkus Reviews, October 1, 2005, review of A Left-Hand Turn around the World, p. 1073.

Library Journal, October 15, 2005, Janet Ingraham, review of A Left-Hand Turn around the World, p. 72.