Brendan Borrell

I've tracked down the Canadian maple syrup thieves, gone deep inside the world of British mole catchers, and pieced together the epic story of a French adventurer who vanished in Alaska. I'm a correspondent for Outside magazine and my work regularly appears in other publications, including The New York Times, National Geographic, The Atlantic, and Bloomberg Businessweek.

My book about the Covid-19 vaccine race, The First Shots, was published by Mariner in October 2021. People magazine called it “a stunning look at politics, greed, ego – and scientific brilliance.” I also co-wrote a college textbook, worked as a science consultant on the production of Will Smith: The Jump, and investigated herbal medicine in the modern world as an Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellow. Several of my pieces have been optioned for film and television.

I grew up in Texas, went to college in California, and spent six years catching frogs, snakes, and bees in Central America while completing my Ph.D. in biology. Now, I often write about people and their sometimes strange and often surprising relationships with nature.

I live in Los Angeles. Reach me at bborrell [at] gmail.com.