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Animal Madness: How Anxious Dogs, Compulsive Parrots, And Elephants In Recovery Help Us Understand Ourselves (2014)

by Laurel Braitman(Favorite Author)

3.82 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

1451627009 (ISBN13: 9781451627008)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Simon & Schuster

review 1: An enjoyable book, but it was a bit choppy in places. I couldn't tell half the time whether I was reading opinion or fact. I never got a definitive answer about the madness in animals, and the parting advice on treating animals better to promote better mental and physical health is one I've always believed anyway. I fully agree with the idea that zoos should not be merely a place where humans view animals, but then I've always supported the zoos with viable breeding programs that release back into the wild where possible. I enjoyed most of the enclosures at Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo for example, because the enclosures are so big you often don't see the animals!This being said, I enjoyed the experiences of the author. They are obviously well traveled and seem to have deal... moret with a number of elephants in particular. If you are daunted by the thickness of the book, most of it is the bibliography. I waited a day after finishing to review because I'm at the parents-in-law's house. It was a reasonably speedy read otherwise. Probably around 3.5 stars, but I knocked it up to 4 because of all I learned.
review 2: I absolutely loved this book. It wasn't until I was about halfway through and was thinking how I really enjoyed the author's story-telling ability when I realized she was a historian. This clarified a few of the writing styles I wouldn't expect from a biologist or ethologist. Like a true historian though, Braitman includes pages and pages of notes and references for anyone wishing to challenge her data. The stories are entertaining, eye opening, and often heartbreaking, the data is detailed and backed up by legitimate references, and the end message is great. This book will open your eyes to our past and the history of the human-animal relationship that will make you question our current relationship today - and that's a good thing. I would definitely recommend this book. less

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