Lost Animals: Voices of Extinction
What would the last living passenger pigeon (seen in silhouette above) have to say if he or she were alive today? Or the Tasmanian tiger? Or the Carolina parakeet? In …
animal history
Confucius’s pet dog: The Chinese Animal Studies Network
If you’re interested in learning more about animal histories in China check out the Chinese Animal Studies Network. They have an excellent newsletter. I recently read this Talking Animals Q&A …
Book Review: Animal History: History as If Animals Mattered
In the introduction to Animal History: History as If Animals Mattered, Andrew Linzey and Clair Linzey write, “An animal does not just have a biology, but also a biography.” Sadly, …
Book Review Flashback: Animal Resistance
I had mentioned the passing of author Sarat Colling last month. Today I’d like to revisit her book Animal Resistance in the Global Capitalist Era. We reviewed the book four …
A much-needed journal debuts: Animal History
There is a new academic journal worth checking out: Animal History. It is edited by Thomas Aiello, professor of History and Africana Studies at Valdosta State University; Susan Nance, professor …
Animals in World History: The long-overlooked protagonists of our planet
If history is written by the victors, then this book is a much-needed step forward in our awareness and understanding of the non-human animals who have suffered at the hands …
Book Review: Stowaway: The Disreputable Exploits of the Rat
We have the pandemic to thank for this eye-opening, empathetic and long-overdue tribute to one of our most misunderstood and widely despised relatives. The rat. And I use relative intentionally …
Book Review: Our Kindred Creatures: The birth of the American animal rights movement
Imagine it is 1866 and you are strolling the streets of New York City. The first thing you might notice are the hundreds upon hundreds of horses pulling people in …
Book Review: The Longest Story
Upon reading the synopsis, Richard Girling’s The Longest Story appears to take on an ambitious task: cover the relationship between humans and non-human animals throughout all of history in under …
How to Be Animal: Lessons in evolution for the human animal
Perhaps it is human nature to rank things. We rank cities and states and countries. We have the best restaurants and best movies; we even have best friends. And when …