Reviewed By Terri Schlichenmeyer
How much do you love the critters that share your life?
Are you just crazy for cows? Positively passionate about
puppies? Or maybe you’ve gone gonzo over goats,
geckos and giraffes.
If you’re still reading this review, you must be an animal
lover of one sort or another. So what’s your favorite
animal? Someone once asked author Jeffrey Moussaieff
Masson that very question and he started to think: which
one to choose? But he couldn’t pick just one, so he
picked a hundred.
In his new book Altruistic Armadillos, Zenlike Zebras, he writes about all of them: all eight
dozen and four.
Texans love their armadillos, and of the twenty different kinds of the critters, only one lives
in the Lone Star State. It’s common knowledge that the little armored guys love to eat fire
ants and that they’re one of the few creatures susceptible to leprosy, which makes them
perfect for scientific research. But do you know why there are so many armadillos on the
side of the road? (Hint: they’re not waiting at the crosswalk).
Swimming oughta be as easy as otters make it seem, but next time you see an otter in
the water, pay attention to where you’re standing. River otters, according to Masson,
swim belly-down while sea otters swim on their backs. Sea otters, he says, are the only
mammals (other than primates) to use tools while foraging for food.
Looking like a giant pig in a mudhole, hippopotamuses appear friendly and with a sense
of humor, but Masson says they’re anything but. Hippos can easily snap a ten-foot
crocodile in half. Some say hippos kill more humans than does any other wild animal in
Africa. And then there is a critter that we all know: the chicken. Despite that we equate
“being chicken” with fear, Masson says that chickens — especially roosters — can be
ferocious and compassionate, and that people who raise them know that they’re highly
sociable birds who often choose to trust humans for companionship.
You’ve probably already figured out that Altruistic Armadillos, Zenlike Zebras is a delight
for animal lovers, filled with gee-I-didn’t-know-that information and lots of interesting
anecdotes on insects, reptiles and mammals. What you might not be prepared for are
the arguments Masson’s book will incite. Include cochineals and not crocodiles? Red
foxes but not whitetail deer? Lemurs but no llamas? Humpbacks but not horses?
Hmmm.
While this book is truly fascinating, it also can be annoying. Masson firmly steps on his
soapbox, repeatedly scolding himself for having captured frogs and insects as a child,
urging re-searchers to stop meddling with breeding programs for endangered animals,
and encouraging prevention of certain common animals as pets. While there’s ample
reasoning behind his thoughts, Masson’s anthropomorphizing and animal-championing
becomes more like preaching. But if you can ignore those minor flaws, Altruistic
Armadillos, Zenlike Zebras will satisfy your curiosity, give you food for thought, and hold
your attention for hours. Your favorite animal might not be in here, but this is a book every
animal lover will love biting into.
dozen and four.
Texans love their armadillos, and of the twenty different kinds of the critters, only one lives
in the Lone Star State. It’s common knowledge that the little armored guys love to eat fire
ants and that they’re one of the few creatures susceptible to leprosy, which makes them
perfect for scientific research. But do you know why there are so many armadillos on the
side of the road? (Hint: they’re not waiting at the crosswalk).
Swimming oughta be as easy as otters make it seem, but next time you see an otter in
the water, pay attention to where you’re standing. River otters, according to Masson,
swim belly-down while sea otters swim on their backs. Sea otters, he says, are the only
mammals (other than primates) to use tools while foraging for food.
Looking like a giant pig in a mudhole, hippopotamuses appear friendly and with a sense
of humor, but Masson says they’re anything but. Hippos can easily snap a ten-foot
crocodile in half. Some say hippos kill more humans than does any other wild animal in
Africa. And then there is a critter that we all know: the chicken. Despite that we equate
“being chicken” with fear, Masson says that chickens — especially roosters — can be
ferocious and compassionate, and that people who raise them know that they’re highly
sociable birds who often choose to trust humans for companionship.
You’ve probably already figured out that Altruistic Armadillos, Zenlike Zebras is a delight
for animal lovers, filled with gee-I-didn’t-know-that information and lots of interesting
anecdotes on insects, reptiles and mammals. What you might not be prepared for are
the arguments Masson’s book will incite. Include cochineals and not crocodiles? Red
foxes but not whitetail deer? Lemurs but no llamas? Humpbacks but not horses?
Hmmm.
While this book is truly fascinating, it also can be annoying. Masson firmly steps on his
soapbox, repeatedly scolding himself for having captured frogs and insects as a child,
urging re-searchers to stop meddling with breeding programs for endangered animals,
and encouraging prevention of certain common animals as pets. While there’s ample
reasoning behind his thoughts, Masson’s anthropomorphizing and animal-championing
becomes more like preaching. But if you can ignore those minor flaws, Altruistic
Armadillos, Zenlike Zebras will satisfy your curiosity, give you food for thought, and hold
your attention for hours. Your favorite animal might not be in here, but this is a book every
animal lover will love biting into.
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