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caity_c's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
A very in-depth, emotional and thought provoking novel. Not an easy read and even though it is only 180 pages long, it took me months to finish. I would have a smooth running and then hit a bump in the road and suddenly lose interest. Certain chapters were boring and dense. Although, most chapters I enjoyed. A major fault with this novel is there were too many rhetorical questions. The research provided was supportive of the author’s argument and the stories were immensely interesting, so I don’t why there was so many questions. It appeared as though the author did not trust her sources and argument. A shame that was the case because this could have been one the best books I have read this year as, it had so much potential, research and powerful writing.
A very in-depth, emotional and thought provoking novel. Not an easy read and even though it is only 180 pages long, it took me months to finish. I would have a smooth running and then hit a bump in the road and suddenly lose interest. Certain chapters were boring and dense. Although, most chapters I enjoyed. A major fault with this novel is there were too many rhetorical questions. The research provided was supportive of the author’s argument and the stories were immensely interesting, so I don’t why there was so many questions. It appeared as though the author did not trust her sources and argument. A shame that was the case because this could have been one the best books I have read this year as, it had so much potential, research and powerful writing.
katyoctober's review against another edition
5.0
What could be more humane than cataloguing and considering the ways in which animals grieve?
Short, scientific, and covers many species. Does not anthropomorphise. Synthesises first-hand research and wider studies from the field. Recommend highly!
Short, scientific, and covers many species. Does not anthropomorphise. Synthesises first-hand research and wider studies from the field. Recommend highly!
jawhowells88's review against another edition
2.0
This book started out well; I was really interested in the anecdotes of animal grief, especially having experienced animal grief with the death of family pets. By the middle of the book, however, I was wishing that the book would just end. I'm not sure what changed; perhaps it was getting repetative (there isn't much research about animal grief but the author believes it exists) or maybe I was just getting tired of the author's writing style, which I didn't like, even from the beginning. In addition, the last chapters focused on human grief, which seemed both irrelevant and confusing, since the book's main focus was on non-human grief. It just seemed like the author slapped the chapters to the end and the result was a very disjointed conclusion. I may have also lost interest about halfway through because I am familiar with the topic of the book. I took a psychology class in college and one of our units focused on animal psychology (which included grief). I felt like I didn't gain much new information.
Positively, I did learn how humans can help their pets grieve for another pet. For many animals, it is important for them to be able to see their deceased friend and investigate the body, similar to how important it is for humans have a wake or a funeral for their loved ones. In addition, providing a new, and perhaps younger, companion for the bereaved pet can help them overcome their grief and adapt more quickly to the loss of a pet.
This book would be beneficial for those who are unfamiliar with animal grief and want to read about observable instances of such grief. Overall, I just didn't enjoy this book as much as I thought I would.
Positively, I did learn how humans can help their pets grieve for another pet. For many animals, it is important for them to be able to see their deceased friend and investigate the body, similar to how important it is for humans have a wake or a funeral for their loved ones. In addition, providing a new, and perhaps younger, companion for the bereaved pet can help them overcome their grief and adapt more quickly to the loss of a pet.
This book would be beneficial for those who are unfamiliar with animal grief and want to read about observable instances of such grief. Overall, I just didn't enjoy this book as much as I thought I would.
jyunker's review against another edition
4.0
Let me begin by saying I recommend this book to anyone who doubts that animals grieve. The evidence presented is overwhelming.
Dolphins who try to keep their dead calves afloat. Elephants who seek out the remains of their dead years after their passing. A cat who wails inconsolably after losing a sibling. A turtle who comes ashore and stares for hours at the photo of its dead loved one.
Or the story of two ducks, Kohl and Harper, who had been rescued from horrible lives in a foie gras factory. Author Barbara King writes:
That Kohl and Harper lived for four years at the sanctuary was, given their traumatic past histories, a happy and unexpected outcome. When Kohl could not longer walk, or his pain be treated effectively, he was euthanized. From outside the barn where the procedure took place, Harper was watching, and after it was over, he could see his friend’s body, lying in straw on the barn floor. At first, Harper tried to communicate with Kohl in the usual ways. Getting no response, he bent down and prodded Kohl with his head. After more inspection and prodding, Harper lay down next to Kohl and put his head and neck over Kohl’s neck. He stayed in that position for some hours.
Harper got up eventually, and sanctuary caretakers removed Kohl’s body. For a while after that, Harper went every day to his favorite spot, once shared with Kohl, next to a small pond. There he would sit. Efforts to introduce him to another potential duck friend didn’t take, which was especially sad because Harper was now more nervous around people without Kohl. Everyone at the sanctuary recognized Harper’s depression. Two months later, Harper died as well.
Reading the many stories included in this book isn’t easy. Particularly because, as King notes, too many of the scientists who provide the source material resist seeing grief where grief clearly resides. And, in some horrible cases, scientists have inflicted grief onto animals only to prove that it does exist.
The author astutely makes the point that not all humans grieve publicly, so we can’t assume that the lack of display with animals is proof that they do not grieve. People are not all the same, and neither are animals of a given species.
The key is not that all animals grieve but that all animals have the capacity to grieve. And this is the point that matters most. It’s not that one “special” cat suffers visibly while other cats may not suffer so visibly. It’s that all animals feel loss and deal with it in different ways.
The major lesson to be taken from this book for those in charge of animals is to allow the necessary time for grieving. Don’t just rush away the body. Let the animal companions spend time with the body and grieve in their own ways, if this takes a few minutes or hours or longer.
People need time to grieve. So do animals.
“Grief is but the price of love,” the author writes, quoting animal welfare activist Marc Bekoff.
Anthropomorphism is a four-letter word in scientific circles and the author did a good job of keeping her distance while laying out the facts for all to see — though at times I felt she worked a bit too hard to keep her distance (I’m not scientist so I have no problem anthropomorphizing). For instance, while there is ample evidence that elephants and dolphins and apes grieve, the author cites the limited evidence for monkeys to conclude they do not mourn the dead.
It’s time that more people felt grief over the way we treat animals. This book is an important step in that direction.
Dolphins who try to keep their dead calves afloat. Elephants who seek out the remains of their dead years after their passing. A cat who wails inconsolably after losing a sibling. A turtle who comes ashore and stares for hours at the photo of its dead loved one.
Or the story of two ducks, Kohl and Harper, who had been rescued from horrible lives in a foie gras factory. Author Barbara King writes:
That Kohl and Harper lived for four years at the sanctuary was, given their traumatic past histories, a happy and unexpected outcome. When Kohl could not longer walk, or his pain be treated effectively, he was euthanized. From outside the barn where the procedure took place, Harper was watching, and after it was over, he could see his friend’s body, lying in straw on the barn floor. At first, Harper tried to communicate with Kohl in the usual ways. Getting no response, he bent down and prodded Kohl with his head. After more inspection and prodding, Harper lay down next to Kohl and put his head and neck over Kohl’s neck. He stayed in that position for some hours.
Harper got up eventually, and sanctuary caretakers removed Kohl’s body. For a while after that, Harper went every day to his favorite spot, once shared with Kohl, next to a small pond. There he would sit. Efforts to introduce him to another potential duck friend didn’t take, which was especially sad because Harper was now more nervous around people without Kohl. Everyone at the sanctuary recognized Harper’s depression. Two months later, Harper died as well.
Reading the many stories included in this book isn’t easy. Particularly because, as King notes, too many of the scientists who provide the source material resist seeing grief where grief clearly resides. And, in some horrible cases, scientists have inflicted grief onto animals only to prove that it does exist.
The author astutely makes the point that not all humans grieve publicly, so we can’t assume that the lack of display with animals is proof that they do not grieve. People are not all the same, and neither are animals of a given species.
The key is not that all animals grieve but that all animals have the capacity to grieve. And this is the point that matters most. It’s not that one “special” cat suffers visibly while other cats may not suffer so visibly. It’s that all animals feel loss and deal with it in different ways.
The major lesson to be taken from this book for those in charge of animals is to allow the necessary time for grieving. Don’t just rush away the body. Let the animal companions spend time with the body and grieve in their own ways, if this takes a few minutes or hours or longer.
People need time to grieve. So do animals.
“Grief is but the price of love,” the author writes, quoting animal welfare activist Marc Bekoff.
Anthropomorphism is a four-letter word in scientific circles and the author did a good job of keeping her distance while laying out the facts for all to see — though at times I felt she worked a bit too hard to keep her distance (I’m not scientist so I have no problem anthropomorphizing). For instance, while there is ample evidence that elephants and dolphins and apes grieve, the author cites the limited evidence for monkeys to conclude they do not mourn the dead.
It’s time that more people felt grief over the way we treat animals. This book is an important step in that direction.
geryon92's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. A very interesting topic that was discussed across a wide range of animals. Some of the anecdotes really stuck with me, especially the chapter discussing the debate of animal suicide. The writing suffers a little from repetition, but I chalk that up to the author's passion for the topic and the cross-species similarities in how they behave during distress.
The anecdote about horses standing in silent circles around their dead was my favorite and will stick with me for a very long time.
The anecdote about horses standing in silent circles around their dead was my favorite and will stick with me for a very long time.
harperphillips96's review against another edition
4.0
While I know the majority of this book is based on anecdote, the plural of which is not data, I appreciated it as an exploration more than a study on animal grief. As someone who was completely convinced of cat grief a full decade ago when our cat lost his companion, I knew I already had a bias towards believing at least *some* animals grieve. I was pretty interested by the animals that seemed to show emotion and depression when losing a companion as opposed to the ones that didn’t- I would not have guessed that ducks could grieve at all, and would absolutely have expected that monkeys would on a regular basis.
It’s no secret that I’ve been caught up in the topics of death and grief after my aunt died a couple of weeks ago, and I loved how the author (an anthropologist) pulled together the ending to discuss what is unique (though not necessarily superior) about human grief.
Overall, I would have liked more proper research to back up her theories, but I also understand that such research is lacking and this is what we have for now.
It’s no secret that I’ve been caught up in the topics of death and grief after my aunt died a couple of weeks ago, and I loved how the author (an anthropologist) pulled together the ending to discuss what is unique (though not necessarily superior) about human grief.
Overall, I would have liked more proper research to back up her theories, but I also understand that such research is lacking and this is what we have for now.
lene_kretzsch's review
emotional
informative
slow-paced
2.5
Excessively anecdotal, even for a popular science book, this would have benefited from a more rigorous structure. Virtually everything in the first half of the book could have been combined into one long chapter and many anecdotes should have been trimmed as repetitive and contributing little to the author's general thesis. King has plenty of interesting material here and she asks some good questions and makes intriguing observations but these get lost in a sea of frequently pointless trivia. Disappointing.
woowottreads's review against another edition
3.0
Quick note. Decent, but not as engaging as I'd hoped. I understand some animals haven't had much research done, but there was a lot of anecdotal evidence. Not much new here. But worth a read if you're unfamiliar with the topic.