Audiobook Review: The Creative Lives of Animals by Carol Gigliotti, Narrated by Sheri Saginor

The Creative Lives of Animals was written by Carol Gigliotti, and the audiobook was narrated by Sheri Saginor. Most of us view animals through a very narrow lens, seeing only bits and pieces of beings that seem mostly peripheral to our lives. However, whether animals are building a shelter, seducing a mate, or inventing a new game, animals' creative choices affect their social, cultural, and environmental worlds. Drawing on a growing body of scientific research, Carol Gigliotti unpacks examples of creativity demonstrated by animals through the lens of the creative process, an important component of creative behavior, and offers new thinking on animal intelligence, emotion, and self-awareness. With examples of the elaborate dams built by beavers or the lavishly decorated bowers of bowerbirds, Gigliotti provides a new perspective on animals as agents in their own lives, as valuable contributors to their world and ours, and as guides in understanding how creativity may contribute to conserving the natural world. Presenting a powerful argument for the importance of recognizing animals as individuals and as creators of a healthy, biodiverse world, this book offers insights into both the established and emerging questions about the creativity of animals.

The Creative Lives of Animals was a hard listen for me for a few reasons. First, I thing the research done to write this book and the information included is important and interesting. However, I have to admit that I almost Did not make it through the introduction. I was expecting the book to focus more on the example and actual experiments and examples of how animals demonstrate creativity. I felt like the book was more aimed at people in the field, or with a particular frame of mind rather than just regular folks that wanted to learn more about the creativity and intelligence of animals. There were times where the tone of the writing felt very pretentious to me, and that always make a nonfiction read harder for me to enjoy. I felt like the narrator tried to do a solid job, using inflections to avoid falling into a monotone, and I think they did the best they could with the material. However, While I was listening I felt like I was in a grad school lecture rather than listening to an audiobook. It might work much better for other readers/listeners, but it just did not work for me.

The Creative Lives of Animals covers and interesting subject matter, and is well researched. However, I felt like it was aimed more at other researchers and scholars rather than readers like me. 

Book Review: Two Heads: A Graphic Exploration of How Our Brains Work with Other Brains by Uta Frith; Chris Frith; Alex Frith

Two Heads: A Graphic Exploration of How Our Brains Work with Other Brains was written by Uta Frith, Chris Frith, and Alex Frith, and illustrated by Daniel Locke. Professors and husband-and-wife team Uta and Chris Frith have pioneered major studies of brain disorders throughout their nearly fifty-year career. Here, in Two Heads, their distinguished careers serve as a prism through which they share the compelling story of the birth of neuroscience and their paradigm-shifting discoveries across areas as wide-ranging as autism and schizophrenia research, and new frontiers of social cognition including diversity, prejudice, confidence, collaboration, and empathy. Working with their son Alex Frith and artist Daniel Locke, the professors examine the way that neuroscientific research is now focused on the fact we are a social species, whose brains have evolved to work cooperatively. They delve into a wide range of complex concepts and explain them with humor and clarity. You’ll discover what happens when people gather in groups, and how people behave when they’re in pairs—either pitted against each other or working together. Is it better to surround yourself with people who are similar to yourself, or different? And, are two heads really better than one?

Two Heads offers readers a solid understanding of the brain, and all it wonders and misfires. I like that opposing viewpoints are mentioned, and that the fact that these two experts openly admit that they disagree on some topics. I like how the text makes it clear what experts think they know, that there are various schools of thought, and just how much we still have to learn. It is when scientists or experts proclaim that we have all the answers that they loose credibility with me. I thought the illustrations were charming, and I liked the labels, humor, and hidden details which made each page more engaging and interactive. I think it was written in a very accessible style, with humor and explanations that really work. I found the personal touches and side comments made the book more entertaining and broke up some of the more intense teaching moments to help readers process. I think it is honestly approachable to any reader interested in the subject matter. As expected of a book from scholars and professionals, the footnotes and endpages were on point and well done. I think this would be a great addition to libraries, particularly graphic medicine collection (I will be recommending it for my own workplace just for that reason).  

Early Book Review: Sexus Animalis: There Is Nothing Unnatural in Nature by Emmanuelle Pouydebat

Sexus Animalis: There Is Nothing Unnatural in Nature by Emmanuelle Pouydebat is an illustrated guide to the amazingly multifarious sex lives of animals, from elephants and bonobos to butterflies and bedbugs.It is currently scheduled for release on March 8 2022. 

There may be nothing unnatural in nature, but nature still encompasses much that seems fantastically strange—the amazingly multifarious sex lives of animals, for example. Sexus Animalis tells us everything we never dreamed we wanted to know about the reproductive systems, genital organs, and sexual practices of animals, from elephants (who masturbate with their trunks) to fruit flies (who produce spermatozoa twenty times their size). In the animal kingdom we find heterosexual, lesbian, gay, and bisexual behavior, as well as monogamy, polygamy, and polyandry, not to mention fellatio and many varieties of erections and orgasms. Emmanuelle Pouydebat, a natural history researcher, tells us about gutter penises, double penises, detachable penises, and corkscrew-shaped penises, as well as vaginas built for storage and clitorises with thorns. (Perhaps unsurprisingly, there’s more data about animal penises than animal vaginas and clitorises.) She explains how the ostrich achieves an erection, describes the courtship of pygmy chameleons, and recounts how the female short-beaked echidna chooses a partner. She reports on sexual assault among animals—there’s evidence that half of female mallards are sexually assaulted—and explains how masturbation helps squirrels avoid sexually transmitted diseases. It seems that animals have been composing their own Kama Sutra throughout the ages. Striking color illustrations accompany the text.

Sexus Animalis is a book that offers exactly what is promises, fascinated information that I never knew I wanted to know about the anatomy and mechanisms of sex for a wide variety of animals and how evolution and natural selection could play their part in all of it. I found the writing style to be accessible with some humor and straight forward information that I never thought about exploring previously. I thought the information included was well researched and organized, and pointed out the gaps in our understanding and how much work there is still to do. I thought the frank and honest explanations were peppered with a nice dose of humor and wit to add another level of interest and entertainment to the read without lessening the credibility of the text. I thought that the illustrations were tasteful and very well done, and helped give readers a more informed awareness of the size and particularities of what is being described in text. I was very interested in the implications of how evolution and other factors have made so many variations on the sex lives of creatures of all shapes and sizes. I never thought much about it, and think there are many people that likewise never considered the complexity and sometimes straight up strangeness of the world around us. This read entertained, informed, and got me thinking a little more about the complexities of the world around us. 

Early Book Review: The Surprising Lives of Animals: How They Can Laugh, Play and Misbehave! by Anna Claybourne

The Surprising Lives of Animals: How They Can Laugh, Play and Misbehave! by Anna Claybourne is a non fiction children's book currently scheduled for release on February 4 2020. Did you know that some animals giggle and play just like us? Or that certain animals build their homes, stockpile their food, and use tools? In this book you’ll learn about the things that humans and animals have in common. From team work, exercise, and self-care to dancing and getting into trouble, you’ll discover that, actually, animals are a lot like you! Visiting underground burrows and grassy savannas, watery realms, and towering tree tops, this book will take you around the world on a journey of discovery. Meet the monkeys who love to take baths, or the penguins who toboggan for fun. Hear the stories of escaping honey badgers, sneaky spiders, and clever crows. Or find out if animals can really talk. You’ll see plenty of Earth’s creatures, from creepy crawlies to mega mammals, and you’ll learn about their lives, habitats, characteristics, and behaviors–and uncover what makes each of them so surprisingly similar to us humans. Look out for ‘Scientist Spotlight’ boxes too, to learn about some important scientists and conservationists, such as Sir David Attenborough and Dame Jane Goodall.

The Surprising Lives of Animals is a wonderful nonfiction book that shows just how smart, and like people, animals can be in their lives. There was a good deal of information that was new to me, and I like that it was organized by type of behavior rather than animal,  which I felt shows just how universal emotion and some behaviors really are. I found the wide variety of animals, and the variety of climates and locations that they are found, further showed the universal nature I was talking about. I found the information about the animals, their behavior, and the spotlights on scientists that work in the field to all be well written and engaging. I think that the illustrations are well done and add both further details and interest to each page. I found myself studying some of the images for details referred to in the nearby text or just enjoying the skill that went into them. I also like that they took the time to include a glossary and resources for further reading. I can think of many readers, children and adults, that would enjoy this read.

The Surprising Lives of Animals is a wonderful look at just how much the behavior of animals mirrors human behavior. It teaches a great deal about the animals and the behaviors covered, and could be a good tool to encourage empathy and care for all creatures. 

Book Review: Anna at the Art Museum by Hazel Hutchins, Gail Herbert, Lil Crump

Anna at the Art Museum is a picturebook written by Hazel Hutchins and Gail Herbert, and illustrated by Lil Crump. Going to the art museum with her mom is no fun at all for Anna. Everything is old and boring and there are so many rules: Don’t Touch! Do Not Enter! Quiet! A vigilant guard keeps a close eye on the energetic little girl, but even so, Anna manages to set off an alarm and almost tip over a vase. A half-open door draws Anna’s attention, but the No Entry sign means yet again that it’s off-limits. This time, however, the guard surprises her by inviting her to go in. Here she finds a “secret workshop” where paintings are being cleaned and repaired. Staring out from one of the canvases is a girl who looks grumpy and bored—just like Anna herself. With the realization that art often imitates life, Anna discovers the sheer joy to be had from the paintings on the wall, especially those that reflect what is happening all around her.

Anna at the Art Museum is a picturebook that recognizes that things that can be fun do not always feel like it when our energy level and mood want more than the rules around us require. Following the rules in the art museum is hard for Anna, and honestly most children (and some adults). However, Anna is lucky enough to get a glimpse of things she might not otherwise see that allows her to enjoy the more sedate activities. I think this is important for children and parents alike, to see that if we can relate to the art or activity we are much more likely to enjoy the journey. That connection is what made following the rules and enjoying the museum possible for Anna, and much less stressful for her mother. I thought the illustrations captured the beauty and uniqueness of the art, and the mood and motion of Anna very well. The theme that life imitates art is easily noticed once you look at the illustrations, and see those commonalities. I also like that they show other children having a hard time in the museum, so Anna is not shown as bad or unusual in her struggles. I really enjoyed the additional information that is given at the end of the book about the real art that is featured in the story. I like that it is a fairly diverse selection of art. 

Anna at the Art Museum is a wonderful picturebook about art and how we can see the reflection of reality in it. This would be a great book to look at before introducing creating or appreciating art in school or at home, or to preface a trip of your own to an art museum.