Animals

Trixie, the puppy eating her own foot, who says: "If you're wondering, it tastes like chicken." Or the aging Sam, eyes popping out of his head and granny glasses askew: "Sweet mother of mercy--the Viagra's working!" Or Tasia, a big mutt forced to wear little Santa hats, who snarls: "I'd like to roast your chestnuts on an open fire." There's Dallas the surly yoga instructor. The old letch Samson, half-mastiff and half-slobber. Barley of the Order of the Vested Shih Tzus. Devil-worshipping Penny. Friend of sailors Miz Skeeter Bug. And Charlie, whose words should be heeded by every owner who thinks it's cute to dress up the family pet: "Listen to me! I am not a bird. I am not a plane. I'm just your dog, Charlie." In the same format as Bad Cat, with 244 truly funny photographs (including a number of group portraits), plus name, age, hobby, and candid quote.

Bad Dog! is a vivid testament to the unforeseen love, beauty, and redemption discovered in the most difficult times and places. It reads like a collection of closely linked short stories (think JD Salinger) but is in fact a work of literary nonfiction (think Robert Fulgham, or Augusten Burroughs). Bad Dog! will appeal to anyone who has fallen into dark places and wants to climb back into the light.

With quietly crafted poetic language of a quality rarely seen in spiritual books, Lin Jensen tells the stories of his remarkably difficult life: his tumultuous early years on a struggling Midwestern turkey farm, his failed marriage, and the search for meaning that led him eventually to become a Zen teacher. The raw and earthy lessons of Bad Dog! cut to the quick with an understated power, and the reader is left at the end of each chapter subtly transformed, able to reflect more deeply and more fruitfully on the struggles of our own lives. Lin Jensen's writing has rare poetic and literary merit.

Lin Jensen received the Best Nonfiction/Spiritual Book award from Today's Librarian for his previous book, Uncovering the Wisdom of the Heartmind. He has taught writing in various colleges and universities for over twenty years, and continues to teach Buddhist ethics and practices at Chico State University. He is the founding teacher and senior teacher emeritus of the Chico Zen Sangha, in Chico, California, where he lives with his wife.

Bear draws on cultural material from around the world to examine the various legends and myths surrounding the bear, including ceremonies and taboos that govern the hunting, killing, and eating of bears. The book also looks at the role of bears in modern culture as the subjects of stories, songs, and films; as exhibited objects in circuses and zoos; and, perhaps most famously, as toys. Bieder also considers the precarious future of the bear as it is threatened by loss of habitat, poaching, global warming, and disease and discusses the impact of human behavior on bears and their environments.

Accompanied by numerous vibrant photographs and illustrations, and written in an engaging fashion, Bear is an appealing and informative volume for anyone who has curled up with Winnie-the-Pooh or marveled at this powerful king of the forest.

In his previous bestsellers, Masson has showed us that animals can teach us much about our own emotions-love (dogs), contentment (cats), and grief (elephants), among others. In Beasts, he demonstrates that the violence we perceive in the "wild" is a matter of projection.

Animals predators kill to survive, but animal aggression is not even remotely equivalent to the violence of mankind. Humans are the most violent animals to our own kind in existence. We lack what all other animals have: a check on the aggression that would destroy the species rather than serve it. In Beasts, Masson brings to life the richness of the animal world and strips away our misconceptions of the creatures we fear, offering a powerful and compelling look at our uniquely human propensity toward aggression.

A charming, delightfully photographed tribute to the older dog, with essays and poetry.

Gandhi once said, "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way that its animals are treated." How people regard older animals is especially revealing. Beautiful Old Dogs is a heartfelt, emotional, passionate tribute to old dogs. It will inspire many readers to get involved in senior dog rescue and adoption, as it honors our senior best friends and explores their current state of care and custody in an informative appendix. This book features the exquisite photography of the late Garry Gross, a noted fashion photographer during the 60s, 70s and 80s who, after becoming a highly successful dog trainer in New York City, turned his camera lens towards dogs. Gross, along with Victoria Stilwell from Animal Planet's It's Me or the Dog, founded Dog Trainers of New York in 2002, and became devoted to highlighting the plight and value of senior dogs. "The older the better," Gross said. "Dogs with soul in their eyes."
David Tabatsky has collected Gross's photographs here, and carefully curated an accompanying selection of moving, insightful, funny, and uplifting essays and short pieces by a range of writers, with contributions from Anna Quindlen, Ally Sheedy, Christopher Durang, Doris Day, Dean Koontz, Marlo Thomas, and many more.

From the co-author of the New York Times bestseller When Elephants Weep comes a book that uses true stories backed by scientific research to explore the way young animals discover their worlds and learn how to survive.

How does a baby animal figure out how to get around in the world? How much of what animals know is instinctive, and how much must they learn?

In Becoming a Tiger, bestselling author Susan McCarthy addresses these intriguing matters, presenting fascinating and funny examples of animal behaviour in the laboratory and in the wild. McCarthy shows us how baby animals transform themselves from clueless kittens, clumsy cubs, or scrawny chicks into efficient predators, successful foragers, or deft nest-builders. From geese to mice, dolphins to orang-utans, bats to (of course) tigers, McCarthy's warm, amusing, and insightful examinations of animal life and developments provides a surprising window into the mental worlds of our fine fuzzy, furred, finned, and feathered friends.

oReaders will be fascinated by a close look at animal intelligence, learning, and family life.