Caturday Reads: Give a roar for The Lion in the Living Room
The Lion in the Living Room
by Abigail Tucker
Simon & Schuster
Nonfiction, Pets
Pub Date: 18 October 2016
Review
Absolutely fantastic! Whether you are an ardent cat lover or merely enjoy learning about animals, this book is a terrific addition to your shelf. Balancing objectivity and obsession, Abigail Tucker examines the hows and whys of our close and sometimes confounding relationship with cats. Cats have long occupied our homes and hearts. Now cats compete with the most popular human celebrities for online followers through blogs, facebook, twitter, and youtube. Even those who claim not to like cats frequently enjoy watching videos and captioning photos. But why is that the case? What has fueled human obsession with these beautiful and unusual animals who provide little in terms of service to their human carers? Abigail Tucker, an ardent, long term cat lover, has taken the time to examine a wide range of perspectives from scientists, animal rescue, TNR advocates, pop culture icons and more to provide a multifaceted view of the complex relationship between humans and felines.
I adored this book and highly recommend it. Even if you aren’t interested in cats, surely someone on your holiday gift list is. This fascinating book is great for all ages of pet lovers from teens on up.
5/5
I received a copy of The Lion in the Living Room from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
—Crittermom
Description
A lively adventure through history, natural science, and pop culture in search of how cats conquered the world, the Internet, and our hearts.
House cats rule back alleys, deserted Antarctic islands, and our bedrooms. Clearly, they own the Internet, where a viral cat video can easily be viewed upwards of ten million times. But how did cats accomplish global domination? Unlike dogs, they offer humans no practical benefit. The truth is they are sadly incompetent rat-catchers and pose a threat to many ecosystems. Yet, we love them still.
To better understand these furry strangers in our midst, Abby Tucker travels to meet the breeders, activists, and scientists who’ve dedicated their lives to cats. She visits the labs where people sort through feline bones unearthed from the first human settlements, treks through the Floridian wilderness in search of house cats on the loose, and hangs out with Lil Bub, one of the world’s biggest feline celebrities.
Witty, intelligent, and always curious, Tucker shows how these tiny creatures have used their relationship with humans to become one of the most powerful animals on the planet. The appropriate reaction to a cuddly kitten, it seems, might not be aww but awe.
