Drawing on the latest scientific research and her own work with animals, the author discusses the emotional needs of animals and how to fulfill them, challenging common myths about animal emotions, mental stimulation, and emotional well-being.

"It is spring 1919, and John Sawtelle's imagination has gotten him into trouble, again. Now John and his newlywed wife, Mary, along with their two best friends and their three dogs, are setting off for Wisconsin's Northwoods, where they hope to make a fresh start, and, with a little luck, discover what it takes to live a life of meaning, purpose and adventure. But the place they are headed for is far stranger and more perilous than they realize, and...

"Join "America's funniest science writer" (Peter Carlson, Washington Post) Mary Roach on an irresistible investigation into the unpredictable world where wildlife and humans meet. What's to be done about a jaywalking moose? A grizzly bear caught breaking and entering? A murderous tree? As New York Times best-selling author Mary Roach discovers, the answers are best found not in jurisprudence but in science: the curious science of human-wildlife conflict,...

Reveals the ways in which readers and animals behave in the same manner, from dancing bees to babysitting flamingos.

"Step right up, animal lovers! It's your turn to judge in this poetic competition of superlative animal abilities. Structured as a guessing game competition, and told through deftly crafted persona poems, the book celebrates animals' standout qualities, from the biggest (blue whale) to the smallest (shrew), with all the favorite creatures (speedy cheetahs, long-necked giraffes) plus some less common animals with equally amazing abilities (long-lived...

"When a good friend with a severe illness wrote, asking if he might have his "green burial" at Bernd Heinrich's hunting camp in Maine, it inspired the acclaimed biologist/author to investigate a subject that had long fascinated him. How exactly does the animal world deal with the flip side of the life cycle? And what are the lessons, ecological to spiritual, raised by a close look at how the animal world renews itself? Heinrich focuses his wholly...

"Estivation is just like hibernation--only it happens in the summer instead of winter. Why do some animals settle into cool, snug spots and sink into a summertime sleep? Because it's too hot for their bodies to function, or their food is in short supply. Some estivating animals sleep in groups; others rest alone. Some go on a long journey before they slumber; others hunker down right at home. From the pixie frog to the spotte turtle to the desert...

When Hyena puts a banana skin in Giraffe's path, causing a chain reaction of accidents that Hyena finds hilarious, he soon learns what it is like to be the butt of a joke.

During the summer before fifth grade, Ferris Wilkey has her hands full with her little sister terrorizing the town, her Aunt Shirley moving into their basement and her grandmother seeing a ghost--one who has wild, impractical and illuminating plans.