Synopses & Reviews
From Benjamin Bunny to Peter Cottontail, the Velveteen Rabbit to the Flopsy Bunnies, the Rabbit of Caerbannog to Bugs Bunny and Roger Rabbit, the winsome long-eared animal is a permanent fixture of our childhoods. We know rabbits for their place in our stories, myths, and legends, and also for how they helped us learn to tie our shoes. In this richly illustrated book, Victoria Dickenson explores the natural and cultural history of the most familiar of the lagomorphs. Tracing the history of the species, Dickenson brings to life the giant extinct rabbits of Minorca and the tiny endangered Volcano rabbits of Mexico while focusing on the European rabbit. She explains how humans became this particular rabbit’s greatest predator, coveting its fur and flesh, and how they distributed rabbits to such far-flung places as New Zealand and Australia to provide food and sport for settlers. Dickenson also examines the paradox of the rabbit as prey and trickster who outwits all rivals, as cuddly companion for children and symbol of unbridled animal passion. She looks at the use of the rabbit’s foot to charm away evil, celebrates the Year of the Rabbit, and discovers the Jade Moon Rabbit, who lives on the moon. Hopping from B’rer Rabbit to the Energizer Bunny, Rabbit is the perfect gift for anyone who loves these intelligent, adorable creatures.
Synopsis
Playful and inquisitive, seals have long been interested in humansandmdash;and humans have reciprocated that interest, falling for their beauty, grace, and charm as they frolic alongside our boats or loll on sandy shores. In this newest entry in the Animal series, Victoria Dickenson traces the history of our interaction with these beautiful, fascinating swimmers, from the centuries of huntingandmdash;in which people killed countless seals for their skin, oil, and meatandmdash;to the present, when the white-furred baby seal has become one of the most potent symbols of the need for ecological conservation. Along the way, she offers an approachable account of seal biology and behavior, and she delineates the threats they face from habitat destruction and climate change. Beautifully illustrated and packed with stories from folklore, myth, and history,
Seal offers a richly immersive view of a much-loved, storied creature.
About the Author
and#160;Victoria Dickenson is director of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Toronto and a friend of rabbits, who have been affectionate companions to her for over thirty years.
Table of Contents
1 A Natural History
2 The Natural and Unnatural History of the European Rabbit
3 The ‘Useful Rabbit
4 Rabbit in Mind
5 Rabbits and Us
6 The Twenty-first-century Rabbit Paradox
A Few Rabbit Poems
Timeline
References
Select Bibliography
Associations and Websites
Acknowledgements
Photo Acknowledgements
Index