Beastly: The 40,000-Year Story of Animals and Us

by Keggie Carew

From an award-winning writer, a story-rich exploration of our shared planet, and the astonishing, moving, and troubled connections between humans and other animals

Animals have shaped our minds, our lives, our land, and our civilization. Humanity would not have gotten very far without them, and yet, over the past two centuries, the relationship has grown further apart. In Beastly , author Keggie Carew seeks to re-enchant readers with the wild world, reframing our understanding of what it is like to be an animal and what our role is as humans.

Beastly throws readers headlong into the mind-blowing, heart-thumping, glittering pageant of life, and goes in search of our most revealing encounters with the animal world throughout the centuries to show where we’ve come from and where we’re going. How did we domesticate animals and why did we choose sheep, goats, cows, pigs, horses, and chickens—but never zebras? How can whales help solve climate change? What does it mean when a young woman befriends a boar, a gorilla tells a joke, or a fish thinks? What does a wren sing? Beastly is a gorgeously written, deeply researched, and intensely felt journey into the splendor and genius of animals and the long, complicated story of our interactions with them as humans. Our relationship with animals has shaped our planet and, if reimagined, could save it.

Genres: Nonfiction, Animals, Nature, Science, History, Audiobook, Biology

384 pages, Hardcover

Published July 18, 2023

Reviews

[Claire Fuller]

Full of necessary rage, joy and passion: Beastly should be mandatory reading for all humans.

[Moonkiszt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listen up, Humanity. Here's your call to action. Time to make a change. In fact, way past time to make a change. Keggie Carew is delivering her passionate message. It is a voice in the wilderness that rang true in my ears.

Since that first bright morning Genesis talks about - no, it would be much much earlier - the first time there was a humanish creature contemplating exactly what to do with that non-humanish creature - that was the day it all started. The day we imposed our will to dominate, and this book invites you to sit awhile and listen. The author moves fast, so wear your running shoes, and bring a thick-skinned slicker, because she's going to deliver many stripes to your humanness, and your family's penchant for abusing the earth. All well and truly deserved. She's shaking your shoulders and boxing your ears - why???? To get your attention, that's why!!!

The topic of this book is ANIMALS and how we've paid back their many known and unknown generosities. Don't let your defensiveness deprive you of a message you've needed for a very long time. Just settle in. The author does a very neat job of good cop/bad cop all by herself.

From topic to creature to extinction to remedy to love to selfish willfulness to tragedy to resolve to wonder to creature to death to life to creature. to them. to you. to me. to us. for me, by that last page it felt very, very Shakespearean.

I will be thinking about this book for a long time, and in my world of e-books and audiobooks, this is one of which I want a hard copy to read Bible-like before sleeping - so my resolve to DO something to help the survivors of our eons long massacres can continue for our children, and their kits, cubs, chicks, larva, calves, whelps, hatchlings. . .Beastly presents opportunity for much long thinking. . .and in-for-the-long-haul thoughts. And hopefully, you do it right in the middle of the big beautiful outside that is our Earth.

*A sincere thank you to Keggie Carew, Abrams Press, Tantor Audio, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and listen.* #Beastly #NetGalley

[Kim Stallwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

In British slang, a beast is an extremely talented and tenacious individual. Now, I don’t know Keggie Carew but I would wager a bet (if I gambled) that she’s a beast. Not physically, of course, but in temperament. Her book, Beastly, weighing in at 368 pages, is written with great style and a keen sense of justice. From its subtitle, ‘A New History of Animals and Us’, you know that as you read the pages you’re on a roller coaster ride of shock and awe. This poetic sense of interspecies history is more interesting and disturbing than reading an account written by a scientist or an academic. (Not that there is anything wrong with them.) I appreciated Keggie’s interjections with her opinions and, as I read, keenly looked forward to the next. Her back flap bio describes her as having had a career in contemporary art and is now an award-winning author who looks after, with her husband, a small nature reserve in England.

Here she describes her reaction to watching a film when men in a boat off the coast of Mexico in the Sea of Cortez come across a humpback whale strangling in a nylon gill net. Most likely you, too, have seen this film online. Men dive into the water to cut the net away from the whale. ‘After an hour they think they have enough net on board to make the final cut.’ The whale disappears. ‘The camera pans out across the sea. Like a great torpedo exploding out of the water, she breaches. We hear whooping and hollering from the boat, we see the crew’s mouths open with disbelief.’ They watch in awe for an hour as the whale repeatedly breaches the water more than forty times.

I can watch this film again and again; it never loses its ecstatic wonder. It is not sentimental anthropomorphic imagination. It is sensitive creaturely imagination. The real emotional connection of concern for another being. [p. 53]

That’s some of the awe Keggie writes in Beastly. It’s time for a shock. Toward the end of a paragraph listing the 34 million insects and arachnids held by the Natural History Museum in London. There are 9 million moths and butterflies. ‘The museum’s bird-skin collection numbers 750,000 specimens over 8,000 species,’ she writes. ‘That averages nearly a hundred of each.’ she snorts and concludes

I stomp across the stone flags and think of the community of death in this great mausoleum replicated across the world. Of the multitudes, how many were taken for science with positive outcome? How many for pure excess? [p.148]

Couldn’t agree with you more, Keggie.

It is an ambitious claim to say your book is a ‘new history of animals and us.’ It’s certainly that but the non-scientific and non-academic approach means that in reading Beastly you’re looking through the author’s frame. It’s certainly encyclopedic. But it lacks an overarching philosophy or understanding. Philosophy and ethics are present but not fully explored or used as tools to bring meaning to understanding interspecies history. Need more about the ‘creaturely imagination’ she mentions in response to watching the whale film. Beastly is a challenging read as it’s a never-ending catalogue of descriptions of humans abusing animals. But, come to think of it, that’s what the history of animals and us is all about.

Any reservation on my part is outweighed by the benefits of reading this insightful assessment of human and animal relations. The lack of a thesis about the relationship is disappointing. Nonetheless, the extensive evidence gathered and the skill with which Carew Keggie guides the reader more than justifies reading this important and insightful book.

[Kaila · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5 stars

I really loved this book, especially the audiobook version. Keggie Carew speaks not to the scientists or people that think you can only look at animals through a rational and objective lens. Instead this book is for nature lovers; the people that are told they are too emotional about animals and nature during debates with the sceptics. This book doesn’t pretend to be purely scientific by any means, but takes us on a deeply passionate journey through humans relationship with the flora and fauna around us. It tells a damning story of the way we have treated the non-human inhabitants that we share earth with.

This book reminds me of nonfiction in the style of Mary Roach. Instead of an impersonal look at science and history, Carew litters her story with its personal anecdotes and feelings. These added an unmistakably personal touch to the book, which made it feel like you were chatting to a friend more than a one-way dialogue. The tales of travel and experiences that Carew explored were extremely interesting and insightful. Carew is definitely on my list of people that I would like to sit next to at a dinner party.

This book kind of had the feeling of a magnum opus. It felt like the culmination or spilling over of a lifetime love for nature, scientific research and unique experiences. While covering such a broad history of experiences and jumping between topics, this book still felt well-crafted, intentional and informative. Carew paints her passion while issuing scathing critique of human disregard for animal life. This book really does take you on a journey with the author. If you are anything like me then you will experience the whole range of human emotions from tears to laughter before you have completed the novel.

[Kathleen Flynn]

I read an excerpt that made me seek this book out. It concerned how, when animals manage to stage an escape on their way to the slaughterhouse, the result is often a new lease on life (quite literally!) at an animal sanctuary. But how even before this happens, the animal is often dignified with the pronoun "he" or "she" instead of being known as "it." And how this pronoun use -- and the implied switch from passive victim to rebel -- exemplified the human inconsistency in our attitude towards the other living creatures. The writer's lively style made me think I would enjoy an entire book's worth of her writing.

And I was not wrong. This is not always fun; some of the descriptions of the cruelty that humans inflict on other species are really, really hard to read about. But since the animals have to endure it, it seemed like the least I could do was share in their suffering imaginatively. And Beastly is also hilarious in places, very entertainingly written, informative and passionate. Some people might complain how it leapfrogs (heh) from subject to subject, but I liked this.

Works of nonfiction do not usually stir such strong emotions in me as Beastly did. I laughed, I cried, I was filled with anger and sadness when I was forced to realize how badly we humans have wrecked the earth. I knew this already in a general way; now I know it in a more specific one. Although it tries to strike some notes of hope, the overall sense I am left with is....idk, am suddenly reminded of the ending of a Robert Frost poem I studied in high school, The Oven Bird:

The question that he frames in all but words
Is what to make of a diminished thing.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem...

[Jackie · Rating 2 out of 5]

How much time do you have to be extremely depressed, and at times slightly confused by time jumps and personal stories with names of people you’re obviously unaware of but are personally relevant to the author? If your answer is 16 hours and 38 minutes, then have I got a book for you!

When I saw this cover on NetGalley, I immediately wanted to read it. What I expected from the cover and description was not at all what I got.

I listened to the audio book. Perhaps the book is laid out more clearly, but the audiobook was an absolute jumble of antidotes, quotes, and references to previous texts. As a result, it feels much more like an encyclopedia of anecdotes with someone else interrupting and trying to relate with things that, at times, are a tenuous link at best.

The book is overly poetic, and yet it lacks flow somehow. It is much less about our relationships with animals and more about brutality. It makes this book very hard to stomach for those that care, yet also inaccessible for those that should care.

Gave up at 36%

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure how you can write something like this and then admit in it you're neither vegan nor vegitarian. It kind of undermines a lot of what is being said especially when calling others to rethink their opinions. Aside from that it's an interesting, if slightly meandering, look at our interactions with animals.

[Read Walk Repeat · Rating 4 out of 5]

An insightful and humbling look at the vast impact humans have had on the animal kingdom over the last 40,000 years. A well researched and wide ranging book that connects the actions of humans to the plight of the animal kingdom in an accessible and memorable way that encourages conversation and self-reflection. I found the topics and writing to be very well done and encourage others to give this book a read.

💕You might like this book if:
🔹 you enjoy learning about history and how human’s have changed the world’s ecology
🔹 you are an animal lover / advocate
🔹 you are open to looking at the negative impacts of our actions / choices

I listened to this one on audio and found the narrator gave a passionate and captivating reading. Listening to this felt somewhere between sitting in on a favourite lecture and joining a lively conversation at the campfire.

A huge thanks to Net Galley and RB Media for providing me with a digital ALC in exchange for an honest review.

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me a while to warm up to this one but I’d say it was worth it in the end. I felt like some of the stories were a bit disjointed and hard to follow but I love Carew’s passion and love for animals.

[Susan Chaltain · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good eye opener about nature. Something everyone should read

[J · Rating 1 out of 5]

The subtitle promises a “40,000-year story,” but the material relies overwhelmingly on anecdotes about British and American scientists. Major bodies of knowledge about animals—from Indigenous ecological knowledge to natural history traditions in Asia, Africa, and continental Europe—are largely absent. Instead of constructing a sustained global history, the book presents a sequence of isolated anecdotes centered on anglophone figures. These stories are placed next to each other without developing a broader framework or argument about how human understanding of animals actually evolved over such a long time span.

Now for major problems (direct quotes included):

1. Monsanto has produced seeds which grow into glyphosate-tolerant plants known as RoundUp Ready crops, so you can slosh Roundup all over the place – if you use their seed (double profit). When the monarchs arrived in Mexico in 2019, the extent of butterfly cover was less than half the winter before.

The discussion of glyphosate relies on implication rather than evidence. Glyphosate is one of the most extensively studied herbicides in modern agriculture, and its toxicology is well understood. It works by inhibiting the shikimate pathway, a biochemical process found in plants and certain microorganisms but not in animals. Because of this mechanism and its relatively low persistence compared with many earlier herbicides, glyphosate replaced several older chemicals that posed greater environmental and toxicological risks. Regulatory agencies and toxicological reviews have repeatedly concluded that, when used according to label directions, glyphosate is among the safer herbicide options available.

The passage does not engage with this body of research. Instead, it places a statement about herbicide-tolerant crops next to a statistic about monarch butterfly population levels. This juxtaposition suggests a causal relationship without presenting any evidence for one. Monarch population fluctuations have been widely studied, and the primary drivers identified in the scientific literature include habitat loss, changes in milkweed availability, climate variability, and conditions at overwintering sites. Simply mentioning a herbicide product and then citing a population decline does not establish causation. No mechanism, data, or citation is provided to support the implied connection.

2. God knows how we got onto the subject of neonics. I think it began harmlessly enough, talking about moving to the country, where he’d like to live. I said I wouldn’t want to live bang next to arable land because of the spray drift. He snorted in derision.

‘You can’t be serious!’ ‘What, breathing in all that soapy toxic chemistry? Have you smelt it?’ He leaned back in disbelief. ‘That’s not going to hurt you! If it were dangerous it wouldn’t be licensed for use.’ ‘Who do you think tests it? Scientists employed by Bayer.’ ‘Oh, come on. This sounds like a conspiracy theory.’ ‘Forget about what it might do to us, what about the insects, the soil, the watercourses?’ ‘I would stick to the scientific facts,’ he advised.

‘Actually there is a lot of scientific evidence,’ I said.

‘What papers? What papers? Name me the scientific papers. Where’s your empirical evidence?’ I was in the dock. ‘Well, the Environmental Protection Agency was sued recently by a group of beekeepers for allowing the registration of neonicotinoids based on inadequate studies and tests.’ ‘What case was that?’ Of course I hadn’t a clue.

‘What was the outcome?’ Of course I didn’t know that either.* He sensed blood. ‘You need evidence before you make rash statements.’ ‘How about the crash in bee populations, the decline of farmland birds, our sparrows for instance? River insects, mayfly; all in freefall. Moths on the windscreen. Do you remember them?’ ‘All this is circumstantial.’ Not a good birthday party conversation. People were beginning to look at us.

‘How will crops be pollinated if we wipe out the pollinators? By flicking feather dusters? Who’s going to do that?’ Everything was rigorously tested as far as he was concerned, and I was hysterical. A woolly lefty nimby-namby emotional girly. He wanted numbers, names, data, journals, titles, authors, credentials, and they were not at my fingertips. Then I said that for all we knew, neonics could be our generation’s DDT. Well, that did it for him. His face contorted in ridicule.

‘Poppycock!’ He was the lawyer and I was the unreliable witness. If only I’d remembered the leak of a confidential memo from the US Environmental Protection Agency warning bees were at risk from other Bayer neon-icotinoid products; or Buglife’s review of scientific papers on neonic effects on non-target species; or the findings reported in the journal Science of unsafe levels of neonicotinoid pesticides in 75% of honey samples from around the world. Or the study that showed neonics washed off seeds and contaminated wildflowers. Or the study in Nature, ‘Be Concerned’, which concluded that the level of neonics in environmental samples correlated strongly with the decline in insect-eating birds. Or the Japanese paper about the collapse in the eel and smelt harvest caused by neonicitinoids washing off the land into lakes. Or at least reminded him of the precautionary principle which is supposed to underlie environmental regulation and protection. I wish I could have dropped my voice a few octaves. I wish I’d been able to curl my lip back at him and, if I am honest, push his bullying mush into the tagine.

In this exchange, Carew appears to believe she is exposing the other person as dismissive or bullying. In reality, the passage demonstrates her own unwillingness to engage with basic standards of scientific argument. When asked for specific papers, evidence, or outcomes of the legal case she invokes, she admits she cannot provide any of them. Scientific claims are not validated by implication, anecdotes, or appeals to litigation; they require identifiable studies, methods, and results that can be evaluated. The demand for sources, data, and empirical evidence is not unreasonable or hostile—it is the basic minimum for discussing scientific claims.

After the fact, Carew attempts to reconstruct the argument by listing a variety of studies and reports she wishes she had mentioned. This is a classic example of cherry-picking. She assembles a sequence of claims and papers without examining their methodologies, scope, or the broader literature. Complex ecological questions—such as pollinator declines or insect population changes—are studied across large bodies of research with mixed and context-dependent results. Selecting a handful of alarming findings and presenting them as decisive proof is not how scientific evidence is evaluated. The passage illustrates an argument built on rhetoric and selective citation rather than on a balanced assessment of the scientific literature.

3. Her [Rachel Carson's] mental strength, supported by her scrupulous science, was not matched by her body; Carson had been diagnosed with breast cancer...

Carew describes Rachel Carson as a “scrupulous” scientist, but Carson was not a practicing research scientist. She was a writer and government employee whose work drew heavily on secondary sources and advocacy material. Some of the claims in her work relied on information originating from biodynamic agriculture, a movement based on mystical ideas about cosmic forces and agricultural “preparations” rather than empirical agronomy. Presenting Carson as a model of rigorous scientific practice ignores the actual origins and nature of some of the evidence she relied upon.

4. I don’t need hard data to tell me there has been a drop in insect numbers in the last 50 years, because I can see it.

Carew explicitly states that she does not require empirical data to support her claims about insect population declines because she believes her personal observation is sufficient. This is a direct rejection of scientific methodology. Ecological population trends cannot be determined by individual impressions or anecdotal experience; they require systematic sampling, long-term monitoring, and statistical analysis. Personal observation is subject to well-known biases, including shifting baselines and selective memory. Declaring that evidence is unnecessary substitutes subjective perception for measurement. This approach is indistinguishable from the kind of anti-scientific reasoning that evidence-based environmental research is supposed to replace.

5. When the US Food and Drug Administration conducted a human health study with six healthy men, each man reported his heart pounding, then one dropped out.

Carew cites a human health study involving six participants as if it were meaningful evidence about safety. A sample size of six people is far too small to support any generalizable conclusions about human health effects. Studies with such tiny cohorts are typically preliminary observations used to generate hypotheses, not to establish risk. Presenting such a result as substantive evidence is an example of cherry-picking: selecting a small, dramatic fragment of the literature while ignoring the much larger body of toxicological and epidemiological research that actually informs regulatory decisions.

6. ...maybe governments should subsidise healthy, affordable food, like organic fruit and veg, instead of spending our billions propping up unhealthy, polluting factory farms

The suggestion that governments should simply replace conventional agriculture with organic farming ignores the basic constraints of agricultural productivity. Organic systems generally produce lower yields than conventional systems, largely because they restrict the use of many effective synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Large-scale analyses estimate average yield gaps on the order of roughly 20–30 percent depending on crop and region. If all arable land were converted to organic production while maintaining current demand, substantially more land would be required to produce the same amount of food. In practice that would mean either converting forests and other natural ecosystems into farmland or accepting a large reduction in total food supply. Estimates of global food demand suggest that a large-scale yield reduction of this magnitude would translate into severe shortages affecting a significant fraction of the global population.

The claim that organic agriculture reduces pesticide exposure is also frequently misunderstood. Organic farming does not eliminate pesticides; it substitutes “natural” pesticides that are approved under organic standards. Many of these compounds are less targeted and less effective than modern synthetic pesticides, which means they often have to be applied more frequently or in higher quantities to achieve the same pest control. Evaluating pesticide risk requires looking at toxicity, environmental persistence, and application rates together, not assuming that “natural” automatically means safer.

7. Grey Owl’s story is of a man who made himself up. Or put himself together. The point is, the ‘lie’ doesn’t matter, it is what he became and what he did. His truth to himself.

The book also contains clear racist double standards. Carew criticizes Indigenous people broadly for maintaining traditional practices, yet she excuses the actions of Grey Owl—a white Englishman named Archibald Belaney who falsely claimed Indigenous identity for decades. Belaney built a public career in Canada presenting himself as a Native conservationist while fabricating his background and ancestry. Carew dismisses the deception as irrelevant and frames it as a kind of personal authenticity. This position trivializes the appropriation of Indigenous identity while simultaneously condemning the actual cultures being appropriated. Criticizing Indigenous communities while excusing a white man who impersonated them is not just inconsistent; it reflects a plainly racist hierarchy of whose identity and traditions are treated as legitimate.

(Nate Tricowi)

[Larissa Moon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intense, intelligent and brilliant. If this doesn’t win the Wainwright prize then I quit reading nature books.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found that the strongest points of the book were the actual information and Keggie Carew’s dedication to the cause of animal and ecosystem protection. There was the occasional humorous wording and some lightness and cleverness. However, by-and-large, I found the writing to be too poetic and too preachy for my taste. A few times I asked myself if I wanted to finish the book. But I did finish because I felt that Carew’s message was too important to miss out on. Thank you to Edelweiss and Abrams Press for the digital review copy.

[Jordan Rohrlich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written and deeply researched. A collection of quirky and fascinating stories about our relationship with animals. A little lighter on "so what", but a great journey nonetheless

[Amy White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beastly, by Keggie Carew is a lively and informative ramble through the history of our relationship to the wild animals of our planet. The relationship is problematic to be sure and Carew reaches far back, even into the story of Genesis, from which some of our ideas about how animals should be treated first arose. As we travel through time we are introduced to the role that people such as Descartes, Linneaus, and of course Darwin played in formalizing and structuring that thinking. There are heroes such as Rachel Carson who understood the devastating impact that DDT was having on bird populations and villains like Harry Harlow whose heartless studies on motherless monkeys help illustrate that the way we have gone about experiments with animals brings to light as much or more about the character and characteristics of those who do the testing as it does the subjects of the test. While much of the book is difficult reading because of the size and scale of the devastation we have sown in the animal world, in the end Carew does attempt to save our own hope for the future from complete extinction. There are valuable ideas in the closing chapters if those in power who can pass new legislation around the world would just listen and she highlights some of the positive impacts that private citizens have had on animal populations by allowing landholdings to revert back into their natural states. Throughout the book there are also personal anecdotes and some humorous descriptions of interactions with animals that treat us to a laugh or two when we need it the most. Narrator Pippa Haywood does a wonderful job as narrator and reads with such attention and enthusiasm that without knowing better, one might think she were the author herself. Thank you to NetGalley for providing the early preview.

[J Kromrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

Beastly is a captivating and insightful exploration of the long and complex relationship between humans and animals, from the dawn of civilization to the present day. The author, Keggie Carew, is an award-winning writer and a passionate advocate for animal rights. She draws on her own experiences, as well as stories from history, science, literature, and art, to reveal how animals have shaped our minds, our lives, our land, and our civilization.

Carew challenges the common assumption that humans are superior to animals and that nature exists to serve us. She argues that this view is based on a flawed philosophy called scala naturae, which was popularized by Aristotle and later adopted by many cultures. She shows how this philosophy has led to the exploitation, oppression, and destruction of animals throughout history, as well as the loss of biodiversity and ecological balance.

Carew also celebrates the diversity and intelligence of animal life, from the smallest insects to the largest whales. She shares fascinating anecdotes about how humans have interacted with animals in various ways: as companions, as helpers, as sources of food, clothing, medicine, entertainment, inspiration, and more. She also examines how animals have influenced human culture: in myths, legends, religions, art forms such as music and literature.

Beastly is a gorgeously written book that combines personal narrative with rigorous research. It is a thrilling journey into the splendor and genius of animals and the long story of our relationship with them as humans. It is also a timely reminder that we are part of nature and that we depend on it for our survival. Beastly is not only a book about animals; it is also a book about ourselves.

[Joe Downie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This really is an incredible, unusual book - full of passion, detail and sometimes sheer CAPITAL LETTERS ANGER as Carew explores how we, the allegedly "intelligent ape" got into this sorry state.

The style is accessible and chatty, almost disarmingly so, yet it's all meticulously researched, as she flits across the centuries and the continents, finding fascinating new angles on familiar stories and topics (Silent Spring, pollinators, factory farming, rewilding, bycatch, shifting baselines, trophy hunting, keystone species, and so much more...), interspersed with "love, actually" vignettes about incredible wildlife-lovers that were all completely new to me.

At times it reads a bit like an Adam Curtis documenatary on our relationship with animals; different threads in the story sort of come together, and sort of don't - as the great tapestry of life unfurls before our very eyes.

This is a tragic book in many ways. Humans - what have we done? - but it ends with a hint of positivity, showing that it is possible to turn things around if we just STOP and give animals the space and peace they need to get on and do their thing, which will in turn help us out of the hole we've dug for ourselves.

It will be a confirmatory, perhaps comforting, read for the minority of humans already tuned into the loss of a decimated natural world, and already experiencing the acute sadness and rage of eco-anxiety and solastalgia. But it should also be a mandatory read for every politician, CEO - hell, every adult who can read and *isn't* yet aware of the scale of the damage we're doing to our more-than-human friends and this beautiful green-blue planet Earth that we all call home.

[Rachel Heinrich]

Not what I expected - which was historical thoughts on human interaction with other species. Nor well organized- very stream of consciousness style with the author bouncing all over the place.

And certainly not well documented- many many “facts” did not have any sort of source note. While the author describes a conversation where she does not have sources ready to cite in defending her arguments, in a book of this sort, evidence should be documented and there is plenty of time to include this. I wondered about some things that I would have liked to look into more.

And then I ran into a section about the wolves in Yellowstone that mentions the International Wolf Center … in the same paragraph. What it doesn’t mention is that the International Wolf Center is a thousand miles away in northern Minnesota. The author talks about the wolves there - without adding the context that the specific individuals she describes are being kept in a separate enclosure due to age or health concerns. No source information at the end for ANY of that section- either the Yellowstone wolves or the Minnesota wolves. Having personal information about the Minnesota organization (I live in the town where it is located) that gave me context makes me wonder how much of the rest of the book is similarly cobbled together to support her platform.

Do we have responsibilities to the planet? I would say yes (and would have said that before reading this book). Would I want this author to be the spokesperson for change? No - passion for a cause doesn’t mean effectiveness.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I listened to the audio book, ready by Pippa Haywood.

Not a huge fan of the narration, it was a bit breathy, worthy, and 'keen'. I would allow that may have been due to the writing that she was interpreting.

Golly. So many lists to say the same when describing one thing. For example describing a cave painting:
"Wealding spears, choreography of flickering movement, Silhouettes of man beasts in antlers, voices from behind rocks, whisperings of storytellers, mimicry of owls, the bellows of bison, the piping of flutes, the rattle of seed pods, drumming on skins, beating on wood".

and

We lived hunting, foraging, protecting our young, bringing firewood to our dens.

We made up with our skills: hunting, sharp spears, stone toos, tricks, teamwork, butchery, cooking, co operation, and lau.nguage.

We knew every plant, root, nut, berry, seed. Every drinking place, every termite mound, every nest.

It just seemed to be endless lists of things. Every concept had a list attached to describe it. It was tedious.

I read the reviews after I had listened to about 30 mins and from the reviews gleaned that it was going to turn into a book about how humans had mistreated and exploited animals. I really didn't want to read that. I have a hard enough time knowing just from the knowledge I already have and social media, and I am a vegetarian for that very reason. I thought it was an ecological book in the vein of 'Entangled life" or "Underland"

Stopped listening at that point (20 - 30 minutes in).

A book that is not for me.

[Elisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this a beautiful, but hard read, Carew explores the relationship between humans and other animals. How we’ve used and abused them through the beginning of humankind, but also how some of us have loved them. In this book, there is love, and pain and suffering. As an animal lover myself, I identified with many of the situations here. I had to skip some graphic details about farming techniques or just plain cruelty. There is some science, but it is always approachable. I loved the many anecdotes and the anthropomorphizing which the author, as most readers of these type of books understand is the kryptonite of “serious” researchers. Some parts, about conservation and political measures that can be taken to save the planet, were a little too dry for me, but the joy she takes in all her interactions with all these creatures is contagious. This is a great book for animal lovers because it does give you hope that our attitudes are changing. Maybe not the planet as a whole, but every day there are more converts to the cause. All in all, an uplifting book.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, #NetGalley/#Abrams Press!

[Louise Foerster · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was very young, my favorite book was a shiny hardcover collection of animal stories. For years, I read about the wild animals I'd never seen, the familiar ones I now saw differently when I knew more about who they were and how they saw the world. BEASTLY by Keggie Carew has taken over the top spot in my animal story-loving heart with wonderful, poetic stories about our encounters and misadventures, all the way we surprise one another as human and fellow inhabitants of Planet Earth. Truly a remarkable, wise, and deeply considered exploration about how animals make us more human, entrancing me from the first pages with a story of an owl landing on a dog walker's head through stories of the horrors and wonders of "scientific" investigation that boggle the mind as well as cautionary and heartwarming stories about what can happen when we forget ourselves and are simply animals with other animals. A beautiful, stunning, inspiring book -- highly recommended. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

[Lisa Konet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read and should be a mandatory book for all people who love and have compassion/empathy for animals. Not just cats and dogs. This book gives you all the emotions and is definitely a call to action for drastic conservation numbers and efforts to dramatically the carbon footprint of people.

Every animal has a place in the animal kingdom food-chain which is its own system of checks and balances. Humans taking habitat away and decreasing safe places to live for most animals is detrimental and catastrophic. If this book does not fill you with some sense of digust and rage, then you are not paying attention.

This book is necessary for every person on the planet to read. I am definitely purchasing a copy of this and recommending everyone I know to read it.

Thanks for the author and her point of views and call to action for drastic action to help with the conservation efforts for every animal.

Thanks to NetGalley, Keggie Carew and Abrams Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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[Flint · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a bit of a hard slog to get through despite the writing being in short bursts.

This is for two reasons:

1. Much of it is Depressing. However, that isn't much of a reason to turn away from this book, because, as Depressing as it is, it's true. In that sense, it's one of those books that should be read.

2. It doesn't appear to have much 'order,' and I couldn't always fathom if there was supposed to be a specific connection to each essay.

Despite the flaws of this book, it's got an important message, and it does get itself across. It's just whether you have the patience to read through it all. For that reason, if you're new to climate change and species decline, it's possibly not the best book to begin with.

What can't be changed, though, no matter what book you read on this topic (that's being truthful about it), is the Depressing nature of much of it.

But she does end the book on a much more hopeful note, which I certainly appreciated after the marathon of reading this book.

[Ryan · Rating 2 out of 5]

An emotional, often times ranting and long winded book that was very randomly organized and without a unifying theme other than anecdotes and reflections of the writer about some places she had visited, or people from history who had forged close relationships with wild animals. Though I do agree with most of her pro-nature/wildlife/animal opinions, I reckon the exasperation and sarcastic tone would have the counter effect of distancing herself from those who would disagree. There were sections that I did enjoy, mostly factual information about ecology and natural history, and the detailed description of industrial animal slaughter was sobering as it should be. But it all got lost in the random trajectories the book kept taking, and the overbearing way which animal welfare concerns were being shoved down the reader's throat.

I must say that the title of the book is clever, the word 'beastly' ironically referring to humankind and not animals, though it was anything but a real narrative history of the topic, in the normal sense of the word.

[Leanne Clydesdale · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has really inspired me!

I have enjoyed Keggie's writing style and how they intersperse personal stories and experiences with stories that truly demonstrate our relationship with animals.
It wasn't what I was expected, and the irregular and vague chapter names definitely leave you wondering where you're going next - but overall it was refreshing to not read the same chronology of humans history with animals that other books rightly explore.

It was great to really hear the passion in their words and to understand where the passion has come from. And I could really get behind the campaigns and movements, and lifestyle changes that were being explored. Not to mention that Keggie was able to recognise their own impact along the way.

It was suitably infuriating, intriguing, characterful, fondly nostalgic and hopeful. As someone who is writing their own book about how we can help build a better relationship with animals - I hope to strike the same balance. Will definitely read again and share with others to read!

[Rae Swon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartbreaking.

I admire Carew's view that emotion has a place in science and that it is rational to have an emotional response to what is happening to our world and the animals we ought to share it with.

She also calls out scientific culture for insisting that the burden of proof lay on scientists to prove emotions, pain, etc in other animals, rather than starting from an assumption that animals are similar to us (we are animals with shared evolution after all!).

I also admire her bravery for talking about what happens on factory farms. Though I have a firmer belief in individuals choices making a difference than her. If every American gave up meat on Mondays, it would save 1.4 billion animals in a year. And, according to study in the Journal of Industrial Ecology, our household spending accounts for 65% of global emissions. I'm not holding my breath for corporations or governments to do the right thing, it's up to us to boycott the evils of the world as our dollars and an evolving culture is what will force the hand of corporations and change laws.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A long, interesting non-fiction book, with stories, facts, opinions, emotion, quirks, and funnily enough - animals. Though it should come with a warning - This Book May Turn You Into A Vegetarian! Ironically, Keggie isn't, but only apparently just. More easily to listen/read than a boring fact book, this has tales, biographical tales, scientific stories, as well as the odd fact, from fish, to birds, to the mammals. Will appeal to those down under as well, as although Keggie is, I assume, British, she also has lived in NZ, so has included stories from Oceania which is nice. Even though some of the bias does sometimes come on a little strong, there is also hope at the end with some good facts and tales about what is currently being done about the animals of the world. There's also a mention of the wonders of Covid (which I guess is probably why she was writing this - something to do during lockdown) and the audio was easy to listen to.

[Perry Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 2 ½

This book is very much what the subtitle suggests: the history of humans and animals. If you want the full synopsis, check it out, but I’m here to explain why it didn’t quite meet my expectations—expectations that probably would have been curbed had I read the synopsis myself.

1- Yes, this gives a history of humans and animals, but I was expecting more of a history of humans and animals, not a censure of how we are to blame for everything gone wrong in the animals world. Is it true? Yes. It is important to recognize? Yes. This just isn’t what I wanted from the book. Probably my fault for diving in blind, but 🤷🏼‍♀️.

2- It is a LONG book. It took much longer to listen to than I anticipated, and I listened at 1.25x speed. Would it have seemed shorter had I been enjoying it? Probably.

I’m summation, if you are looking to be lectured on the evils of man in the animal kingdom, this is the book for you. If you’re looking for a fun glimpse into the interesting relationships formed between humans and animals, it is not.

[Janalyn, the blind reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let me just say that I enjoyed this book so much from the common sense to the facts about apes wolves elephants and so much more this book is long and it took me three different settings to finish it but OMG I am glad I did I loved the narrator the stories the comparisons to people it was just so good they dispelled nyths told stories in all in the aim of educating the Lesnar on our history with the animals. There is so much to love about this book and I could go on and on but just know if you’re contemplating reading this book it is so worth getting. It’s not just dry academic facts about animals but funny stories, serious stories, origin stories it’s just full of just awesome goodness. A definite five star read for adults and children alike. I want to think the publisher and NetGalley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

[Nora · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook and very much enjoyed the author's story about the balancing act between humans and animals, but I will admit, some of the detail was more than I bargained for so I skimmed some chapters lightly. I was delighted to hear of progress we have made with wolves, and various birds, including storks in the UK; how efforts to repopulate various species of tigers has had positive results. I acknowledge in my own subdivision, the deer have no where to go so my yard is quite appealing. The ability of birds and mammals to use tools, teach each other, figure out obstacles -- is strong evidence that many species have higher functioning brains than many have credited them with.