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Reindeer: An Arctic Life
A stunning natural history – the perfect read for a winter’s night in front of the fire
In this enchanting book, self-confessed reindeer geek Tilly Smith leads the reader through the extraordinary natural history of the reindeer with charming anecdotes about her own Scottish herd.
A creature that is often used to adorn the winter season, the reindeer has been domesticated in Eurasia for longer than the horse while in North America it exists side by side with the humans, never tamed yet vital to the native settlements. Despite the popularity of the image of the reindeer, they are rarely seen in real life.
This beautiful, comforting little book, peppered with anecdotes about the author’s own herd, is sure to kindle affection for one of nature’s most adaptable mammals, from fur-covered hooves to downy antlers.
In this enchanting book, self-confessed reindeer geek Tilly Smith leads the reader through the extraordinary natural history of the reindeer with charming anecdotes about her own Scottish herd.
A creature that is often used to adorn the winter season, the reindeer has been domesticated in Eurasia for longer than the horse while in North America it exists side by side with the humans, never tamed yet vital to the native settlements. Despite the popularity of the image of the reindeer, they are rarely seen in real life.
This beautiful, comforting little book, peppered with anecdotes about the author’s own herd, is sure to kindle affection for one of nature’s most adaptable mammals, from fur-covered hooves to downy antlers.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
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November 15, 2019A few years ago I happened to see what I felt was an amazing piece of television - a camera on a sleigh filmed two Sami women as they travelled through a snow covered landscape. Sometimes they walked sometimes they rested on a sleigh. The sleighs were pulled by reindeer. The film ran on seemingly at a reindeer's walking pace. It was intense and compelling viewing, the landscape changing pace by reindeer pace, for a long shocking sequence another sleigh approached from the opposite direction it seemed almost overwhelming the sudden rush of extra visual detail but happily that moment passed and the screen reverted to a bare landscape of snow and black naked trees.
Perhaps since then I have a singular delight in all things reindeer related, or maybe that has more to do with my habit of growing antlers each year and shedding them after the rutting season, I don't know, it is hard to say.
Anyway if you like reindeer this is a nice book, mild but satisfying, like yoghurt. It is also a pretty book, in hardback it looks like a little off-white box, much of the book is illustrated by what look to be lino prints - all unattributed which is a pity, the spacing throughout is very generous - lots of white space. Whether to bulk the book out or to subconsciously suggest an Arctic environment I could not say, but the effect is very restful.
The chapters alternate between general ones about reindeer and ones about the herd of reindeer that hang about in the Cairngorms in Scotland. It emerges this herd has a curious story, the reindeer are the descendants of those imported from Sweden after WWII, apparently to provide a supply of dog food in the years of post war rationing and was the dream of Dr Ethel Lindgren - scion of a Swedish-American banking family and her second husband Mikel Utsi a Sami gentleman with a varied career, Dr Lindgren herself had a lively time as a student researching reindeer herding peoples in Mongolia and parts of the Soviet Union. If their reindeer ever ended up feeding Britain's hungry dogs the book doesn't explain, indeed the economics of the business are completely opaque though they seem to have a reindeer adoption scheme which to my mind does not sit comfortably with a reindeer into dog-food business plan. In her old age Dr Lindgren attempted to run the herd remotely over the telephone from Cambridge, the author acted as an unpaid volunteer for her on the ground in Scotland until she married the official reindeer herdsman.
The rest of the book is made up of descriptions of visits to various reindeer festivals, brief and curious anecdotes about attempts to settle reindeer in South Georgia and in Canada both as an attempt to domesticate the Inuit and to assist in the Yukon gold rush. There is some discussion of the history of reindeer - that they make have been domesticated in different ways in different regions of the Arctic circle judging by the variety of harness types. The Siberian Tungus people ride reindeer - reindeer have weaker backs than horses so the saddle has to sit on the reindeer's shoulders and reindeer are apparently attracted to human urine which may have helped people domesticate reindeer in the first place - sadly there is a shortage of reindeer in this area so I can not test the idea for myself.
Reindeer are curious creatures, among their oddities white reindeer tend to be deaf - so beware when you are out buying reindeer - and while reindeer cows only very rarely have twins they have more teats than sheep. Crafty reindeer calves take advantage of this by approaching a nursing cow from her lea side and latching on for a cunning quick suckle while she is distracted with her own calf.
A charming read but overshadowed by an uncertain future as creatures adapted to surviving in extremely cold environments will have to cope with warming temperatures.
Perhaps since then I have a singular delight in all things reindeer related, or maybe that has more to do with my habit of growing antlers each year and shedding them after the rutting season, I don't know, it is hard to say.
Anyway if you like reindeer this is a nice book, mild but satisfying, like yoghurt. It is also a pretty book, in hardback it looks like a little off-white box, much of the book is illustrated by what look to be lino prints - all unattributed which is a pity, the spacing throughout is very generous - lots of white space. Whether to bulk the book out or to subconsciously suggest an Arctic environment I could not say, but the effect is very restful.
The chapters alternate between general ones about reindeer and ones about the herd of reindeer that hang about in the Cairngorms in Scotland. It emerges this herd has a curious story, the reindeer are the descendants of those imported from Sweden after WWII, apparently to provide a supply of dog food in the years of post war rationing and was the dream of Dr Ethel Lindgren - scion of a Swedish-American banking family and her second husband Mikel Utsi a Sami gentleman with a varied career, Dr Lindgren herself had a lively time as a student researching reindeer herding peoples in Mongolia and parts of the Soviet Union. If their reindeer ever ended up feeding Britain's hungry dogs the book doesn't explain, indeed the economics of the business are completely opaque though they seem to have a reindeer adoption scheme which to my mind does not sit comfortably with a reindeer into dog-food business plan. In her old age Dr Lindgren attempted to run the herd remotely over the telephone from Cambridge, the author acted as an unpaid volunteer for her on the ground in Scotland until she married the official reindeer herdsman.
The rest of the book is made up of descriptions of visits to various reindeer festivals, brief and curious anecdotes about attempts to settle reindeer in South Georgia and in Canada both as an attempt to domesticate the Inuit and to assist in the Yukon gold rush. There is some discussion of the history of reindeer - that they make have been domesticated in different ways in different regions of the Arctic circle judging by the variety of harness types. The Siberian Tungus people ride reindeer - reindeer have weaker backs than horses so the saddle has to sit on the reindeer's shoulders and reindeer are apparently attracted to human urine which may have helped people domesticate reindeer in the first place - sadly there is a shortage of reindeer in this area so I can not test the idea for myself.
Reindeer are curious creatures, among their oddities white reindeer tend to be deaf - so beware when you are out buying reindeer - and while reindeer cows only very rarely have twins they have more teats than sheep. Crafty reindeer calves take advantage of this by approaching a nursing cow from her lea side and latching on for a cunning quick suckle while she is distracted with her own calf.
A charming read but overshadowed by an uncertain future as creatures adapted to surviving in extremely cold environments will have to cope with warming temperatures.
October 5, 2023
This is probably more of a me book than a popular one: reindeer are one of my favourite animals.
This was a sweet story by a reindeer-ophile, about her lifelong experience as a reindeer herder. The herd of about 150 are the offspring of a small herd brought over by a Swedish reindeer herder to Scotland, after visiting Cairngorm and noticing a similar landscape.
The book provides easily digestable pieces of information about reindeer without sounding dry. I actually took 50 notes on Kindle, and hard as it was to narrow down, below are three of my favourite quotes:
“The two-layered coat of reindeer is incredibly dense: 670 hairs per cm2 for the longer hollow hair and 2,000 hairs per cm2 for the woolly undercoat.”
“A train of white reindeer, each one pulling a traditional Pulka (a boat-shaped sledge) and led by a Sami reindeer herder in full dress, from his ornate hat to his reindeer skin boots with turned-up toes.”
“Indeed, the Sami reindeer herders have a wonderful saying: ‘If you give the reindeer their freedom they come back to you.’ And this is so true.”
The story covers how reindeer live each season, interaction with other herders, and cute stories about reindeer antics. I’m fascinated by animals that living in harsh environments and I found it so amazing to learn about all the physiological attributes they have enabling them to thrive in their environment.
I can’t think of a single negative about this book. It was well written, easy to read, interesting and special.
This was a sweet story by a reindeer-ophile, about her lifelong experience as a reindeer herder. The herd of about 150 are the offspring of a small herd brought over by a Swedish reindeer herder to Scotland, after visiting Cairngorm and noticing a similar landscape.
The book provides easily digestable pieces of information about reindeer without sounding dry. I actually took 50 notes on Kindle, and hard as it was to narrow down, below are three of my favourite quotes:
“The two-layered coat of reindeer is incredibly dense: 670 hairs per cm2 for the longer hollow hair and 2,000 hairs per cm2 for the woolly undercoat.”
“A train of white reindeer, each one pulling a traditional Pulka (a boat-shaped sledge) and led by a Sami reindeer herder in full dress, from his ornate hat to his reindeer skin boots with turned-up toes.”
“Indeed, the Sami reindeer herders have a wonderful saying: ‘If you give the reindeer their freedom they come back to you.’ And this is so true.”
The story covers how reindeer live each season, interaction with other herders, and cute stories about reindeer antics. I’m fascinated by animals that living in harsh environments and I found it so amazing to learn about all the physiological attributes they have enabling them to thrive in their environment.
I can’t think of a single negative about this book. It was well written, easy to read, interesting and special.
November 4, 2023
Hreinn dýr (Old Norse: Reindeer Animal)
Review of The History Press hardcover edition (2019), an expanded & enhanced edition of the original The Real Rudolph: A Natural History of the Reindeer (2006).
With my Estonian heritage I'm always on the lookout for the arts and culture of the greater family of Finno-Ugric & Samoyedic peoples. Sometimes this means coming across international films at the annual TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival). These are often off the beaten track and will only play on the Festival circuit without having a general theatrical release. Several that I've seen in the past have been Seven Songs from the Tundra (1999), A Bride of the Seventh Heaven (2004), Celestial Wives of the Meadow Mari (2012) and Sami Blood (2016). Often the films deal with the various tribal mythologies and the issues of preserving ancient indigenous cultures in the modern world.
With the current Buffy Sainte-Marie controversy here in Canada, I like to remember that we were all indigenous once in our ancestral roots. I also remember Canadian indigenous actor Gary Farmer introducing Sami singer Mari Boine back at a WOMAD Festival concert here in Toronto (probably it was in 1989 as her Gula Gula album had just come out) by commenting that it was also "the first time he had ever met a blond, blue-eyed aboriginal person."
So, anyway, back to the reindeer. At TIFF 2023 I saw the Sami/Norwegian reindeer herding film The Tundra Within Me directed by Sara Margrethe Oskal, who was herself once a reindeer herder and now works to promote the Sami reindeer culture through the arts. Shortly after that I read a terrific 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review by my GR friend SportyRod about Tilly Smith's book, so of course I had to read it as well.
The author Tilly Smith photographed with some of her Cairngorm Reindeer Herd. Image sourced from a BBC photo series The Reindeer that call Scotland's Cairngorms home. (December 14, 2018).
The book is mainly about the Cairngorm Reindeer Herd in Scotland. Smith and her family have been looking after the herd for 40 years, having inherited it from its 1952 founders, the Sami herder Mikel Utsi and his wife Dr. Ethel Lindgren. Smith details the history of the Cairngorm herd (which is a modest 150 animals) but also details the history of various reindeer herding cultures worldwide and goes into the life cycles of those same reindeer (known as caribou in North America). There are some rather incredible statistics, such as the 5,000 km. migratory pattern of some Alaskan caribou, the longest annual migration of any land-dwelling animal on earth. All in all, this book has everything you ever wanted to know about reindeer. It only lacks in photographs, but is instead supplemented with reindeer artistic graphics. There are plentiful Cairngorm Reindeer Herd photographs on the web though to remind you how cute the animals can be.
A close-up photograph of a Cairngorm reindeer.
Soundtrack
As mentioned above, I enjoyed revisiting Mari Boine's Gula Gula (1989) album.
Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbarek did a jazz-fusion version of the Gula Gula title track on his "I Took Up the Runes" (1990) album.
Review of The History Press hardcover edition (2019), an expanded & enhanced edition of the original The Real Rudolph: A Natural History of the Reindeer (2006).
With my Estonian heritage I'm always on the lookout for the arts and culture of the greater family of Finno-Ugric & Samoyedic peoples. Sometimes this means coming across international films at the annual TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival). These are often off the beaten track and will only play on the Festival circuit without having a general theatrical release. Several that I've seen in the past have been Seven Songs from the Tundra (1999), A Bride of the Seventh Heaven (2004), Celestial Wives of the Meadow Mari (2012) and Sami Blood (2016). Often the films deal with the various tribal mythologies and the issues of preserving ancient indigenous cultures in the modern world.
With the current Buffy Sainte-Marie controversy here in Canada, I like to remember that we were all indigenous once in our ancestral roots. I also remember Canadian indigenous actor Gary Farmer introducing Sami singer Mari Boine back at a WOMAD Festival concert here in Toronto (probably it was in 1989 as her Gula Gula album had just come out) by commenting that it was also "the first time he had ever met a blond, blue-eyed aboriginal person."
So, anyway, back to the reindeer. At TIFF 2023 I saw the Sami/Norwegian reindeer herding film The Tundra Within Me directed by Sara Margrethe Oskal, who was herself once a reindeer herder and now works to promote the Sami reindeer culture through the arts. Shortly after that I read a terrific 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review by my GR friend SportyRod about Tilly Smith's book, so of course I had to read it as well.
The author Tilly Smith photographed with some of her Cairngorm Reindeer Herd. Image sourced from a BBC photo series The Reindeer that call Scotland's Cairngorms home. (December 14, 2018).
The book is mainly about the Cairngorm Reindeer Herd in Scotland. Smith and her family have been looking after the herd for 40 years, having inherited it from its 1952 founders, the Sami herder Mikel Utsi and his wife Dr. Ethel Lindgren. Smith details the history of the Cairngorm herd (which is a modest 150 animals) but also details the history of various reindeer herding cultures worldwide and goes into the life cycles of those same reindeer (known as caribou in North America). There are some rather incredible statistics, such as the 5,000 km. migratory pattern of some Alaskan caribou, the longest annual migration of any land-dwelling animal on earth. All in all, this book has everything you ever wanted to know about reindeer. It only lacks in photographs, but is instead supplemented with reindeer artistic graphics. There are plentiful Cairngorm Reindeer Herd photographs on the web though to remind you how cute the animals can be.
A close-up photograph of a Cairngorm reindeer.
Soundtrack
As mentioned above, I enjoyed revisiting Mari Boine's Gula Gula (1989) album.
Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbarek did a jazz-fusion version of the Gula Gula title track on his "I Took Up the Runes" (1990) album.
November 15, 2017
This is a better fair book about reindeer. The drawback is that a good portion of it feels like it simply should be about the herd she manages. I would have preferred more information about the other cultures.
January 13, 2020
Tilly Smith's Reindeer: An Arctic Life, which has been recently reissued in a lovely hardback edition, was a book which I wanted to incorporate into my winter reading. Thankfully, I found a copy whilst browsing in the library, and settled down with it on a chilly Sunday afternoon. The book was first released in 2006, and was originally entitled The Real Rudolph.
I love books about animals and the natural world, but have never read anything specifically about reindeer before. The blurb describes Smith's memoir of sorts as follows: 'In this enchanting book, self-confessed "reindeer geek" Tilly Smith leads the reader through the extraordinary natural history of the reindeer with charming anecdotes about her own Scottish herd.' Smith is the owner of Britain's only 'free-living' herd of reindeer, which roam in the Cairngorms in Scotland, an area which provides 'Britain's only sub-arctic habitat'.
Reindeer have lived in the Cairngorms since 1952, as part of a move to reintroduce the species into Scotland. The country 'offered a habitat very similar to their homeland [of] Lapland', and as a result, the herd thrived. One of the really interesting elements of Reindeer: An Arctic Life is the information about the couple - Sami Mikel Utsi and his wife, Dr Ethel John Lindgren - who were responsible for reintroducing the animals.
Reindeer: An Arctic Life has been split into 15 chapters, which feature details about Smith's reindeer. It also, quite sweetly I felt, includes a reindeer family tree, with not a Rudolph in sight. In her first chapter, Smith writes of the adverse weather conditions about to hit the Cairngorms, complete with 100mph winds. She then comments: 'In Alaska, one of the countries where caribou are naturally found, they say there are only two seasons, "snow" and "no snow", and caribou thrive there. They are lowly Arctic animals, totally at home in the coldest places in the world.' During the wintry storm, therefore, the reindeer are quite in their element. Reindeer, Smith tells us, 'are amazing creatures; their coat is so well insulated that they can lie on the snow without melting it. Also, snow that lands on their backs doesn't melt - it remains frozen and can itself add to the insulation...'.
Reindeer: An Arctic Life is peppered with lovely woodcut illustrations. Interesting facts about reindeer - called caribou in some countries - have been placed into small grey text boxes, and placed throughout. Whilst I did enjoy reading these, their random placement was a little off-putting, and it was a little difficult to concentrate on the main body of text in consequence. These facts could have easily been incorporated into the narrative, and did sometimes repeat details which had already been written about.
Smith's writing is fine, but at no point did I feel blown away by it. She does include a lot of information and detail - different species of reindeer and their habitats, as well as the way in which the creatures have adapted over time; how different seasons affect the herds; how reindeers socialise with one another; and the human influence upon reindeer, from the destruction of vital habitats, to the close bonds which can be formed between human and reindeer - but I felt that there was a strange lack of emotion throughout. Some of the chapters end very abruptly too.
Whilst Reindeer: An Arctic Life is a nice enough wintry read, it lacks a little something - perhaps due to the overall detachment of Smith's commentary. I would recommend it for anyone keen to learn more about reindeer and their reintroduction to the United Kingdom, but it is by no means the best written book which looks at a single species.
I love books about animals and the natural world, but have never read anything specifically about reindeer before. The blurb describes Smith's memoir of sorts as follows: 'In this enchanting book, self-confessed "reindeer geek" Tilly Smith leads the reader through the extraordinary natural history of the reindeer with charming anecdotes about her own Scottish herd.' Smith is the owner of Britain's only 'free-living' herd of reindeer, which roam in the Cairngorms in Scotland, an area which provides 'Britain's only sub-arctic habitat'.
Reindeer have lived in the Cairngorms since 1952, as part of a move to reintroduce the species into Scotland. The country 'offered a habitat very similar to their homeland [of] Lapland', and as a result, the herd thrived. One of the really interesting elements of Reindeer: An Arctic Life is the information about the couple - Sami Mikel Utsi and his wife, Dr Ethel John Lindgren - who were responsible for reintroducing the animals.
Reindeer: An Arctic Life has been split into 15 chapters, which feature details about Smith's reindeer. It also, quite sweetly I felt, includes a reindeer family tree, with not a Rudolph in sight. In her first chapter, Smith writes of the adverse weather conditions about to hit the Cairngorms, complete with 100mph winds. She then comments: 'In Alaska, one of the countries where caribou are naturally found, they say there are only two seasons, "snow" and "no snow", and caribou thrive there. They are lowly Arctic animals, totally at home in the coldest places in the world.' During the wintry storm, therefore, the reindeer are quite in their element. Reindeer, Smith tells us, 'are amazing creatures; their coat is so well insulated that they can lie on the snow without melting it. Also, snow that lands on their backs doesn't melt - it remains frozen and can itself add to the insulation...'.
Reindeer: An Arctic Life is peppered with lovely woodcut illustrations. Interesting facts about reindeer - called caribou in some countries - have been placed into small grey text boxes, and placed throughout. Whilst I did enjoy reading these, their random placement was a little off-putting, and it was a little difficult to concentrate on the main body of text in consequence. These facts could have easily been incorporated into the narrative, and did sometimes repeat details which had already been written about.
Smith's writing is fine, but at no point did I feel blown away by it. She does include a lot of information and detail - different species of reindeer and their habitats, as well as the way in which the creatures have adapted over time; how different seasons affect the herds; how reindeers socialise with one another; and the human influence upon reindeer, from the destruction of vital habitats, to the close bonds which can be formed between human and reindeer - but I felt that there was a strange lack of emotion throughout. Some of the chapters end very abruptly too.
Whilst Reindeer: An Arctic Life is a nice enough wintry read, it lacks a little something - perhaps due to the overall detachment of Smith's commentary. I would recommend it for anyone keen to learn more about reindeer and their reintroduction to the United Kingdom, but it is by no means the best written book which looks at a single species.
January 2, 2022
If I reflect a bit longer, I am perhaps being generous with my rating for this but that is neither here nor there.
This is a wonderfully informative book about reindeer and their lives and covers many aspects both of her own herd of reindeer in the Cairngorms and reindeer and herds from further afield. I learnt a lot from this book.
There were drawbacks though, in that there was some mention about the mythology and history of reindeer in other countries and the culture surrounding them but not in enough depth (in particular Mongolia- I really want to know more about that) and that it talks about the Cairngorm herd a lot but still feels fleeting with the other mentions from around the world too.
Despite these drawbacks there was still something about the book that made it a magical and informative read and worthy of the five star treatment.
This is a wonderfully informative book about reindeer and their lives and covers many aspects both of her own herd of reindeer in the Cairngorms and reindeer and herds from further afield. I learnt a lot from this book.
There were drawbacks though, in that there was some mention about the mythology and history of reindeer in other countries and the culture surrounding them but not in enough depth (in particular Mongolia- I really want to know more about that) and that it talks about the Cairngorm herd a lot but still feels fleeting with the other mentions from around the world too.
Despite these drawbacks there was still something about the book that made it a magical and informative read and worthy of the five star treatment.
December 17, 2025
• Charming book describing reindeer biology, the history of the Cairngorm herd, the different populations of reindeer, and man’s relationship with reindeer in various parts of the world.
• Filled with interesting facts and fun anecdotes, as well a gorgeous prints.
• I particularly enjoyed the story of the reindeer who had quite the journey in a submarine.
• Filled with interesting facts and fun anecdotes, as well a gorgeous prints.
• I particularly enjoyed the story of the reindeer who had quite the journey in a submarine.
June 25, 2024
demasiado tierno.
December 27, 2018
Huge reindeer fan here - hence the profile pic.
Nice little book about the Cairngorm Reindeer Herd (if you are ever in Scotland, go there!) and about reindeers in general.
I liked it. Short read, funny, nice anecdotes, easy to read.
Nice little book about the Cairngorm Reindeer Herd (if you are ever in Scotland, go there!) and about reindeers in general.
I liked it. Short read, funny, nice anecdotes, easy to read.
December 27, 2019
Such a sweet little book all about reindeer - loved how personal story and information about reindeer and cultures surrounding reindeer were interwoven with each other
October 13, 2022
Whilst the subject matter of this book is amazing (what's not to like about a furry nosed creature that has fur on its nose to stop its nose getting cold in the snow!), the writing feels basic and a little lethargic.
Whilst Tilly Smith seems passionate about her herd, there is sadly more discussion here of historic slaughter of reindeer than there is about current reindeer behaviour.
I feel we only get a surface helping of information about these amazing animals, rather than a truly in-depth look.
Beautiful illustrations throughout but passable writing and a book I'm not going to be returning to.
Whilst Tilly Smith seems passionate about her herd, there is sadly more discussion here of historic slaughter of reindeer than there is about current reindeer behaviour.
I feel we only get a surface helping of information about these amazing animals, rather than a truly in-depth look.
Beautiful illustrations throughout but passable writing and a book I'm not going to be returning to.
December 24, 2022
A animal we only tend to think of at Christmas, after all that is why this book was picked for my Nature bookclub December choice. I learnt so much about Reindeers, I never knew their food source was lichen & they can see ultra violet with no harmful effects which helps them find food sources.
I enjoyed the back story of the origins of the Cairngorm herd and the facts all about their bodies.
A very interesting read.
I enjoyed the back story of the origins of the Cairngorm herd and the facts all about their bodies.
A very interesting read.
December 19, 2021
Easy to read, fast reading, generally light popular science and history treatment of wild and domestic reindeer (and caribou, though the emphasis is overwhelmingly on reindeer). Nicely organized, well-illustrated, though it has end notes, a bibliography, and a thorough index it is very easily read by anyone with the most casual interest in the subject or who doesn’t normally read popular science books for fun. The author is definitely an expert, a previously published author on reindeer who is co-director with her husband of the Cairngorm Reindeer Centre near Aviemore in Scotland, with lots of hands-on experience managing reindeer herds at the Centre as well as traveling to see reindeer and reindeer husbandry in Sweden and Mongolia.
The book is divided into a preface and sixteen numbered chapters. Chapter one, “Who is Rudolph?” introduces the reader to the origins of the legend of Rudolph and some basic general information on reindeer. Among other things learned are that the scientific name for reindeer is Rangifer tarandus, reindeer are the only arctic species of deer, reindeer have a range that covers a fifth of the Earth’s surface, and a total world population of about 6 million. Reindeer as a name is Lappish in origin while the name caribou is a Micmac Indian word meaning “digger of snow.” The reindeer learns also about antlers, what they are made of, how they grow, and the fact that both males and females possess them.
Chapter two, “Rudolph’s Relations,” talks about the different types of reindeer and caribou. One group, Cylindricornis, is found in tundra and mountain environments and has antlers that are rounded in cross-section, while Compressicornis, found in forest, has flattened antlers. Cylindricornis is further subdivided into three continental reindeer subspecies (Barren Ground Caribou, famous for their massive annual migrations, Alaskan Caribou, also famously migratory, and the Eurasian Tundra Reindeer, which includes all domestic and wild reindeer found west of the Bering Straits in the tundra and taiga of Russia and Scandinavia) and two high-arctic subspecies that live on islands (Svalbard Reindeer, described as “short-legged, pot-bellied” and do not undergo any sort of migration and Peary Caribou, found only in the high arctic Queen Elizabeth Islands of arctic Canada). Compressicornis are woodland/forest subspecies, and include Eurasian Forest Reindeer (found throughout Russia from Karelen to Kamchatka) and the North American Woodland Caribou (“the grey ghosts of the forest,” found from British Columbia to Newfoundland). The author also notes two extinct subspecies, East Greenland Caribou and Queen Charlotte Island Caribou, both of which went extinct in the early 20th century.
Chapter three, “The Reindeer Year,” talks about a year in the life of a typical reindeer, what life is like in each season of the year, about the principal predators of reindeer, about mating, calving, and migration.
Chapter four talks about the adaptations reindeer have to their Arctic environment, spending a lot of time on reindeers’ hairy coat, what makes it such a great insulator and how it differs throughout the year. Also discussions of how reindeer deal with overheating (in spring and summer velvet-covered antlers work as radiators), how reindeer keep their extremities warm, how reindeer feet are adapted to deal with snow, and how reindeer communicate (apparently grunting causes the animals to lose heat so in the coldest months reindeer communicate with clicking their tendons).
Chapter five, “Feast and Famine,” talks about what reindeer eat throughout the year (didn’t know reindeer eat mushrooms) and something about what they eat (spending a good bit of time on lichen, the primary winter food for most populations of reindeer though not all of them).
Chapter six, “The Early Taming of Reindeer,” talks about the origins of domesticated reindeer and how it likely evolved from decoy hunting.
Chapter seven, “Farm Animal of the North,” continues the story of the domestication of reindeer, with the earliest records appearing to be 3,000-year-old cave paintings along the River Lena in Russia, how the Tungus of Siberia are credited by some as “the original domesticator of reindeer,” how different groups of people learned to ride the reindeer (and different groups learned different ways to ride them) while some groups never learned to ride reindeer. Also some information on how domestication changes the physical appearance and behavior of reindeer (generally they are smaller, have a shorter muzzle, and can be found with piebald or “salt and pepper” colorations).
Chapter eight, “Reindeer Cultures,” is a tour of the different groups in the world that make use of reindeer. We meet the Evenki of Russia (use their reindeer solely as beast of burden), the Chukchi and Koryaks of eastern Siberia (“renowned for keeping large numbers of reindeer”, with the rich among them having the most reindeer and “ate almost exclusively reindeer from their own herds”), the Samoyeds (of Russia, west of the River Lena, who gave us the Samoyed dogs and as a people are divided into three groups), and the Sami People of northern Scandinavia and Russia (Lapp comes from a Finnish word meaning “outcast” and the preferred term is Sami). Sami are the most famous reindeer herders and a good bit of text is devoted to them.
Chapter nine recounts a visit by the author and some companions to the Tsataan, “Mongolia’s only reindeer people.” There is a photo of the author riding a reindeer, something the Tsataan do.
Chapter ten discusses exports of reindeer to other lands, such as St. Matthew Island in the Bering Straits, South Georgia (an island near Antarctica, the reindeer there adapting to the flip in seasons and eating tussock grass instead of lichen in the winter to survive), and quite a bit on the story of trying to establish reindeer herding industries in Alaska and Canada (with the notorious Lomen brothers for a time cornering the market so bad Congress eventually got involved in 1934). Oh and the story of a reindeer that spent time on a British submarine in World War II.
Chapter eleven is the story of the establishment of several herds of reindeer in the Scottish Highlands, much of it the result of the dedication of Sami reindeer herder Mikel Utsi (the reader learning a good deal about Mr Utsi).
Chapter twelve is about the author’s visit to Swedish Lapland (apparently saying Lapland is ok but the people are called Sami), visiting during the summer and witnessing corralling the animals and marking new calves.
Chapter thirteen is about the transfer of fresh reindeer livestock from Swedish Lapland to the Scottish herds, about how the reindeer were selected and brought over.
Chapter fourteen is various tales regarding the Scottish reindeer, about individual reindeer like Drop Dead Fred and Cluster, the latter apparently posed a bit of a threat to hill walkers and had to be rendered antlerless, enclosed, and was eventually castrated.
Chapter fifteen, “The Story of Christmas,” is more information on the history of Christmas, Santa Claus, and flying reindeer. Interestingly, she argues that Rudolph isn’t likely a breeding bull, as by the time Christmas rolls around bulls have lost their antlers and they would still be exhausted from rut season. Female reindeer though are smaller, less powerful, probably in calf, and “in general are feisty, highly strung and less trainable than males.” Noting that among reindeer peoples the castrated male is the reindeer that acts as a decoy to lead the herd, pull sledges, or are ridden, that they do not lose their antlers until after Christmas, and are lighter weight than breeding bulls; perhaps Santa’s reindeer are castrated males.
Chapter sixteen focuses on threats to reindeer. It is less about reindeer than about the threats, talking about global warming, the melting Arctic, and threats posed by pipelines and pollution.
A charming book. A small amount of Britishisms, like mentions of lorries and a passing mention of Scottish hill farmers that seemed to be written as if I was familiar with them.
The book is divided into a preface and sixteen numbered chapters. Chapter one, “Who is Rudolph?” introduces the reader to the origins of the legend of Rudolph and some basic general information on reindeer. Among other things learned are that the scientific name for reindeer is Rangifer tarandus, reindeer are the only arctic species of deer, reindeer have a range that covers a fifth of the Earth’s surface, and a total world population of about 6 million. Reindeer as a name is Lappish in origin while the name caribou is a Micmac Indian word meaning “digger of snow.” The reindeer learns also about antlers, what they are made of, how they grow, and the fact that both males and females possess them.
Chapter two, “Rudolph’s Relations,” talks about the different types of reindeer and caribou. One group, Cylindricornis, is found in tundra and mountain environments and has antlers that are rounded in cross-section, while Compressicornis, found in forest, has flattened antlers. Cylindricornis is further subdivided into three continental reindeer subspecies (Barren Ground Caribou, famous for their massive annual migrations, Alaskan Caribou, also famously migratory, and the Eurasian Tundra Reindeer, which includes all domestic and wild reindeer found west of the Bering Straits in the tundra and taiga of Russia and Scandinavia) and two high-arctic subspecies that live on islands (Svalbard Reindeer, described as “short-legged, pot-bellied” and do not undergo any sort of migration and Peary Caribou, found only in the high arctic Queen Elizabeth Islands of arctic Canada). Compressicornis are woodland/forest subspecies, and include Eurasian Forest Reindeer (found throughout Russia from Karelen to Kamchatka) and the North American Woodland Caribou (“the grey ghosts of the forest,” found from British Columbia to Newfoundland). The author also notes two extinct subspecies, East Greenland Caribou and Queen Charlotte Island Caribou, both of which went extinct in the early 20th century.
Chapter three, “The Reindeer Year,” talks about a year in the life of a typical reindeer, what life is like in each season of the year, about the principal predators of reindeer, about mating, calving, and migration.
Chapter four talks about the adaptations reindeer have to their Arctic environment, spending a lot of time on reindeers’ hairy coat, what makes it such a great insulator and how it differs throughout the year. Also discussions of how reindeer deal with overheating (in spring and summer velvet-covered antlers work as radiators), how reindeer keep their extremities warm, how reindeer feet are adapted to deal with snow, and how reindeer communicate (apparently grunting causes the animals to lose heat so in the coldest months reindeer communicate with clicking their tendons).
Chapter five, “Feast and Famine,” talks about what reindeer eat throughout the year (didn’t know reindeer eat mushrooms) and something about what they eat (spending a good bit of time on lichen, the primary winter food for most populations of reindeer though not all of them).
Chapter six, “The Early Taming of Reindeer,” talks about the origins of domesticated reindeer and how it likely evolved from decoy hunting.
Chapter seven, “Farm Animal of the North,” continues the story of the domestication of reindeer, with the earliest records appearing to be 3,000-year-old cave paintings along the River Lena in Russia, how the Tungus of Siberia are credited by some as “the original domesticator of reindeer,” how different groups of people learned to ride the reindeer (and different groups learned different ways to ride them) while some groups never learned to ride reindeer. Also some information on how domestication changes the physical appearance and behavior of reindeer (generally they are smaller, have a shorter muzzle, and can be found with piebald or “salt and pepper” colorations).
Chapter eight, “Reindeer Cultures,” is a tour of the different groups in the world that make use of reindeer. We meet the Evenki of Russia (use their reindeer solely as beast of burden), the Chukchi and Koryaks of eastern Siberia (“renowned for keeping large numbers of reindeer”, with the rich among them having the most reindeer and “ate almost exclusively reindeer from their own herds”), the Samoyeds (of Russia, west of the River Lena, who gave us the Samoyed dogs and as a people are divided into three groups), and the Sami People of northern Scandinavia and Russia (Lapp comes from a Finnish word meaning “outcast” and the preferred term is Sami). Sami are the most famous reindeer herders and a good bit of text is devoted to them.
Chapter nine recounts a visit by the author and some companions to the Tsataan, “Mongolia’s only reindeer people.” There is a photo of the author riding a reindeer, something the Tsataan do.
Chapter ten discusses exports of reindeer to other lands, such as St. Matthew Island in the Bering Straits, South Georgia (an island near Antarctica, the reindeer there adapting to the flip in seasons and eating tussock grass instead of lichen in the winter to survive), and quite a bit on the story of trying to establish reindeer herding industries in Alaska and Canada (with the notorious Lomen brothers for a time cornering the market so bad Congress eventually got involved in 1934). Oh and the story of a reindeer that spent time on a British submarine in World War II.
Chapter eleven is the story of the establishment of several herds of reindeer in the Scottish Highlands, much of it the result of the dedication of Sami reindeer herder Mikel Utsi (the reader learning a good deal about Mr Utsi).
Chapter twelve is about the author’s visit to Swedish Lapland (apparently saying Lapland is ok but the people are called Sami), visiting during the summer and witnessing corralling the animals and marking new calves.
Chapter thirteen is about the transfer of fresh reindeer livestock from Swedish Lapland to the Scottish herds, about how the reindeer were selected and brought over.
Chapter fourteen is various tales regarding the Scottish reindeer, about individual reindeer like Drop Dead Fred and Cluster, the latter apparently posed a bit of a threat to hill walkers and had to be rendered antlerless, enclosed, and was eventually castrated.
Chapter fifteen, “The Story of Christmas,” is more information on the history of Christmas, Santa Claus, and flying reindeer. Interestingly, she argues that Rudolph isn’t likely a breeding bull, as by the time Christmas rolls around bulls have lost their antlers and they would still be exhausted from rut season. Female reindeer though are smaller, less powerful, probably in calf, and “in general are feisty, highly strung and less trainable than males.” Noting that among reindeer peoples the castrated male is the reindeer that acts as a decoy to lead the herd, pull sledges, or are ridden, that they do not lose their antlers until after Christmas, and are lighter weight than breeding bulls; perhaps Santa’s reindeer are castrated males.
Chapter sixteen focuses on threats to reindeer. It is less about reindeer than about the threats, talking about global warming, the melting Arctic, and threats posed by pipelines and pollution.
A charming book. A small amount of Britishisms, like mentions of lorries and a passing mention of Scottish hill farmers that seemed to be written as if I was familiar with them.
January 23, 2019
This book is incredibly sweet and enjoyable. I love how Tilly integrates her experience with the Scottish herd into the culture, biology and life history of these amazing animals. A really interesting read from many standpoints and after reading this I hope I can visit the herd one day soon. Definitely a must read for any fellow zoologist or people who just have a love for animals and rare and unique culture.
February 11, 2012
An interesting book about reindeer, including information about their biology, distribution, and history with humans. Although there is only one species of reindeer, there are seven extant subspecies; subspecies are known as reindeer in Eurasia, and caribou in North America. Also, human urine attracts reindeer. Recommended for anyone interested in these animals.
December 17, 2017
Impressive popular work on reindeer and caribou, profusely illustrated and filled with personal anecdotes and related trivia. A very enjoyable and even seasonable read.
I knew that Gene Autry first recorded the song "Rudolph" in 1949, but did not know that the character Rudolph was first created ten years earlier as an advertising promotion for Montgomery Ward. He was not one of Santa's reindeer, though, until the song was written and released.
And of course, the notion of flying reindeer is attributed to W. Clement Moore's poem, "The Night Before Christmas," which is pure fantasy.
However, reindeer are important both as domesticated animals in Europe and Asia and as wild caribou populations in North America. The author is a zoologist who has studied them extensively and has a lot to say about their natural history and ecological significance, as well as the nature of the animals as they exist today.
I knew that Gene Autry first recorded the song "Rudolph" in 1949, but did not know that the character Rudolph was first created ten years earlier as an advertising promotion for Montgomery Ward. He was not one of Santa's reindeer, though, until the song was written and released.
And of course, the notion of flying reindeer is attributed to W. Clement Moore's poem, "The Night Before Christmas," which is pure fantasy.
However, reindeer are important both as domesticated animals in Europe and Asia and as wild caribou populations in North America. The author is a zoologist who has studied them extensively and has a lot to say about their natural history and ecological significance, as well as the nature of the animals as they exist today.
November 15, 2025
I purchased this in the Cairngorms when I visited the reindeer herd that lives there. It was a touching book written by the woman presiding over them today. There are stories of different deer in the herd (they all have a name and distinct personalities), and anecdotes about reindeer in history like Pollyanna who lived on a submarine during world war 2 and helped successfully attack German cruisers. I particularly enjoyed her real life love story of falling for the reindeer keeper.
Sheds light on the current lives of native reindeer herders all over the world, adapting their cultures to fit today’s environment. I love the picture in my head of tribes using helicopters and snowmobiles to herd deer across the arctic. I don’t love the mental image of how much their lives are being affected by energy industrialization companies that refuse to offer compensation for native land being destroyed.
Sheds light on the current lives of native reindeer herders all over the world, adapting their cultures to fit today’s environment. I love the picture in my head of tribes using helicopters and snowmobiles to herd deer across the arctic. I don’t love the mental image of how much their lives are being affected by energy industrialization companies that refuse to offer compensation for native land being destroyed.
June 6, 2019
Tilly Smith is one of the managers of the Cairngorm reindeer herd, the only free-roaming herd of reindeer in the UK. As such she's quite the reindeer enthusiast, with a lot of experience and knowledge. This book is part a description of general reindeer life and behaviour, and part stories and anecdotes about her herd and experiences.
It's interesting. I've been a fan of the Cairngorm herd for a while, so a lot of the herd-specific stories were familiar to me, but the stuff about natural history of reindeer and about her visits to peoples of other reindeer cultures were really interesting.
Cute. As a reindeer fan I'd always recommend!
It's interesting. I've been a fan of the Cairngorm herd for a while, so a lot of the herd-specific stories were familiar to me, but the stuff about natural history of reindeer and about her visits to peoples of other reindeer cultures were really interesting.
Cute. As a reindeer fan I'd always recommend!
October 1, 2021
I once had the great honor of standing in the middle of a corral in northern Sweden surrounded by hundreds of circling reindeer. I'll never forget the sounds of hooves, clicking tendons, and grunts from the reindeer. At the time my sister was doing research on the Sami people. So I was very interested in Tilly Smith's book about the reindeer introduced to Scotland. I enjoyed reading about the other reindeer herding cultures. and the various ways they have adapted to their environments and the reindeer they herd. I would love to meet the Scottish reindeer.
June 22, 2025
Short and sweet book about reindeer and the people who have herded them throughout history.
I loved reading all the little facts about reindeer. Like how you can tell male/female antlers by their base. Or just how insanely insulated their fur coat is.
Defo recommend if you wanna learn about reindeer.
I loved reading all the little facts about reindeer. Like how you can tell male/female antlers by their base. Or just how insanely insulated their fur coat is.
Defo recommend if you wanna learn about reindeer.
October 22, 2021
Incredibly informative book, covering all aspects of reindeer history and handling. It is written very well and the illustrations are lovely. An excellent book for learning the basic physiology of the species and Tilly’s passion and knowledge shine throughout
April 16, 2022
Reindeer: An Arctic Life by Tilly Smith is a delightful, interesting, and easy to read book which covers the Cairngorm herd as well as much fascinating information about reindeer and reindeer herding worldwide.
November 22, 2020
Review to come :)
February 4, 2023
this book was so cosy and a quick read as well!
Read
December 5, 2023 A very sweet and informative book about Reindeer :)
March 11, 2025
An informative and lovingly written book about reindeer by a self-professed “reindeer geek”. Now I want yo go see them!
December 9, 2025
Interesting book full of facts and stories about reindeer. I didn’t even know there was a free-roaming herd of reindeer Scotland in the first place, so I’ve learned something new.
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