Lucy Cooke is an award-winning filmmaker who has written, produced, and directed several popular documentary series for the BBC, PBS, Discovery, and National Geographic. Her first book, A Little Book of Sloth, was a New York Times bestseller. She has written for the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, among others, and she holds an MA in zoology from the University of Oxford. She lives in London.
"[An] intriguing and amusing survey of some unusual facets of
animal behavior...Cooke puts scientific errors, some of them
hilarious, into historical context."--Booklist
"[A] deeply researched, sassily written history of 'the biggest
misconceptions, mistakes and myths we've concocted about the animal
kingdom, ' spread by figures from Aristotle to Walt Disney."
--Nature
"[A] lighthearted but scientifically rigorous exploration...A
pleasure for the budding naturalist in the family--or fans of
Gerald Durrell and other animals."--Kirkus Reviews
"A riot of facts....Cooke scores a series of goals with style and
panache."--The Times (UK)
"A surefire summer winner...even Cooke's simple facts are
funny."--New York Times Book Review
"As surprising as it is diverse. Consummate natural history
writing: illuminating, remarkable - and very, very funny."
--Alice Roberts, author of The Complete Human Body and The
Incredible Unlikeliness of Being
"Beautifully written, meticulously researched, with the science
often couched in outrageous asides, this is a splendid read. In
fact, I cannot remember when I last enjoyed a non-fiction work so
much."--Daily Express (UK)
"BOOK OF THE WEEK: Highly amusing and enlightening new book [from]
brilliant zoologist Lucy Cooke."--The Idler (UK)
"Cooke, founder of the Sloth Appreciation Society, raises the
profile of many poorly understood animals, revealing surprising,
and often hilarious, truths that are much better than the
fictions."--Scientific American
"Cooke's extensive travels, research and delightful sense of humor
make The Truth about Animals a fascinating modern
bestiary."--Seattle Times
"Each of Cooke's thirteen breezy yet fact-stuffed chapters traces
the origins of a long-standing myth about a species or class of
animal."--Times Literary Supplement (UK)
"Endlessly fascinating."--Bill Bryson, author of A Walk in the
Woods, A Short History of Nearly Everything, and In a Sunburned
Country
"Funny and fascinating, this book will change the way you see
wildlife."--Bustle
"Her pace is quick, her touch is light, and through her wealth of
research we can reach new heights of wonder."--New York Times Book
Review
"In the end, the history of zoology reveals as much about our human
foibles as about the animals we study. And this book will leave
readers more enlightened about both."--Science News
"Lucy Cooke takes equal delight in natural oddities and in people's
long struggles to understand them. Part history, part biology, and
wholly entertaining, The Truth About Animals is a quirky and
edifying romp."--Thor Hanson, author of Buzz, Feathers, and The
Triumph of Seeds
"Lucy Cooke unravels myths that will make you laugh out loud. Her
knowledge of all things, furry, slimy and scaly is
jaw-dropping."--The Sun (UK)
"Lucy Cooke's modern bestiary is as well-informed as you'd expect
from an Oxford zoologist. It's also downright funny."--Richard
Dawkins, author of The God Delusion, The Selfish Gene, and The
Ancestor's Tale, and emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford
"Lucy Cooke's new book makes Playboy seem as tedious and tame as a
phone book...In her delightful reading of natural history, [Cooke]
is both scientist and standup comic...Trained as an academic,
Cooke's writing style is anything but--rather, it's bawdy,
irreverent, guiltless, sometimes locker-room-ish and comedic. She
makes you feel she's having fun as she pounds out the words...The
Truth About Animals is a great read and fascinating fun."--Winnipeg
Free Press
"Lucy Cooke's [The Truth About Animals] was a joy from beginning to
end. Who could resist a writer who argues that penguins have been
pulling the wool over our eyes for years, and that, far from being
cute and gregarious, they are actually pathologically unpleasant
necrophiliacs?"--The Guardian (UK)
"Readers keen on animals and natural history in general should find
Cooke's discussion fascinating and educational."--Publishers
Weekly
"The eclectic stories come thick and fast, with an equally varied
human cast dedicated to uncovering the truth, scientifically or
otherwise. Cooke illuminates and mickey-takes in equal measure, and
the truth as she tells it is not only unexpected but often bizarre,
bawdy and very, very funny. "--BBC Wildlife (UK)
"The rising star of natural history ... is she the new David
Attenborough?"--The Times (UK)
"TOP AUTUMN BOOK PICKS: Lucy Cooke's fascinating book is full of
mind-boggling stuff. Cooke takes much pleasure in throwing in all
manner of amazing facts."--Reader's Digest (UK)
One of the New York Times Book Review's "17 Refreshing Books to
Read This Summer"
On the New York Times Book Review's Paperback Row
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