[.ca] Monster Of God (ISBN 0393326098)

Amazon.ca:
The human mind, for reasons that were once obvious, has long been haunted by intimations of things that go bump in the night. And nothing, as the eminent natural historian David Quammen writes in Monster of God, goes bump quite like what he calls an "alpha predator." Among the ranks of those alphas are scary things indeed: sharks, tigers, bears, crocodiles, Komodo dragons, pythons, anacondas, big cats. "It's a short, formidable list," Quammen wryly notes, and one that is growing depressingly shorter with the passing years, as the predators find habitats torn out from under them, their prey reduced and even eliminated. Quammen travels the world to study these animals in their element, lords of ever rarer domains on every continent. "If we exterminate the last magnificently scary beasts on planet Earth," he closes by noting, "then no matter where we go for the rest of our history as a species--for the rest of time--we may never encounter any others." The thought of a world without things that go bump is unnerving, and Quammen's book is a timely, literate warning that such a world is fast upon us. --Gregory McNamee

exceptional book on mythology, history, and biology:
I really enjoyed this exceptional book on the mythology, culture, history, and biology of man-eaters around the world. Though he primarily focuses on four specific animals - the Asiatic lion in the forest of Gir in India, the saltwater crocodile in northern Australia, the brown bear in the forests and mountains of Romania, and the Siberian (or more properly Amur) tiger of the Russian Far East- author David Quammen discusses other predators as well, such as the African lion, the grizzly of North America, the Nile crocodile, and the leopard as well as some now extinct species. Quammen does an excellent job of covering just about any aspect you might wish to learn about animals that occasionally dine on man. Aspects of ecology are very well covered, introducing the reader to many key concepts in ecology (particularly as they relate to these creatures), such as the terms alpha predator, keystone species, and trophic cascades, showing that for a healty ecosystem - including healthy plants and prey animals - the presence of a viable population of predator is crucial. The education this book gave me on ecology was quite remarkable, with the author going into very readable detail on many issues and very interestingly their history as well, showing some of the personalities behind their conception. The individual biology and paleontology of each of the focus species in this book are well covered, as well as that of close and more distant relations, covering everything from the rise and fall of sabertooth mammals (feline and otherwise) to the spread of the tiger species throughout Asia (and its later evolution into various subspecies). Equally interesting - and valuable - in this work Quammen goes into great detail about the interaction between humans and the top predators throughout world history as well as the situation to date. How have large predators - such as perhaps cave bears and cave lions - shaped the evolution (physically and culturally) of ancient peoples? How have such animals shaped the development of human art, literature, mythology, and religion? Quammen brings into this rather engrossing discussion everything from Babylonian epics to Beowulf to Tolkien. Quammen does not only focus on the animals, but on their sometime victims as well. He looks at how have native peoples dealt with man-eaters in the past and how do traditional peoples deal with them today. Quammen is very sensitive to the lives of those who face (and occassionally feed) these predators, really bringing to life for the reader such diverse groups as the Malhadris of India, the Udege of Russia, and the shepherds of Romania. Quammen vividly contrasts this with looking at how has the coming of colonial enterprises and regimes (such as the British in India and Australia) changed interactions with local alpha predators. Perhaps most importantly, this book asks what does the future hold for such predators? Will they always have a guaranteed place in the wild, outside of zoos and circuses? How can one make sure that they do? There is quite a debate raging on how to make sure that forests still stalk the snowy forests of the Russian Far East and the billabongs of steamy northern Australia and Quammen provides excellent coverage of all sides. A very valuable and entertaining book, it has a very extensive bibilography as well. I highly recommend it.

Living with Lions:
This book is amazing. As in it's predecessor, The Song of the Dodo, David Quammen acheives an amazing feat by combining science, travel stories, literature, history, and philosophy (and a sprinkling of pop culture) into a compelling discussion of the fate of what he calls "alpha predators" in this modern world. Quammen traveled to India to visit people living among lions (yes, lions), Australia to visit people living among crocodiles, Romania to visit people living with brown bears (who knew?), and the Russian Far East to visit people living with tigers. Each of these pieces is a distinct story by itself, with its own set of characters, yet Quammen sews them all together with common concerns about predators, prey, and who pays the price of having these alpha predators around. Sensitive to traditional cultures as he is to natural ecosystems, Quammen is a great writer producing unique literature that is important for our time.

Conservation of Animals that can Kill and Eat You:
One of the major deficiencies in planning for the conservation of animals is that often the difficulties of local humans are not recognized. It is quite easy to sit in a comfortable office and decree that this organism or that organism be protected, without examining the consequences to the often-poor inhabitants of the land where the said organism lives. This is especially true when the organism is at least an occasional predator of Homo sapiens. In "Monster of God" David Quammen has examined the consequences of the conservation policy for both the target predators and the humans inhabiting the same territory. It is not a totally pretty story, with both animal and local human often on the short end of the stick. Quammen does not romanticize the predators, but he does make us aware of their importance in the ecosystem as well as the difficulties of the local peoples who have to live with them. Sometimes an accommodation can be worked out and sometimes it is on very shaky ground. It is always a complex interplay between predator and human. Indeed, predators cannot be either over romanticized or demonized if we are to save and stabilize the populations of these magnificent, yet dangerous, animals. Their loss would be regrettable, but their conservation must include adequate respect for the difficulties of people living with a dangerous predator nearby. Yes, despite some nonsense written in the last century, crocodiles will eat people if given the chance. Lions, tigers and bears can and will also eat humans under the right circumstances. The recent death of two grizzly bear activists by the claws of their "gentle" subjects should provide a cautionary tale. These are not totally benign life forms- some sort of living stuffed toy- but neither are they evil. Quammen's discussion of mythic monsters adds some historical background to the uneasy relationship between man and predator. That humans have a history of fearing the beast beyond the fire and of interpreting fossil skulls wrongly in this light is not surprising. However, Quammen does doubt the existence of a primordial ancestral fear gained from our precursors on the African veldt. Certainly one should avoid man-eating and ultimately frightening creatures. But does that then give us leave to utterly destroy them? Unless we are able to develop a compromise between the needs of people and the animals involved we may very well see the end of large predators. The complexities of this problem has been well stated by David Quammen. He has written an eye-opening book that should be read by everybody interested in the conservation of these remarkable and frightening animals.

A wonderful read:
A very insightful and wonderful account of the relations between man and the man-eaters in both myth, mind and memory. The author tackles several subjects in this hands-on accounts. The author looks at traditional 'man-eaters' although the word itself disturbs him in his politically correct nature, he looks at the Siberian Tigers, the Lions and even the Bears of Rumania. He looks at the myths surrounding the 'man-eaters' and he analyzes the political responses. He tells wonderful tales of the alligators of Australia and weaves a web of intrigue whereby the reader can now distinguish between the truly lethal 'man-eaters' and the skinny snouted harmless critters of the inland streams. Many stories are interwoven including vast accounts of the natives who like always seem to live 'in harmony' with nature. Only when modern man came along with his weapons and his urban development did the truly viscous kings of the animal kingdom disappear. The only shortcoming is the small amount of room devoted to wolves and sharks, but obviously the book is such a wonderful gem to only so much could be covered, especially since the account is part travel writing. Seth J. Frantzman

Visit People in Remote Places ; Learn about Keystone Species:
This was a difficult book to get into but it does prove to be very interesting. The food chain and where we fit into it and why is difficult reading at times. The book has lot of material about places and people where man-eating predators live. The value of all species, even the man-eater, is examined. The explanation of the role of Keystone species is thorough and backed with scientific evidence. There is excellent technical material with interesting background history throughout the book.