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Synopsis
In a revised edition of this celebrated book, Unitarian Universalist minister Gary Kowalski grapples with the big spiritual questions around our relationship with animals: Do animals have souls? Are they aware of death and are they conscious of themselves? Do animals have an inherent capacity to recognize beauty and can they create art? Do animals experience love? Do they know right from wrong? Why do birds sing? And ultimately what do we lose in a world without animals and what does that mean for our ongoing relationship with the creatures with which we share the world? Kowalski offers beautifully written vignettes that shed light on these questions and much more. He explores how animals play, their sense of altruism and their capacity for love. By "de-sacralizing" animals, Kowalski argues, we make ourselves less human. "If we are to keep our family homestead - Earth - safe for coming generations," he writes, "we must awaken to a new respect for the family of life."
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First Sentence
Imagine a warm spring day on a small farm in Mississippi. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Imagine a warm spring day on a small farm in Mississippi. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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17 reviews
91 of 93 people found the following review helpful
For the first time in a long time, I wept as I read.
10 May 2000
Format:Paperback
I stumbled upon this book on accident. As an animal lover, it looked appealing to me though I expected it to be a generic, feel-good read. I was quite surprised! When I read the information that Kowalski had compiled, I cried. The chapters explore our questions on just how perceptive and emotional animals are. Do they feel a sense of love? Are they aware of death? Why do they play? When I read the stories that the author relates, such as the family of elephants who buried the dead and Koko the female lowland gorilla who learned American Sign Language, I was deeply moved. I had not purchased this book planning a lifestyle change but that is precisely what happened. Knowing what I do now about the intelligence and passion of animals, I am a vegetarian, living a happier, healthier life.
42 of 42 people found the following review helpful
Must Read
21 Sep 1999
Format:Paperback
A very caring look at the the world we live in. A classic book on animal spirituality Gary regales us with tales of the lives of some of the creatures with which we share the planet. He ponders and causes us to stop and give thought as well on various qualities of animals. He details and presents instances of playfulness, capacity for love, altruism, and awareness of death, in our animal brethren. Gary is a Unitarian minister and in his book, he teaches us to be more open to the possibility of our biological, cerebral, and ethereal connection with animals
Leslie Blanchard
Editor A Writer's Choice Literary Journal
34 of 34 people found the following review helpful
serious and sensitive reflections on animals' inner lives
5 Feb 1999
Format:Paperback
Gary Kowalski is a Unitarian minister in Burlington, Vermont whose thinking and writing about animals and their spiritual lives is clear and powerful. To questions such as "Do Animals Experience Love?, "Are Animals Aware of Death?", Are Animals Conscious of Themselves?", "Do Animals Know Right From Wrong?" and "Do Animals Have Souls" Kowalski brings a rare blend of careful observation, personal insights, scientific understanding, and moral sensitivity. The Souls of Animals is a book that, chapter by chapter, teaches us to be more open to the possibility of our biological, psychological, and spiritual kinship with animals. In a university course that I teach on animal ethics students and I found this book provided a perspective and a "voice" that, too often, is discounted or neglected in ethical analyses and debates about humans' relationships and uses of animals. This book is pleasure to read and to think about.
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