King Solomon's Ring by Konrad Lorenz
A simply wonderful book for anyone who has a love of animals, and is curious and fascinated by their behaviour. Konrad Lorenz is so obviously fond of his subjects but at the same time he treats them with a scientific distance and methodology that is worthy of emulation by other animal behaviourists. He demonstrates in this small book, written mainly for the layperson, an ability to write with wit and charm that captivates the reader from the first page.
It is understandable, through the writing of such as Konrad Lorenz, why others are inspired to become zoologists, biologists and behaviour scientists. He devotes his whole house to his animal subjects and it is filled with animal chaos. The reader is kept entertained and amused throughout the book. We read about an intelligent raven; the wonders of an aquarium; the “taming of a shrew”; a hilarious tale of two men who carry a canoe followed by goslings, a dog and some ducklings. And all these tales are illustrated by his simple and (that word again) charming drawings.
His book enables readers to understand animals more and, while it may not be considered a scientific treatise in the strict sense, Konrad Lorenz’s studies remain significant in the field of animal behaviour; thus this book remains extremely readable and a classic.
I can recommend this book to adults and children alike, indeed to all those who wonder what goes on in an animal’s mind and particularly to those young people considering a future career in the field of animal studies. It has much to offer anyone with no interest in animal behaviour since it is written with such respect, humour and charm that it serves as a reminder about the wonderful world of nature that so often seems to be forgotten by so many.
Rating: 5 stars (WoW Blog)
NB: I loved this book so much that I had to include a reference to it in my novel
So What's Next!
RSS Feed
