Knowledge and Its Place in Nature Book

One thing I learned in this book was if you are one of the carnivorous of the forest you don't mess with badgers. I had no idea that they were the most bad ass member of the 'blood and guts mob'.



Karen wrote a very good review, and if you haven't read it, then you probably should a) because it is a good and b) so that I don't have to repeat anything she said.

I'll do my petty little complaining for a moment and then move on. I don't like the description of the book given on goodreads, it doesn't fit the book. Max, the main character stoat, isn't setting the record straight about not being a psychopath, it's not a confessional set in the animal world. There is no rationalization of the violence he causes, he eats other animals because it's in his nature to do so, and because if he doesn't eat them he will die of hunger. There is a great scene towards the end of the book where Max is talking to a bird (the animals are all very polite with each other (I don't have the book in front of me so I don't have the birds name). In a few chapters the particular bird has almost become a meal for Max but something always came up that caused the bird to fly away before he could pounce and kill. This time the bird and Max are both in a position where food in the area is relatively scarce, the bird's whining about not finding much to eat. Max has some ideas for where he can find something to eat but they aren't all that promising and they are talking about their respective troubles. Near the end of the conversation Max says something like, 'Mr. Bird, I don't eat bread, but I see a small piece of bread just over there, I thought I'd let you know it's there, you know helping you out,' and the bird replies, 'I'm not falling for that one today.' 'Well you can't blame me for trying,' Max says and the bird tells him of course not. There are no hard feelings, Mr. Bird knows that it's just in Max's nature to want to eat him, and that the stoat will eat the bird if he gets the chance but until that chance comes along there is no reason why the two aren't perfectly civilized to one another.

Karen showed how angry stoat's can look, but here is a picture of how cute one can be.



You (well I) want to go all, awwww about him. He is very cute. He also is a very little and efficient killing machine whose whole life revolves around having to eat other animals to stay alive.

That is pretty much what this book is about, the experiences of this one stoat to survive, to have his one small victory each day. The victory isn't pretty, it's avoiding larger stoats, the annoying foxes, the murderous badgers, the preying owls and the asshole sociopath crows while trying to find rabbits, small birds, voles and mice that have let their guard down long enough for him to kill one or two for a meal. Each day he wins he gets to repeat the process again the next.

The book is broken down in chapters that are sort of a day or two snapshots of what his life is like in each of the twelve months of the year, of the different opportunities and dangers that each month brings.

Maybe because I'm stunted in some way I like to read the occasional talking animal novel. If you like them also, and you don't necessarily demand that the animals all be cute/cuddly and generally friends with one another, then well I'd recommend you read this. There are also some great illustrations in the book (my favorite being either a) Max killing all the chickens (probably my favorite scene in the book) or b) foxes eating kittens. My one gripe with the book is the poor treatment of foxes, they are really obnoxious in the novel, they piss on everything they can near, they disrupt the forest with their unbridled lusts and every time they come into a scene they cause everything to be all about them and make Max's life more difficult than it already is. But probably from a little stoats perspective the much larger oaf like foxes are a nuisance.

Anyway, what better way to end a review than with one more cute picture of a stoat.