The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend Them

Peter Singer

Animal Liberation: The Definitive Classic of the Animal Movement

5, "A most important book that will change the way many of us look at animals--and, ultimately, at ourselves." -- Chicago Tribune Since its original publication in 1975, this groundbreaking work has awakened millions of people to the existence of "speciesism"--our systematic disregard of nonhuman animals--inspiring a worldwide movement to transform our attitudes to animals and eliminate the cruelty we inflict on them. In Animal Liberation, author Peter Singer exposes the chilling realities of today's "factory farms" and product-testing procedures--destroying the spurious justifications behind them, and offering alternatives to what has become a profound environmental and social as well as moral issue. An important and persuasive appeal to conscience, fairness, decency, and justice, it is essential reading for the supporter and the skeptic alike.

Suzie Gilbert

Flyaway: How a Wild Bird Rehabber Sought Adventure and Found Her Wings

Suzie Gilbert discovered her true calling when she began working at a local animal hospital. Eventually, she started bringing abused and unwanted parrots home, and volunteering at a local raptor rehabilitation center. From there it was a short flight to her ultimate commitment: Flyaway, Inc., the nonprofit wild bird rehabilitation center she ran out of her own home. With heart and delightful wit, Gilbert chronicles daily life in her household-cum-bird-hospital, and recounts the resulting chaos as she, her husband, and their two young children struggled to live in a home where parrots shrieked Motown songs and recuperating herons took over the spare bathroom. Flyaway is a remarkable story of compassion for and dedication to beautiful creatures--and the importance of pursuing even the most unlikely of dreams.

Monty Roberts

Shy Boy: The Horse That Came in from the Wild

"To appreciate Shy Boy, " writes horse gentler Monty Roberts, "you must see him or his kind running free and easy, in a wide open space." This compelling story, and the breathtaking photographs that accompany it, offer a chance to do just that. During a dramatic three-day ride across miles of high desert, Monty Roberts used all his skill to connect with the little mustang he finally befriended. In the year that followed, Shy Boy grew to love life on the farm, playfully demanding attention, and becoming fascinated by children. After a year of challenges and one frightening illness, the wild horse's exceptional spirit earned the respect and admiration of his trainers. And, as a result of a PBS-aired program based on his initial encounter with Roberts, Shy Boy gained international fame. Yet throughout this extraordinary year, Monty Roberts struggled with the question, "Would Shy Boy rather be free?" With trepidation, he took Shy Boy back to the wild to let him choose. The event, and its stunning conclusion, are memorably captured in these magnificent photographs and in a story that is both unforgettable and inspiring.