How to Talk to Your Animals

By Jean Craighead George

Book Overview

Our pets speak to us in a language all their own, if only we stop to listen Can animals really talk? In How to Talk to Your Animals , Jean Craighead George turns her attention away from animals in the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0151422001
• ISBN13: 9780151422005
• Release Date: January 1985
• Publisher: Harcourt
• Length: 286 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Funny, Fascinating, and Fabulous Guide Like No Other

For as long as she's been writing (more than half a century now), Jean Craighead George has been studying the behavior of many animals that inhabit North America. Her research on gray wolves is obvious in JULIE OF THE WOLVES, winner of the prestigious Newbery Medal, and its sequels JULIE and JULIE'S WOLF PACK, in which wolf communication, which extends farther than its famous howl, is brought to light in a new way, combining science with firsthand experience. With the recent publication of the picture books HOW TO TALK TO YOUR DOG and HOW TO TALK TO YOUR CAT, adapted from this novel, Ms. George gives readers a new way to connect with their pets. HOW TO TALK TO YOUR ANIMALS is one of Ms. George's few adult novels, although all ages should be able to learn something from it. It was published in 1985 and is out of print. The book is definitely one of Ms. George's most fascinating. It delves into the world of animal communication in a very personal and enlightening way, showing the average person, without copious amounts of dry science, how to talk to the dog, cat, bird, and horse. In the first chapter she gives a preface and explains why she wrote the book. Then enters that wonderfully social and loyal animal, the dog. Ms. George writes about the dog as she does no other animal, as if she is eternally intrigued with its life. Those who have read JULIE'S WOLF PACK and HOW TO TALK TO YOUR DOG will know about alpha wolves, nose-sniffing, and play-bowing, but there's still much to be learned in this chapter. After the dog comes a much different creature, the independent cat. It's interesting to see how the cat's communication differs from the dog's. Cats are solitary, and if dog-lovers are frustrated with the seeming snobbiness of felines, they may be turned around with this chapter, as I was, and feel more connection with them after they learn the secrets of head-bumping, the various meows, and movements that can be used when talking to our whiskered friends. On to the birds, even different from dogs and cats in that they are not often domesticated. Besides discussing how to talk to your cockatiel or parrot, Ms. George gives insight into how wild birds like sparrows communicate. As a birder I learned some important information. The horse chapter is an interesting read even if you're not a horse owner or rider, and if you are, you'll learn lots of helpful tips. People usually don't give much credit to horses, they may think they don't talk and are boring, but as soon as you read this chapter, you'll be inspired to go out to the nearest farm and use the arm-around-the-neck move to signal friendship with a horse. In the last chapter, Ms. George discusses the controversial and mysterious subject of animal communication. Can animals talk? It's up to you to decide. I'm pretty sure this book, which is as funny and heartwarming as it is interesting, will help you come to a conclusion.