"It might be the best book on animals I’ve ever read. It’s also the only one that’s made me laugh out loud." —Helen MacDonald for The New York Times Book Review Beginning with Yuka, a 39,000 year old mummified woolly mammoth recently found in the Siberian permafrost, each of the 16 essays in Animals Strike Curious Poses investigates a different famous animal named and immortalized by humans. Modeled loosely after a medieval bestiary, these witty, playful, whipsmart essays traverse history, myth, science, and more, bringing each beast vibrantly to life. Elena Passarello is an actor, a writer, and recipient of a 2015 Whiting Fellowship in nonfiction. Her first collection with Sarabande Books, Let Me Clear My Throat , won the gold medal for nonfiction at the 2013 Independent Publisher Awards. She lives in Corvallis, Oregon. "The 10 Best Essay Collections of the Decade," Runner-Up, Literary Hub “21 new and classic books to keep you in touch with the natural world,” The Los Angeles Times "It might be the best book on animals I’ve ever read." — The New York Times Book Review "100 Notable Books of 2017," The New York Times “11 New Books We Recommend This Week,” The New York Times , Editor’s Choice “10 Page-Turners for 2017,” Martha Stewart Living "Best Books 2017," Publishers Weekly “The 20 Best Nature Books of the 2000s,” Inside Hook “The 14 Best Female Essayists to Read Now,” Signature 2018 Oregon Book Award Winner for Creative Nonfiction “Stunning. . . . Passarello’s keen wit is on display throughout as she raises questions about the uniqueness of humans. . . . A feast of surprising juxtapositions and gorgeous prose.” — Publishers Weekly , starred review “This phenomenal collection documents the lives of particular animals from a wide range of species. . . . Passarello treats her subjects with dextrous care, weaving narratives together in a way that investigates, honors, and complicates her subjects. . . . Passarello has created a consistently original, thoroughly researched, altogether fascinating compendium.” — Booklist , starred review "Passarello presents biographies of famous animals, from an ancient mummified mammoth to Mr. Ed and Cecil the Lion.” — The New York Times , "100 Notable Books of 2017" "I’ve spent decades reading books on the roles animals play in human cultures, but none have ever made me think, and feel, as much as this one. It’s a devastating meditation on our relationship to the natural world. It might be the best book on animals I’ve ever read. It’s also the only one that’s made me laugh out loud. . . . [Passarello is] a master of the essay form." —Helen MacDonald for The New York Times Book Review “There is an agile intelligence at work . . . as [Passarello] makes connections among disparate elements and wields keen perceptions on the creatures she encounters. There are some real dazzlers. Passarello manages to chronicle humanity's cavalier exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals without getting preachy in the process—no mean feat.” — Kirkus Reviews " Animals Strike Curious Poses turns the bestiary inside out, fashioning intoxicating and animated meditations on our penchant for ownership via naming, our drive to saddle the world and its creatures with our weary, ponderous patronymics, and the attendant and cockeyed faux-fame." —"Flight Patterns: Reading of the Creatures of the Air" by Matthew Gavin Frank, LitHub “Each essay is a bonbon as delicious as any Instagram animal pic.” —"21 new and classic books to keep you in touch with the natural world,” The Los Angeles Times “[An] extraordinary book. . . Although these animal case histories lodge under the label of 'essay', Passarello tests and stretches the form in thrilling ways.” — The Guardian “A work of genius . . . Whether you are an animal lover or not, this is a terrific read, burning with relevance to our world, by an exciting new talent.” — The Guardian , "Best Books of 2017" "Elena Passarello’s essay collection Animals Strike Curious Poses offers readers a number of windows on the connection between humans and animals — and ventures into some memorable corners of history along the way. " —“The 20 Best Nature Books of the 2000s,” Inside Hook “A gorgeous and peculiar collection of essays about famous animals and the ways we interact with them.” — Tin House online "I jump up and down about [this book] whenever I get the chance. . . . It definitely requires an actively engaged reader because of the shifts of styles throughout, but I enjoy the trust she puts in her readers, and I can feel how her hands had to get dirty to craft such artistic pieces." —Abby Manzella, Book Marks “Passarello is brilliant, and these essays exploring famous animals . . . will not disappoint in quirkiness, intelligence, and delight.” —National Book Foundation Executive Director Lisa Lucas, Martha Stewart Living , "10 Page-Turners for 2017" "Strange and wonderful." — Brevity , onli
