A MUST for anyone's coffee table!!

Rrose... highlights most of the key issues within gender discourse as depicted through photography: gender hierarchy, origination of gender, androgyny and indifferentiation, and gender tension (both masculine and feminine manifestations).

Especially provocative are the works of Matthew Barney. However, all the works included provide a strong case for the necessity of higher states of gender-consciousness.

This book cannot, and should not, be easily dismissed.

I read some other animal training books, and this book manages to cover the core of what you really need to know about cats better than the rest. I liked it so much, I also purchased Good Ownners, Great Dogs - which is also the best in its field.

Mr. Kilcommons very obviously is owned by several cats! He is an astute observer of their behaviors but does admit to being puzzled by them from time to time. His affection for felines is the overwhelming theme of this book.

You will find everything you need to know about your cat in this book. From choosing a kitten to litter box training to the psychology of cat behavior, it is all here, explained in simple to understand language, and with humor sprinkled throughout. Mr. Kilcommons also includes a section on making your cats' natural behaviors and quirks into "tricks" they can perform!

You will find the answers to many of your questions as to why your cat makes that certain expression, why they wake you at 3am, and why out of 10 people in a room, they will go to the one who likes cats the least. You will also find first aid information, vaccination recommendations, and a wealth of cat health facts.

I am owned by 2 cats and find myself referring to this book again and again. Whenever I need a question answered, I find the answer in this book. It is like having a personal advisor! I recommend this book highly if you are even thinking about getting a cat.

I recommend this book with all of me. If you love your dog, or anyone else's. You will treasure Tales From the Bark Side. The authors really let you inside their lives with every turn of the page. Bravo!

This should be a mandatory part of every dog lovers library. I just bought the audio version so I can listen to it in my car on the way to work. It really helps the traffic woes.

To sum up, if you are looking for a good "dog book" to snuggle up with for some night-time reading, or as a gift for the dog lover in your life, I strongly s! uggest you pick up this little gem. I'm so happy I did!!

That said, I prefer Daniel Tortora's "The Right Dog for You" for people with a bit more dog experience and patience. It contains detailed information about breed temperment, broken down into 16 traits. For people who really want to do their research and find just the right breed, on other resource can compare.

Their experience, wit, and great insight into different dog breed's personalities make this an incredibly enjoyable read!!

As illustration of his thesis, the author discusses the island of Krakatau, near Sumatra, that was completely destroyed by a volcano in 1883. Tidal waves resulted, killing 40,000 people in Java and Sumatra. The rock and debris blew high in the air, and a residue of dust diffused around the world, producing bright red sunsets. A remnant of Krakatau remained at what had been the southern end of the island, totally barren. But, starting with a single spider, forms of life returned and took hold until, today, you would never guess the violent past of the island. Wilson uses this as a vivid illustration of how nature at its most violent doesn't destroy life.

The author emphasizes the importance of the tropical rain forest. It occupies only 6% of land surface but probably harbors more than half of the species on earth. Its abundant solar energy, evenness of climate and largeness of area account for this, and also enough evolutionary time. The smaller the species, the more abundant it is. The human species came on the scene late and, when they did, everything changed.

The author describes how the coming of man to different locales destroys many species. For instance, in the Hawaiian Islands, the Polynesians ate man of the birds until only a handful of species remain. In western North America, the earliest Americans, the Paleo Indians, caused the diversity of mammoths to collapse because they needed food and hunted the different species to extinction.

Some experts think climactic change accounts for a decline of a species, while others favor overkill by humans. The author sides with the latter group. Overkill, habitat destruction, and the introduction of exotic species that don't belong in an environment are all acts of man. Conservationists now know that entire habitats must be preserved to save particular species. The author lists and describes 18 ecosytems that deserve the immediate attention of conservationists. Global warming is also a threat to species, but human activity has increased extinction by many thousands of times than that which would occur without humans.

Biodiversity is a valuable resource (new sources of food, new cures for cancer may perhaps be found among diverse species). The new approach to environmentalism is to tr to draw more income from wildlands without killing them. What we try to save now in ecosystems isn't just individual species. The author lists plants and fungi that yield pharmaceutical products and also ones that are sources of new foods to show the importance of maintaining biodiversity. He goes on to make a list of animals that are not currently eaten that make good protein sources. Both conservation and economic growth can be served by preserving natural ecosystems.

The author concludes the book with suggestions for saving our biological resources. First, he suggests that surveys be taken of the world's flora and fauna. Next, create biological wealth by finding out what uses can be made of the species inventoried. Promote sustainable development. In very poor countries, help the people find ways to survive economically without plundering their environment. This will require education and social change. Finally, save what remains. Save as much biodiversity as possible and make the reserves as large as possible. Edward O. Wilson realizes that mankind is much more likely to follow its economic interests than it is to selflessly protect the environment. Therefore, he very cleverly appeals to this self-interest by making biodiversity appear to be of economic benefit.

Wilson eloquently describes how species diversification was accomplished and how the loss of this diversification of biodiversity, would be an enormous loss to mankind. Wilson's major theme throughout the book is to save the the planet from man's development, loss of biodiversity and its effects, and the repair and reversal of the deliterious affects of the physical enviornment.

I found the book to have truth in the end result, but to accomplish this end, things would radically change in the short run. The book does open ones eyes to what is going on around us daily, things that if only looking with a keen eye would you notice. Wilson's engaging and nontechonical prose work through the subject matter and offers a fresh perspective. This book will give the reader broad views of evolution, but with enough specifics to illustrate the point.

The book has excellent illustrations, further developing the argument, making this a classical text as we read the last section, where the enviornmental ethic makes Wilson's point.

Do NOT be alarmed by the science in this book, as it is straight forward and easily understood, so the reader should make it through with no problem. Whether examining insects or a patch of grass, Wilson has mastered the science and brings it to the reader in understandable form.

Wilson writes a great overview of biodiversity--how it is created, why it is crucial to human survival, and what we must do to preserve it. Enjoy accessible and well-documented writing that takes you from California to Madagascar, from the present to the beginnings of life as known from the fossil record. Along the way you'll learn many of the crucial ecological and evolutionary concepts (such as natural selection, community ecology, biogeography, and more) necessary for understanding what biodiversity is and how it is maintained. And finally, in the last part of the book, learn about philosophies and practices that will enable each of us to preserve the amazing diversity of life that surrounds us. You'll want to be a biologist by the time you finish the book!