Customer Reviews

Coyote: Seeking the Hunter in Our Midst

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Written with a style that reminds one of silk, this book blends emotion with obsession and was plain riveting. I share the author's fascination for that animal, (along with foxes, owls, and just about any wildlife), so I am biased. Yet Reid's beautiful prose transcends her subject, adds a unique depth to the world she describes, and plunges the reader into her world painted with a keen photographic eye, a world that is closer to a coyote's than any city dweller's or the world of someone not familiar with wildlife.

From a technical point of view, I found the book quite informative on its subject, namely the "new" coyote of the East. There are few general books on the animal, with most written by or for hunters. While readers looking for an encyclopedic study of the animal may feel the book falls short, they should revisit the extensive bibliography the author provides, quotes from, and aptly introduces within her story. And be reminded that no matter what, the coyote remains one of the most secretive and elusive animals ever, with very little known about it.

Reid is a brilliant naturalist, and her detailed descriptions and analyses of the natural world (which includes us, as it turns out) are always illuminating, often beautiful, and sometimes quite funny. In this book, you will learn more than you knew there was to know about the fascinating eastern coyote--its expanding territory, its secretive habits, its adaptability, and its murky relationship to the western coyote and to wolves. Reid's scholarship is impressive; her extensive personal experience as a naturalist and her intimate first-hand knowledge of the environment she writes about is extraordinary--as is the prose itself. (I've never found passages about animal scat so riveting.) This is a book to place alongside your Barry Lopez and your Rebecca Solnit, on the same shelf with Abbey and Thoreau.

The book, as the title makes clear, is about coyotes. It is also about the way coyotes are understood by humans in general and by Reid herself in particular, and about the ways in which coyotes confound our efforts to understand them. As a result, Reid's own story (about returning to the area of western Massachusetts where she grew up and finding it now inhabited by coyotes) becomes a valuable and compelling part of the book. It is, however, a small part--perhaps 10%. The other reviewers here who have suggested otherwise illustrate in an amusing way, it seems to me, one of Reid's observations about the relationship of vision to fear: the more scared we are of something, Reid notes, the bigger and more dangerous it looks to us. This is how a two-foot water snake often becomes, in the eye of the beholder, a four-foot "moccasin," how a bobcat becomes a panther, how a coyote becomes a big, bad wolf. (How else explain how some readers can describe the autobiographical element of this book--which is, objectively speaking, only a single strand of it--as the "central theme"?)

Reid gives just enough of her own story (if anything, there ought to be more of it, not less) to give the reader a sense of the way her life intersects, both literally and imaginatively, with what's often called "the natural world." We cannot, as this book makes clear, separate that world from the human world--at least not if we are observant, or have a guide as good as Reid.

Catherine Reid has done a sterling job writing a book that weaves a narrative of the rise of a new species in the American East with her personal account of resettling amongst her family with her partner. Reid is deceptively subtle in her treatment of human and animal inhabitants of her narrative, bringing her descriptions of outdoor life in the snow-covered landscape to life with delightfully vivid details. I remain haunted by her remarkable account of a party of trackers following the trail of a group of Eastern Coyotes, only to find their own tracks in the snow because the coyotes have lead them in a circle in the woods and the trackers are now themselves being tracked by their quarry.

I suspect that the harsh words written in earlier reviews have more to do with homophobia than with their writers' appreciation of this book. It is tempting to draw conclusions about Reid's fear of isolation due to her sexuality as the source of her fascination with the wolf-coyotes she describes, but to do so over-simplifies her exploration of her childhood landscape. While she is frank about her partnership with a woman, I did not find that she particularly over-emphasized this aspect of her life, and I enjoyed the contrast offered by the dual narratives. I'm more satisfied with Reid's eponymous "hunter in our midst" representing both the coyote in her back yard and her awareness of ageing.

I meant to read this slow, but it kept me turning pages. I read it at night, which really added to the sense of mystery and even danger--it almost felt like the coyotes (and other creatures the author describes) were right outside my window. Someone recommended this, but a couple of the Amazon reader reviews almost had me wondering. Now I wonder what they were talking about. It does have some personal passages, but they're perfectly balanced, and made the presence of the coyotes even more real. Terrific writing too--the voice is quiet, but like the coyotes, the sound resonates.

Who is it that howls at night down on the frozen river behind our house? There are wolves in Michigan's Lower Peninsula now, but I heard wolves howling up in Canada's Northwest Territories, and these are not the howls of wolves. When I lived and worked in the city, I heard just about every breed of dog there is yap, bark, bay, and yowl, but these creatures of the woods and frozen river are not dogs.

Time to buy Catherine Reid's "Coyote: Seeking the Hunter in our Midst" and find out whether coyotes have made their way this far East. Surprise! Coyotes are to be found in all of the lower 48 states and Michigan, according to this author, has reached its saturation point for these canid predators. Humans are even allowed to hunt coyotes at night, which might explain the after-dark gunshots that I sometimes hear.

"Coyote" is a fascinating collection of riffs or nature essays rather in the style of "Pilgrim at Tinker's Creek." Reid moves to an old farmhouse in Connecticut with her partner Holly, back to the land that she knew as a child, back to the bosom of her family.

Will she and her partner be treated as outcasts--as human coyotes? I think Reid might have been fearing a less-than-warm welcome, which is why she identifies so fiercely with the pariah canids. However, her family welcomes the two women. She writes about her brother, who lends a helping hand with repairs on the farmhouse. There are warm riffs on family gatherings. Reid takes her niece out into the woods and shows her the landmarks she remembered from her own childhood. Although "Coyote" is primarily a book about wildlife and the land gone wild since it was farmed a century ago, it is also about family rhythms, as soothing as nursery songs to the ear.

Catherine Reid is naturalist, teacher, editor, and poet. She is at her most luminous when poking about in the woods, dissecting coyote scats (which contain a distressing number of cat claws), searching for dens, or wandering on her snowshoes through the new, soft snow. I think I've learned enough from her to do some den- and scat-hunting of my own (and to keep our cats locked firmly behind closed doors).

Catherine Reid offers an amazing narrative of a species that has made its home in the East mixed in with ever changing human landscape. The author is subtle, elegant and wonderfully calm in handling a passionate obsession with her subject. The vivid details stay with you. Like another reviewer I remain haunted, impressed by the feeling evoked in passages about the trackers being led in a circle, to become the hunted.

Who is it that howls at night down on the frozen river behind our house? There are wolves in Michigan's Lower Peninsula now, but I heard wolves howling up in Canada's Northwest Territories, and these are not the howls of wolves. When I lived and worked in the city, I heard just about every breed of dog there is yap, bark, bay, and yowl, but these creatures of the woods and frozen river are not dogs.

Time to buy Catherine Reid's "Coyote: Seeking the Hunter in our Midst" and find out whether coyotes have made their way this far East. Surprise! Coyotes are to be found in all of the lower 48 states and Michigan, according to this author, has reached its saturation point for these canid predators. Humans are even allowed to hunt coyotes at night, which might explain the after-dark gunshots that I sometimes hear.

"Coyote" is a fascinating collection of riffs or nature essays rather in the style of "Pilgrim at Tinker's Creek." Reid moves to an old farmhouse in Connecticut with her partner Holly, back to the land that she knew as a child, back to the bosom of her family.

Will she and her partner be treated as outcasts--as human coyotes? I think Reid might have been fearing a less-than-warm welcome, which is why she identifies so fiercely with the pariah canids. However, her family welcomes the two women. She writes about her brother, who lends a helping hand with repairs on the farmhouse. There are warm riffs on family gatherings. Reid takes her niece out into the woods and shows her the landmarks she remembered from her own childhood. Although "Coyote" is primarily a book about wildlife and the land gone wild since it was farmed a century ago, it is also about family rhythms, as soothing as nursery rhymes to the ear.

Catherine Reid is naturalist, teacher, editor, and poet. She is at her most luminous when poking about in the woods, dissecting coyote scats (which contain a distressing number of cat claws), searching for dens, or wandering on her snowshoes through the new, soft snow. I think I've learned enough from her to do some den- and scat-hunting of my own (and to keep our cats locked firmly behind closed doors).

I am amazed at the negative comments in some of these reviews. Particularly where readers felt they had been cheated because of a lack of information about coyotes. At least one of these reviewers admitted skipping parts of the book. I read the entire book, page by page. Admitedly, I had not bought the book as a primer on coyotes. Just by the title I expected the story to be about "searching" for the coyote. And the rich narrative describing the wild life Ms. Reid encountered in her wanderings did not leave me disappointed.

Ms. Reid is honest about her primary reason for moving to New England: her desire to reconnect with her childhood hometown. She admitted that the move fit perfectly with another interest -- to learn more about the northeastern Coyote.

I have read dozens of beautifully written non-fiction novels where the authors intersperse tidbits about their personal lives. I delight in getting to know the person who is enlightening me. I also do not think that this was overdone in the least bit in this book. I could picture a real person, with real trials and tribulations, out there in the freezing cold, searching. When she came up cold (excuse the pun), she told us about everything else she observed.

I also was fascinated with the sketchy DNA information she included, apparently all that was known at the time she wrote the book.

I too bought a used book, but would not have felt the least bit cheated had I purchased the book for full price.

Andrea Kisiner

The probelm with Katherine Reid's "Coyote: Seeking the Hunter in Our Midst" is that it is only sparringly about the wild eastern canid. Mostly, it is about her.

Personally, I believe strongly in using one's writing for cathartic purposes, and so applaud her efforts to sort out her life on paper.

However, the fly leaf of this book suggests something much different than what one finds inside. Instead of an informative, cover-to-cover work on Coyotes, or at least a collection of essays on that same topic, her own journey to rediscover family, roots, and to be accepted as a lesbian is the central theme. That would all be fine were that more clearly stated (or at least mentioned) on the inside cover.

A more apt title might be, "I, Coyote: My Search for Acceptance and Understanding", or, cutting straight to it, "Lesbians and Coyotes: Common Ground".

Yes, she does supply information and background on the history and evolution of the misunderstood howlers, but, they are too often merely a segue to her own story. Metaphors and allegories are fine, if you aren't lying to your reader up front. Believe me - you are not getting what you pay for if you just read the flyleaf and trot to the register, so be prepared.

My problem with such marketing slight-of-hand is that essentially, the publisher is lying to me. This may not be Reid's fault - maybe she pitched it for what it actually is, then wound up just having to accept what she wound up with to get published.

The unfortunate result is that speaking for myself, I started flipping through whole chapters just to get to the information I paid to get. Her life story may be interesting, as may be her take on society, two women living as rural lovers, and the reconnection of family. But it's not what I paid for. Ultimately, I tired of excavating the information I wanted, and tossed the book in the trash can under my nightstand, and that's something I almost never, ever do. I was mad at being deceived, but, perhaps Reid and/or her publisher will somehow find that comforting: the coyote's reputation as trickster was well-mimicked by Reid and her publisher.

If you want to learn about Coyotes, do a search on the internet, and save yourself a few bucks.

I purchased this book on a 30 word description (not Amazon) knowing it would be about the Coyote right? The author talks about moving back home with her Female Partner, Holly to an old house. This means she is a Lesbian.She has two Lesbian books listed on Amazon and this is a different direction for her I guess. I have read many books and other than this one ,I can not tell you the sex habits of the authors. Anyway , after talking about Coyote and non Coyote things she is finally rewarded with a sighting. Out of 179 pages the total Coyote content is about one chapters worth .She does write about almost everything else. A bad condensation by me of her info is : Coyotes (female)and left over Northern Wolves(male) are mating and producing Big non typical Coyote's that act like neither species. Even at $0.12/Amazons price / I can not recommend your purchase of this book for Coyote information.