Customer Reviews

Thanking the Monkey: Rethinking the Way We Treat Animals

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What brilliance! It is by far the best, most practical, balanced, logical, and well written book on animal rights and animal welfare I have ever come across. I have read many. Karen Dawn writes that it's not "all or nothing" that there are compassionate steps we all can make -- every one of us. It answered all my questions about many areas of animal abuse I wasn't aware of. It's important to know what your money supports when you patron places like Sea World or the Circus. How about that fur collar? It might come from a dog or cat. It might be labeled fake, but really be from a domesticated animal. What about the horse meat industry? Cattle ranching supports horse slaughter. Love horses? Don't eat cows. Seriously. It's all connected.

All people, meat eaters too, can take steps to help animals live better. You learn about this in a very, very insightful way with humor and compassion. There's no name calling or holier than thou in this book. Karen rocks!

It's not about perfection, it's about progression.

If you're looking for a comprehensive and easy-to-read introduction into animal rights issues, this book is great. Karen Dawn juxtaposes a wealth of funny and moving anecdotes with top-notch research, witty commentary, hilarious cartoons, and a parade of guest appearances by pop culture icons. Will make you both laugh *and* think.

This book could have been written in a overly-dramatic, highly inflamatory way; however, it is carefully written, balanced, and even manages to use humor in at most unexpected places. Once you know, you can never go back to looking at milk, eggs, meat, fur, pets, circuses the same way ... and it's all for the good. Why not seek to move through this world with great awareness and compassion for all life with whom we share the planet?

I read a copy of this from my local library and decided that it's worth having in my permanent library. There are around 8 chapters on various topics, but the author, Karen Dawn, does a great job of breaking each topic into bite-sized pieces that make this an easy read. She intersperses animal-friendly comic strips and celebrity quotes every few pages. I found that instead of making the pace seem choppy, it instead provided an alternative endorsement of her ideas and make the book an easy read.

I'll admit that the one chapter I really had a hard time reading was the one on animal testing. I don't consider that a failure on my part as I skimmed it and got what I needed to get out of it. Because she breaks up each topic into such digestible pieces, it's not only an easy read but something I'm going to have on my library shelf for reference. Her arguments are polite, witty, and well-referenced. She's not militant in her views and her easy-going style make it easy to gravitate towards her side of things. In the interest of full disclosure, I was a vegetarian/near-vegan when I read this book, but there are chapters on household pets and animals in the entertainment industry that got me thinking enough to potentially change my future behavior.

I could see how someone would dismiss this type of book as nutty stuff, but really, it's not. It's merely stating various talking (or thinking) points with the goal of getting you to think differently about things that you normally don't think about. She has a huge bibliography in the back so she did her research. The book is short on the really gorey photographs that one might find in a pro-animal book such as this, and I appreciated that. She spends the last chapter talking about how to effectively get people thinking about animal rights via peaceful and non-annoying methods, which is a great way to exit the book as you then feel as if you can help make a difference all by yourself.

Animal activists ARE crazy. And after reading this book, you will understand why. In it, Karen Dawn tackles a daunting task, to take some of the most heinous and barbaric crimes we humans commit against the animal kingdom and shed light on them in a gentle, entertaining, and even fun manner. And she succeeds.

You will meet some of the most "radical" activists, filmmakers, nutritionists, conservationists, authors, and their celebrity supporters. Through remarkable, heartwarming, as well as heart-rending stories Dawn encourages us to take a step back, rethink our philosophies and actions, and to take responsibilities for our choices. TTM is littered with excellent information, great quotes, and a plethora of valuable links and ideas for creating a more compassionate world. A pleasure... and a treasure!

Thanking the Monkey is a book to please everyone from the curious carnivore to the dedicated animal rights advocate! It is a delightful mix of fact and analysis, fun and whimsy, and the perfect treatment of the serious and oft-disturbing issues surrounding how we treat animals.

After reading this book, you'll be thanking Karen Dawn -- and so will the animals!

I eat meat, and it is hard for me to give us the taste of fried chicken, but I have always struggled with the moral aspect of being a meat eater. It is one thing to have to kill for survival (as our ancestors did), but quite another to kill to satisfy our pallets or test new drugs that have no new active ingredients, but only to extend the life of a patent so drug companies can make more money.

I am amazed that we can treat animals the way we do, especially since we have already proven without a doubt that animals are intelligent beings with emotions and feelings not unlike ours. This reminds me of the dark days when we were able to justify cruelty done to slaves because we do not see them as equal to us, and therefore discount their sufferings.

Karen's book is doing a lot to open people eye's to the cruelty that exist beneath the nicely packed meat, milk and eggs at the supermarket, and it is time we take our head out of the sand and face the truth that behind every bite, there is a sentient being out there that has suffered a great deal. It will be hard for me to switch 100% to a vegan lifestyle instantly, but I am committed to making small changes such as cutting back animal product consumption to make a difference.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking into animal rights issues. It keeps the attention and is an easy read. I think some of the writing is a little on the juvenile side, with the Britney Spears/Paris Hilton and pop culture references, but it really gets the point across without going into the graphic detail of the shock doctrine of the PETA folk. It does offer however links to the websites that show the videos if that is your thing. Animal abuse, be it vivisection, breeders, puppy mills, factory farming, the fur trade, the hoax of "free range" farming is all covered and then some. This book is written with emotion and dedication. Some sections may make you cry, some might make you sick to your stomach or make you want to take action. If you always wanted to learn about animals rights this is your starter place. You can move on up to other more "adult" reading from here. It is the MTV version of Animal Liberation. I do really think this book should be read by as many people as possible that are concerned about what they put in their mouths or wear on their feet or backs. Go veg!!!

This book is amazingly compiled and written.
It has a great standing and point of view anyone could respect.
I highly recommend this book to everyone I know.
I have had many thanks on those recommendations as well.
A must have book for animal lovers.
Not your typical horrific pictures and grotesque stories.
But rather tasteful facts!
Thanks To Karen Dawn for creating this book, that has altered my life and way of thinking for the better.

Karen Dawn's book Thanking the Monkey: Rethinking The Way We Treat Animals is amazing. She makes you think about the way you are living your life and how by taking one step at a time you can make life better for animals and the environment. Karen is such a compassionate person and I feel that her book has made me think about ways I can get more involved in the Animal Protection Movement. This book will really make you Rethink the way you treat animals. This book is made for all people omnivores, vegetarians and vegans. As a vegan I hadn't been involved in the movement and thanks to Karen I have made the step to bring change for all animals. KAREN DAWN is the best and make sure you buy this book because it will change your life.