Adam's Task

Calling Animals by Name

De: Vicki Hearne

Narrado por: Rachel Fulginiti

Have you ever watched a horse flick her tail or had a dog greet you at your door and known in your heart that the animal was exhibiting something more than simple instinctual responses? If so, you must read this book. In it Vicki Hearne asserts that animals that interact with humans are more intelligent than we assume. In fact, they are capable of developing an understanding of "the good", a moral code that influences their motives and actions. Hearne’s thorough studies led her to adopt a new system of animal training that contradicts modern animal behavioral research, but - as her examples show - is astonishingly effective. Hearne’s theories will make every trainer, animal psychologist, and animal-lover stop, think, and question.

©2007 Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. Introduction copyright 2007 Donald McCaig (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Difficult to Follow and Understand

I love animal instruction books but this one is hard to follow and understand what the author is doing.

How to think about rescue, teaching, and learning

Vicki Hearne can be difficult to read but do the work and it stays with one. I have read this book several times and it never fails to amuse, comfort, challenge, and provoke thought. What we understand about language is assumed and Hearne begins to show us how to move from what we limit to what we can use about that form of ignorance. It is a book to reread and the first read is just a beginning. This narrator is adequate and not irritating. I am not sure if I would be happy about any narrator since I have a passion for this book.

Interesting, but...

The message of this book is definitely worthwhile for anyone who works with animals and especially those who have strong viewpoints on how humans should interact with them. The book is mostly philosophical with anecdotes peppered in. Some will find much of the book esoteric and difficult to follow as I did. The author seems to presume a fluency in philosophy and may leave the more casual reader scratching their head. This is exacerbated by the choppy diction of the narrator. 5 stars for the message, 2 stars for the delivery.

Wonderful book; NOT light reading

I've read this book several times over the last 25 years or so. To me, it was terribly exciting the first time through, though I knew that I didn't pick up every concept fully. I immediately read it again, and my comprehension of it increased.

It is about language in so many of its complexities, and its varied applications interspecies and interpersonal.

I picked it up numerous times through the years, and through this (plus growing practical experience), was happily surprised each time that my understanding of the concepts and philosophies had deepened.

Delighted to see it on Audible, I downloaded it immediately. Once again, I understand it more essentially than ever. I have trained very many horses, thousands of riders, a few dogs, and thousands of school students. This book is like a practical manual in some ways. My past and present methods and philosophies have been shaped, validated, and sometimes retroactively rebuked in these pages.

My failings are made clear, if I have the ability and willingness to truly hear; and when this happens the origins of my shortcomings are laid bare. I do that work. It's my moral obligation in general. Hearne's work, if it is to be truly understood, commands self reflection and personal work - if we are dedicated to doing the best work with others.

It is the dedication to language, to seeking to understand the individuals in our charge, and to ensuring that our own egos are properly checked that is studied. Of particular interest to me has always been the confusion of cruelty and kindness. It's easy to make this mistake, and it's very easy to recognize accidental victims of this in the classroom.

My only complaint is that the narrator doesn't seem to be a player in the niche world lived in _Adam's Task_, so there are some mispronunciations and missing inflections. It does improve some as the book progresses. I am admittedly biased on this point; so don't let it turn you away.

Strict behaviorists will either loathe this book, or else their horizons may be broadened. Anthropomorphism reigns here; for how else can their be language?