The Book of Deadly Animals

By: Gordon Grice

Narrated by: Keith Sellon-Wright

Whether at a zoo, on a camping trip, or under our bedsheets, we are surrounded by animals. While most are perfectly harmless, it's the magnificent exceptions that populate The Book of Deadly Animals. Award-winning writer Gordon Grice takes readers on a tour of the animal kingdom - from grizzly bears to great white sharks, big cats to crocodiles. This audiobook overflows with astonishing facts about Earth's great predators and unforgettable stories of their encounters with humans, all delivered in Grice's signature dark comic style.

©2010 Gordon Grice (P)2014 Gordon Grice

Critic reviews

"[A] work of mountainous, vertiginous research, a 350-page volume in which scarcely a word is wasted. This review can barely scratch the surface of its wonders." ( Daily Mail)

"A wonderful, slightly terrifying, utterly captivating encounter with the animal world - not quite like anything I've ever read before. I think the only way I could possibly have enjoyed this more is if I happened to be an adventurous twelve-year-old boy, but still, even for a fully domesticated 40-year-old woman, it was both a thrill and an education." (Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love)

"A fresh, strange, and wonderful new voice in nature writing." (Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma)

Candy for the kid in you

An absolute blast to listen to. This book is as intriguing as it is fun. Grice is in his element here reintroducing the child in all of us to the wonder that is the animal kingdom. That mythic place that as kids we were in awe of and honestly a bit wary of. It is fun to be introduced to all the various zoological realms (especially the ones we think we know) and then walked through the various dangers lurking in each of them. The feeling you are left with is a bit like the unease you felt from that one dog on your block that you always suspected would bite you the minute he figured out how to get over the fence....despite his owners insistence otherwise. This book may have you eyeing your pets warily for a few days.

OMG.....Yikes

I know now that the following is not safe and never was: Walking in the woods, Walking in a meadow, Swimming in rivers and in the ocean, Visiting a zoo, Picking up a stick that has been in a pile, Making a mudpie in your front lawn, Petting your dog or cat, Visiting a rainforest or a desert, Cleaning out your attic, Sleeping in your bed and so on. Basically you can be mauled, maimed, stung, bitten, pierced, gorged, chewed up, a worm can enter your privates, you can contract parasites, skin diseases and on and on and on.
I was amazed to find out that over 40 thousand people are killed by snakes annually worldwide; Mr. Grice says this statistic is under reported.
So ok world...... I'm ready to take you on and just not think about all the many many dangers I learned about in this book. The author made sure he didn't forget to mention even one natural danger, but hey we don't care; do we?
This is a fun, informative and interesting book