Birthdays are better with books! (part 5): Extinction and Resurrection

Where it all began: bringing back life without thinking about the consequences!

 I am hoping to teach a class, in time, on human-animal studies, so I've been broadly researching all sorts of issues that connect to that topic. In my research, I came across this book, which argues that our eating, farming, and living practices are major contributors to the loss of wildlife. I don't want my students or my children (should I be lucky enough to have some!) to grow up on a planet where our common animals are as much myths as dragons and unicorns, so I am hoping to read some good advice in this one! This one was a gift from my mom, who always defends my belief that books need me!

 For all the damage we are doing to the world, resurrection science holds out the hope that we might undo it by bringing extinct species back to life and reintroducing them to their former stomping ground (stomp seems appropriate when the cover art is a rhinoceros). But two concerns hover around this noble mission: what unintended consequences will come about from bringing things back - and should we have to drive things down into death and disappearance before they merit our time, money, and care? 

Fleshing out this group (despite the bones on the cover) is a book I've wanted to read for a very long time - but a book I have hesitated to pick up because I know it will kindle feelings of disgust and despair in me. Why are people capable of so much wonder and so much horror at once? And why should one species (us) be responsible for the annihilation of so many others? The really galling part is the fact that we are all responsible and that is so difficult (and expensive) to disentangle oneself from the norms of consumption, waste, and cheap food... I certainly don't know or have the answers, but I hope books like these will push us toward a brighter future and better solutions for living with the other animals on our planet!Another gift from mom!