Announcing My Book!

Good morning, all!

I’m taking a break from my normal newsletter format this week to announce my new book, Forget the Camel! The Madcap World of Animal Festivals and What They Say about Being Human!

Over the past two years, I attended nearly a dozen animal festivals all across the country, from the Iditarod Dog Sled Race in Alaska, to the World’s Largest Rattlesnake Roundup in Texas, to Groundhog Day in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Events like these—that use animals for the core activity and theme—happen all over the country and the world. All told, they use thousands of animals every year as living symbols to tell stories about our own identity and heritage.

The idea for this book came from my grandmother, an anthropologist who studied human-animal relationships. Before she died in 2003, she had just started working on an academic anthology of animal festivals around the world. During the pandemic I dug out what remained of her files. I realized very quickly that there was something important to say here. So I booked my first research trip and attended my first festival, not quite sure what I would find.

In some ways, I picked up where she left off; but in others I found so much more than I was expecting.

Animal festivals are microcosms of our relationships with animals more generally. In the book, I use them as a jumping off point to explore how we treat animals—with dominance, humor, and reverence, in turn. I bring readers to eight of the most compelling festivals with me, questioning the all-too-human assumptions that undergird the events. Ultimately, I urge readers to pursue a more compassionate future.

You can learn more and pre-order my book now, and expect it to hit shelves in April 2025! Please share widely, and let me know if you have any questions or ideas!