We complain when wildlife intrudes into human spaces – but who are the real interlopers?
A few years ago my wife and I woke in the middle of the night to the sound of rustling: mice had broken into our flat. For a few days we tolerated the presence of our new roommates, admiring their lightning speed and their fabulous ability to find hidden chocolate. After a while, we tired of their presence, the sprinkled droppings, the gnawed wires. Reluctantly, I laid down some spring traps. After a night of pops and squeaks, I surveyed the scene: one had been caught by his snout, black eyes bulging and lifeless. It felt like an awful act of betrayal, one that was incommensurate to the offence of trespass.
Anyone who has considered the messy ethics of the mousetrap will appreciate Mary Roach’s Animal Vegetable Criminal, a provocative and engaging exploration of our evolving relationship with the rest of nature. At the heart of the book is the question of whether we can live alongside other creatures, from mice to elephants. Roach is fascinated by what happens when this relationship is strained: when animals and plants “break” human laws, that is vandalise, intrude, harass, trespass, jaywalk, maim and, in the case of elephants and leopards, kill. Roach pays great attention to these species, their habits, behaviour and beauty, but this is really a book about humans and our attempts to find an uneasy accord with the creatures that get in our way.
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