Bat
Distributed for Reaktion Books
224 pages
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70 color plates, 30 halftones
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5 1/4 x 7 1/2
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© 2018
Review Quotes
Times Higher Education
"Laird’s dazzling study takes in everything from Colombian breast plates to Chinese matchboxes, not to mention the Australian newsreader who raised an orphaned flying fox."
Conversation
"Did you know that the collective noun for bats is a 'cloud,' or that in the first scientific classification of mammals, bats were placed close to humans because, like us, they have two nipples? The book Bat . . . is full of similar tidbits that you will want to share with others. It is also engrossing, eloquent, and beautifully illustrated. Bat contains hundreds of delightful bat facts, but they are so grounded in context that the whole is much more than the sum of its parts. One cannot help but become intrigued and eventually transformed. I know I will never look at bats the same way again."
BTO News
"Bat is an interesting dissection of the many different sides of bats, from both a biological and a cultural view point. The book is full of intriguing, bizarre, and astonishing facts about bats, from biology, pop culture, mythology, literature, and art. The main focus is on the interaction of bats and human life—the way they are portrayed within different cultures, the effect that has on the cultural opinion, and what that means for their protection in the law or lack thereof. . . . Bat is a celebration, showing the positive side of bats and uncovering many of the mysteries they have been shrouded in for so long."
American Biology Teacher
"There is much more to learn in this captivating volume. Some examples are the discussions of the complex evolution of bats, the account of how echolocation was established, including the bizarre experiments of Italian biologist Lazzaro Spallanzani, how Batman rose to fame, the comparison of bat flight and Star Wars, and the ideas that philosophers have about bats. . . . Part of Reaktion Books’ ambitious Animal series, this exhaustively researched volume is appropriate for college or advanced high school readers. It would be a valuable addition to a classroom library. . . . Profusely illustrated with captivating photographs."
For more information, or to order this book, please visit https://www.press.uchicago.edu
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Biological Sciences: Natural History
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