LRB Review of Menagerie

December 21, 2016 By John E. Riutta in Marginalia Tags: book, grigson, lrb, menagerie, oxford, wellesly, zoo

I originally established The Well-read Naturalist out of frustration at the dearth of reviews for books of natural history that I noted in traditional book reviewing publications. While the problem still persists, I am increasingly encouraged by more frequent discoveries of such.

The most recent discovery occurred when I opened the just-arrived volume 38, number 24 of the London Review of Books to find Mary Wellesley’s “No looking at my elephant;” which takes Caroline Grigson’s Menagerie: The History of Exotic Animals in England 1100-1837 as its subject. The LRB is even kind enough to make Ms. Wellesley’s review openly available on their website.

John E. Riutta

Founder and publisher of The Well-read Naturalist. Inveterate autodidact. Has repeatedly been found out standing in many fields. Plays well with otters.

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