Reviews with content warning for Death - Ryövärikarhu ja murhaajapuu: luonto ihmisen lakeja rikkomassa

I don't think this is Roach's best work, but there's still a lot of really interesting tidbits about the ways that humans are constantly trying to live with/near nature and how our attitudes of "managing wildlife" has changed in the past century and how it's likely to change in the next century. An interesting read overall.

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surlyjackson's review against another edition

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funny informative medium-paced

4.5

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semeyers's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional informative sad fast-paced

3.0

Fuzz was a solid read, though it was not what I was expecting from reading the description and the Introduction. I was looking forward to more first hand accounts of specific incidents of animals behaving badly, more humor, and more hope? I guess? What this book turned out to be is Mary Roach going from spot to spot (mostly in the US, but occasionally abroad) and talking to the individuals on the front lines of human-animal-conflict and what they are doing to stop it. What I learned is it rarely, if ever, ends well for the animal and even with advances in technology, all we can hope for is more chances and a quicker deaths for these animals.

This grim reality causes Roach's humor to fall flat along the way and occasionally even seem awkward. The book is also written as a series of essays instead of a cohesive novel. A chapter may have a glancing mention of another part of the book, but that's about it. As a result, the book just kind of...ends. I was hoping for a wrap up, a what-did-we-learn, a here's-my-takeaway, type of chapter and I did not get it.

Minor issue, but there were also typos throughout my ebook copy (togather instead of together, "leather hiking books" instead of boots) that were fairly distracting.

Also, don't feed wildlife.

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cyan_altaria's review against another edition

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funny informative

4.5

This book is absolutely hilarious! It manages to be informative about animals and ecology while still being an entertaining read. Mary Roach's wit and humor makes this book a joy to read.

Who do I recommend this book to: People who like biology, ecology, and humor
Will I read more by Mary Roach: Absolutely

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kelseyr713's review against another edition

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informative fast-paced

4.0

Mary Roach is always a fascinating writer, and I appreciate everything she does to gather information! It’s presented in a way that both entertains and educates. I liked the chapters about bears and elephants the most.

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aargot1's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.0

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