Why read Civilised by Beasts?

Book cover of Civilised by Beasts: Animals and Urban Change in Nineteenth-Century Dublin

Book description

Civilised by beasts tells the story of nineteenth-century Dublin through human-animal relationships. It offers a unique perspective on ordinary life in the Irish metropolis during a century of significant change and reform. At its heart is the argument that the exploitation of animals formed a key component of urban change,…

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European history

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Why read it?

1 author picked Civilised by Beasts as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Keri Cronin

Author

This is one of several excellent books that explores how nonhuman animals shaped cities (see also Andrew Robichaud’s Animal City, Frederick L. Brown’s The City is More Than Human, Dawn Day Biehler’s Pests in the City, and Hannah Velten’s Beastly London, for example). Cities are multispecies spaces and they have always been so, even as the history of a given city shifts and changes. When we walk through a city like Dublin today we may not immediately think about the many, many nonhuman animals who used to roam the same streets and pathways we walk on today.…

From Keri's list on The best books about animal history.