Before the Indians

by Bjorn Kurten, Margaret Lambert Newman, Hubert Pepper

Describes animal life in North America before, during, and after the Ice Age and explains how scientists can reconstruct past ecologies

158 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1988

Reviews

[John Branney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great companion book to Kurten's Pleistocene Mammals of North America. Before the Indians is less technical than Pleistocene mammals and has some interesting stories and facts about prehistoric mammals. Two thumb up.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic guide to the mammals we cannot see in zoos. I am reminded of a man who hated dinosaurs, and when he was reminded that they were extinct, he said, "Good." It's nice to not have to worry about saber-tooth tigers and giant sloths here in North America. Yes, humans' propensity to extinctify animals we don't like or like too much is hugely problematic, but I saw a wooly mammoth in a natural history museum and it was very big but I don't have to worry about them nowadays; all I have to worry about are moose. Still, it's good to know our history and whether we want to clone these puppies later on and have them in some kind of post-Jurassic park. Are these animals huge? Yes! Are they fascinating? Yes! Are they beautiful? Yes! Is Bjorn Kurten a kinda dull? Yes! His novel about Early Man isn't great either. But he's a fantastic paleo-zoologist and it is an honor to see the world through his eyes even if it's a slog to pay attention to the way he describes it. You should one million percent own this book and look through the pictures and marvel and read snippets of text but maybe not read it all the way through.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Pleistocene fauna of North America. A+, great illustrations, reread sometime.

[Marcus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating, well written and with some intriguing drawings.

[Bob Croft · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light, but a good summary.