Caroline

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Caroline is Currently Reading

Caroline is currently reading

Monster of God: The Man-Eating Predator in the Jungles of History and the Mind

by David Quammen (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: mythology, religion, currently-reading, popular-science, nature-wildlife

Reading for the 2nd time

read in March 2015

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Caroline said: " Whether through an error in my judgement or misleading advertising, this book wasn't quite what I thought it was going to be. I was expecting an exploration of the role and symbolism of alpha predators in religion, mythology and culture throughout hi Whether through an error in my judgement or misleading advertising, this book wasn't quite what I thought it was going to be. I was expecting an exploration of the role and symbolism of alpha predators in religion, mythology and culture throughout history - certainly to me that is what the title implies. And the early chapters seemed to promise this, discussing the frequent references to lions in the Bible, the sacred roles given to bulls, crocodiles, lions in Egyptian hieroglyphs, shark worship on Pacific islands. But other than this all too brief exploration, with an occasional asides to discuss the Biblical Leviathan, Beowulf's Grendel, Humbaba in the Epic of Gilgamesh and, curiously, the alien in the Alien series, the rest of this book is devoted to exploring the relationship between a handful of native cultures and the alpha predators they share a landscape with.

So whilst I was disappointed this book wasn't what I'd been hoping for, I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless. Quammen is an engaging writer and I enjoyed his recounting of his own adventures tracking Australian saltwater crocodiles, Indian lions, Romanian bears and Siberian tigers just as much as I enjoyed the insights into the cultures that exist alongside these predators. Mainstream urbanised humanity has become all too detached from the ecosystems of which we are a part - how many of us, after all, think of ourselves as being part of the food-chain? In the pyramid of alpha predators, by and large Man is most firmly at the top. But remove our technological advantages, remove our guns and our vehicles and our scientific understanding, put us alone and on foot in a predator's territory, and our pretensions to Alpha status prove all too hollow. We become Prey.

However, as Quammen investigates, the cultures and societies that live most closely alongside alpha predators often develop a respect and an accommodation for them, despite frequently competing with them for food and territory or clashing over livestock depredations. The biggest threat to these creatures is not the individuals who live in closest proximity to them, but the voracious consumption of resources by the increasing encroachment of civilisation. The last few pockets of territory in which these creatures, lions and tigers and bear (oh my!), can live wild and free is rapidly shrinking. And another concern, as Quammen points out, is that those native culture may vanish right along with them.

So a good book, but not the book I was hoping to read. If you're looking for an in-depth investigation of the deep-rooted fear of alpha predators in the human psyche or an exploration of how these fears have been expressed through the millennia via religion, literature and art, you'll enjoy this book certainly but it won't quite be the book you're looking for. Too much of the present and not enough of the past for me. I'm glad I read it, and I'm sure I'll read more of David Quammen's work, but for now I'll keep looking. ...more "

progress:

(56%)
— Mar 04, 2026 10:12AM

Mar 02, 2015 02:13AM · see review

Caroline’s Quotes

“I ask you to pass through life at my side—to be my second self, and best earthly companion.”
― Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

tags: marriage-proposal

1211 likes

“Reader, I married him.”
― Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

2246 likes

“Long ago, men went to sea, and women waited for them, standing on the edge of the water, scanning the horizon for the tiny ship. Now I wait for Henry. He vanishes unwillingly, without warning. I wait for him. Each moment that I wait feels like a year, an eternity. Each moment is as slow and transparent as glass. Through each moment I can see infinite moments lined up, waiting. Why has he gone where I cannot follow?”
― Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler's Wife

tags: lose, lost-love, moment

575 likes

“To be more precise it was the color of heartache.”
― Susanna Clarke, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

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“Do you think I am an automaton? — a machine without feelings? and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! — I have as much soul as you — and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh: it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God's feet, equal — as we are!”
― Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

tags: chapter-xxiii

5567 likes

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