How to be a good creature : a memoir in thirteen animals
(Book)

Includes bibliographical references.

When asked what life lessons animals have taught her, acclaimed writer and naturalist Montgomery hardly skipped a beat: "how to be a good creature." Here the award-winning author elaborates on what she has learned. Unable to conform to her parent's idea of how a young daughter should behave, this only child in a military family found her closest ally and a beloved friend in her first dog, and it appears from there on, her destiny was sealed. The author has traveled the world and worked with animals in remote locations under less-than-ideal circumstances. However, it was the death of two of her beloved pets accompanied by suicidal thoughts, that nearly brought an end to Montgomery's career. What ultimately saved the writer was a return to work and the wildness of nature. As Montgomery demonstrates again and again, it's not only the "tools of inquiry and intellect" it's also "heart" that allows us to glimpse into a world that "is aflame with shades of brilliance we cannot fathom." Filled with fascinating stories of encounters and relationships with animals in various locations. --,Adapted from Library Journal.