Tanja Askani

With so many men (and a few creepy copycat women) desperate to kill wolves
(and now also to shoot feral cattle instead of relocating them),

[Kinship with the Wolf] makes perfect reading for animal lovers.

(Caveat being the author as Falconer.)

Tales of each of the wolves are fascinating, vastly informative, and memorable,
as are the incredibly beautiful photographs.

Kinship should be required reading for future decisions to save and preserve wolves in their own habitat.… (mehr)

Readers who enjoy tales of unlikely animal friendships - think Owen & Mzee, in which a tortoise and a baby hippo become "family" after the 2001 tsunami; or Tarra & Bella, about the bond between an elephant and a golden retriever - will warm to German author Tanja Askani's picture-book chronicle of cross-species companionship. Using adorable photographs of animals - both domestic and wild - living in or near her home, and simple statements about friendship, she documents these atypical relationships in an engaging, accessible way. A brief afterword includes more details about each pairing that is included in the main part of the book.

Truthfully, although I did enjoy A Friend Like You, I wasn't quite as impressed as I'd expected to be, based on the rave reviews of my friends (sorry, ladies!). I think I was hoping for more story, more about the animals themselves, and while the brief details in the rear of the book were very welcome, somehow the whole book just didn't "hang together" that well for me. Still, the photographs here are adorable - my favorite was the bunny who was sticking his tongue out at the hedgehog - and I think young animals lovers, especially, will appreciate it.… (mehr)