Essential antidote to the ungrounded theorizing of the male philosophers whose abstract idea(l)s have inhibited rather than facilitated effective animal liberation activism.

Don't be fooled by the textbook tone. While the book will work beautifully as an exceptionally engaging college ethics textbook, Gruen is (as usual) up to something much more subtly powerful than laying out the usual arguments in terms that students can understand. She covers virtually every ethical question concerning human-animal relations, not only answering common challenges in ways that animal advocates may find helpful to model but also and most importantly including the (eco)feminist perspectives that you don't even know exist if you've been reading Singer, Reagan, and Francione. These tend, on the whole, to destabilize the false dichotomies underlying socially constructed dilemmas, thereby clearing the way for creative solutions.

Clear thinking and what Gruen calls "engaged empathy" -- that's exactly what animal advocates need right now. Strongly recommended! ( )