Introduction: on cats and embracing humanness -- On orcas and the privilege of striving -- On gorillas and sharing in grief -- On panthers and paying closer attention -- On bears and being a body -- On horses and listening to intuition -- On gibbons and committing to connection -- On zebras and staying safe in community -- On crocodiles and trusting the future -- On chickens and learning new languages -- On oysters and believing in the miraculous -- On cardinals and creating your own holiness -- On rats and valuing the other -- On snow leopards and adapting to new places -- On donkeys and questioning intelligence -- On pigeons and brining the outsiders in -- On wolves and becoming natural -- On mourning doves and trying again -- On humans and being a living thing

"A luminous collection of essays exploring the lessons we can incorporate from the animal world in order to live more fully as humans A shelter cat teaches us that our damaged parts, too, are worthy of love... a captive orca shows us that inconvenience and difficulties are the blessing of a full life... a gorilla teaches the universal language of grief... a group of oysters who prove that magic and science can and do coexist... In How to Be a Living Thing, Mari Andrew reflects on the ways animals mirror, challenge, and deepen our experiences as living creatures in the world. Through her personal stories and explorations into the inner world of other creatures, Mari illuminates the opportunities and wonders of being a living thing. Highly-sensitive horses, overly-cautious donkeys, and silly social rats are just a few of the animal teachers who offer us glimpses of the glories and shortcomings of humanity. Heartwarming, funny, and insightful, How to Be a Living Thing reminds us that we are perfectly imperfect beings, capable of profound connection with each other and with all other species of the remarkable natural world that surrounds us"-- Provided by publisher