The Exultant Ark is a romp through the sunnier side of the animal kingdom, packed with lively photographs of animals enjoying themselves--the sorts of things we don't see on grimly narrated nature documentaries about the bloody struggle for survival. On these big, colorful pages, scarlet macaws affectionately preen one another. A mother gorilla embraces its baby. Three furry fox kits tumble and play in the sun. A young elk turns its face into the falling snow, sticks out its tongue, and samples a snowflake.
But The Exultant Ark isn't just about pretty pictures. Biologist Jonathan Balcombe uses spirited descriptions and compelling arguments to implore humankind--particularly the scientific community--to consider our animal counterparts with greater empathy and respect. "Species and populations don't feel pains and pleasures; individuals do," Balcombe writes. "As surely as they each have a biology, each also has a biography." --Hannah Calkins, Unpunished Vice