The Souls of Animals

Mr. Kowalski's book is excellent. If your're an animal lover or simply want a great read, you will enjoy this book. It's not just another man's opinion, but a well cited and researched work. Kowalski shows humans are not the only sentient beings on this planet.

I stumbled upon this book on accident. As an animal lover, it looked appealing to me though I expected it to be a generic, feel-good read. I was quite surprised! When I read the information that Kowalski had compiled, I cried. The chapters explore our questions on just how perceptive and emotional animals are. Do they feel a sense of love? Are they aware of death? Why do they play? When I read the stories that the author relates, such as the family of elephants who buried the dead and Koko the female lowland gorilla who learned American Sign Language, I was deeply moved. I had not purchased this book planning a lifestyle change but that is precisely what happened. Knowing what I do now about the intelligence and passion of animals, I am a vegetarian, living a happier, healthier life.

Gary Kowalski wrote a succint book about a subject that is verydear to me (being as I am a vegan and an ecologist). I appreciate thepondered yet caring way in which he writes. It will give you food for thought concerning our animal brothers and sisters under the sky. This book reminded me a lot of the absolutely fantastic 'When Elephants Weep',by Masson and McCarhy (I think) which I actually never got to finish reading because it depressed me too much (but I must finish it soon as the book is a masterpiece). I advise you to read 'The Souls of Animals' and to think about it (and to act accordingly).

Gary Kowalski is a Unitarian minister in Burlington, Vermont whose thinking and writing about animals and their spiritual lives is clear and powerful. To questions such as "Do Animals Experience Love?, "Are Animals Aware of Death?", Are Animals Conscious of Themselves?", "Do Animals Know Right From Wrong?" and "Do Animals Have Souls" Kowalski brings a rare blend of careful observation, personal insights, scientific understanding, and moral sensitivity. The Souls of Animals is a book that, chapter by chapter, teaches us to be more open to the possibility of our biological, psychological, and spiritual kinship with animals. In a university course that I teach on animal ethics students and I found this book provided a perspective and a "voice" that, too often, is discounted or neglected in ethical analyses and debates about humans' relationships and uses of animals. This book is pleasure to read and to think about.