Elephant Trails

"This is a beautiful book. It is as wise and gentle and enduring as (our fantasies impose on) elephants. A monumental work."—Sandra Swart, Stellenbosch University, author of Riding High: Horses, Humans and History in South Africa

"An extraordinary book. Rothfels draws upon archival work, field research, and deep personal reflections to explore the human encounter with elephants. The results are convincing, artful, and often breathtaking."—Jason Colby, University of Victoria, author of Orca: How We Came to Know and Love the Ocean's Greatest Predator

"Nigel Rothfels's brilliantly written and empathic account of the largest living land mammal shows how the enlivening presence of elephants helped humans to make sense of the world around them."—Mieke Roscher, University of Kassel, coeditor of Animal Biography: Re-framing Animal Lives

"Well-researched from wide-ranging resources, this book covers a rich history of encounters between humans and elephant from a realistic yet thoughtful perspective."—Ken Kawata, Director Emeritus, Staten Island Zoo, author of New York's Biggst Little Zoo: A History of the Staten Island Zoo

"What makes this gracefully written book so moving is the author's careful, quiet portraits of individual elephants. Enchanting and disquieting, in equal measure."—Don Kulick, Uppsala University, author of A Death in the Rainforest: How a Language and a Way of Life Came to an End in Papua New Guinea

"Elephant Trails is a major contribution to the understanding of animals and cultures from a figure of real authority in the field of animal studies."—Steve Baker, author of Artist Animal

"This pathbreaking book traces the transnational history of contemporary ideas about elephants. Elephant Trails is essential reading for anyone who cares about these charismatic—and imperiled—creatures."—Janet M. Davis, University of Texas at Austin, author of The Gospel of Kindness: Animal Welfare and the Making of Modern America

"Rothfels's thoughtful wandering through elephant histories, elephant biographies, elephant science, and elephant bone collections turns up the ironies in our lasting fascination with Loxodonta."—Bernard Unti, Humane Society of the United States

"[Rothfels] captures the ache and cruelty of colonization and enslavement; it is, at times, a gruesome read but a sobering one. This book will appeal to those fascinated by the mythology and legacy of elephants, as well as animal lovers who fight for the liberation of all living creatures."—Jen Cox, Scientific American