Amelia Thomas

Are animals trying to tell us something—and have we been too distracted to notice? It started with a hummingbird dive-bombing Amelia Thomas over her morning coffee, and a pair of piglets who just wouldn't stay put. Soon Amelia, journalist and new farmer, begins to question the communications of the creatures all around her: her pigs, her dogs, the pheasant family inhabiting her wood, her 'difficult' big red horse: even the earwigs in the farm's dark, damp corners. Are they all just animals reacting instinctually to the world around them—or are they trying to communicate something deeper? Driven by lifelong curiosity, Amelia embarks on a journey to uncover what animals truly seek to say to humans. On the way, along with ground-breaking chimps and circumspect octopuses, she'll meet an extraordinary cast of experts, from animal behaviorists and anthrozoologists to trackers and psychologists, and even explore the surprising insights of pet psychics, A.I. researchers, and animal mindfulness practitioners. Each perspective offers a new layer of understanding about the subtle, complex ways animals connect with us—and will deepen our appreciation for every creature with whom we share our planet. In What Sheep Think About the Weather, Amelia chronicles her sometimes difficult discoveries with humor, heart, and awe. More than just a memoir, this book is a call to listen—not only to the animals we love but to the untamed world around us. What if the answers to some of humanity's greatest questions have been whispered to us all along?

How to Listen to What Animals Are Trying to Say

What Sheep Think About the Weather

Terry Carter

Lara Dunston

Siria e Libano

The last Palestinian zoo stands on a dusty, dead-end street in the once prosperous farming town of Qalqilya, on the very edge of the West Bank. The zoo's bars are rusting; peacocks wander quiet avenues shaded by broad plane trees; a teenage baboon broods in solitary confinement; walls bear the pockmarks of gunfire. And yet the zoo is an extraordinary place, with a bizarre, troubling and inspiring story to tell. At the center of this story is Dr. Sami Khader, the only zoo veterinarian in the Palestinian territories. Family man, amateur inventor, and dedicated taxidermist, he is fiercely independent, apolitical, and resourceful in times of crisis. Dr. Sami dreams of transforming the zoo into one of an international caliber. In The Zoo on the Road to Nablus, Amelia Thomas brings the reader into a world rarely glimpsed from the outside, weaving the stories of the zoo's animals, its staff, and its visitors into a rich, colorful chronicle of the indomitability of the human—and animal—spirit.

A Story of Survival from the West Bank

The Zoo on the Road to Nablus

The last Palestinian zoo stands on a dusty, dead-end street in the once-prosperous farming town of Qalqilya, on the edge of the West Bank.The zoo's bars are rusting; peacocks wander quiet avenues shaded by broad plane trees; a teenage baboon broods in solitary confinement; Ruti the giraffe nibbles dry leaves from an overhanging branch; walls bear the pockmarks of gunfire. And yet the zoo is an extraordinary place, with a bizarre, troubling and inspiring story to tell.At its centre is Dr Sami Khader, the only zoo veterinarian in the Palestinian territories. Family man, amateur inventor and dedicated taxidermist, he is fiercely independent, apolitical, and resourceful in times of crisis. Dr Sami dreams of transforming the zoo into one of an international calibre, and of lasting peace in his homeland...In The Zoo on the Road to Nablus, Amelia Thomas takes the reader to a world rarely glimpsed from the outside, weaving extraordinary stories of the zoo's animals, its visitors, and the courageous vet who decided to save it, into a rich and colourful chronicle of the strength of the human – and animal – spirit.

Amelia Thomas

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