"A delightful, eye-opening exploration of the talents and skills of animals that live close to us--animals we often refuse to accept. Zuk engages with each species on its own terms, peeling away human interpretations to show their true natures, talents, and adaptations. Her clear-eyed, joyful scientific curiosity will leave you captivated by cowbirds and charmed by cockroaches. An engaging and heartening read that will make you smile even as you store away another science fact to share." --Bethany Brookshire, author of Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains "Raccoons and cowbirds and gulls, oh my! Marlene Zuk has written a fascinating book about the creatures we know all too well but haven't welcomed into our lives. And yet, she convinces us, maybe we should." --Jonathan B. Losos, author of The Cat's Meow: How Cats Evolved from the Savanna to Your Sofa "This is a truly compelling book, rich with scientific expertise and humor.

Marlene Zuk shows how the animals we tend to overlook have remarkable stories to tell, inviting us to rethink nature and our place in it. You'll never see these creatures the same way again." --Isabella Rossellini, actress and author of Green Porno and My Chickens and I "Marlene Zuk's smart, clever, and charmingly written Outsider Animals shows how widely unpopular creatures offer special lessons about our attitudes toward other species more generally. She does this through essays on some of the most widely detested species on Earth, in ways that are caring yet critical, devoid of excessive sentimentalism, and backed up by an impressive knowledge of science and the humanities." --Harry W. Greene, author of Tracks and Shadows: Field Biology as Art.