Wildlife in the Kitchen … and Other Great Animal Tales

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

Snopek caters to a basic curiosity about the human/wild animal interface
in this collection of eight light essays. Her subjects range from the
mundane (a lovesick pigeon) to the exotic (a lion trained for work in
films). Other subjects include a goose, wolves, polar bears, a seal,
beluga whales, opossums, and wild horses. Various “garden variety”
creatures, such as birds, rabbits, skunks, and raccoons, are encountered
along the way. With the exception of the lion, the animals are rescued
because of injury or are observed in the wild. The emphasis in on
keeping wild animals in their natural setting, as free as possible from
dependence on people. Most of the accounts have a western Canada
location, whether it’s polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba, or
small-animal rehabilitation in Abbotsford, B.C.

The text stresses the difference between rehabilitation for release
back into the wild and keeping animals as pets. The author refers
repeatedly to the licences needed to keep wild animals in captivity.
Although the essays brush against some potentially interesting subjects,
the content is superficial and therefore leaves the reader unsatisfied.

The writing style is flat and fairly characterless, factual with little
success in connecting emotionally with the subject. The overall
impression is uninspiring.