hunt

This fun, interesting, and lavishly illustrated book tells the stories of approximately 50 animals that have played crucial roles in human history. Chaline’s fascinating essay topics range from the history of oyster-raising to the essential role of the horse. Humans are the subject of the final essay, which includes a warning that we are our own worst enemy. Each animal is classed among four categories as “Edible, Medicinal, Commercial, and/or Practical" (a dog-loving reader might quibble with the idea of modern housecats being considered “practical”).

This rare first edition, published in two volumes, is a fascinating series of anecdotes of wildlife and hunting in India told by Captain Thomas Williamson. Williamson served in a British regiment in Bengal and was an avid sportsman while there. Edward Orme (1775-1848), a British engraver, painter, and publisher of illustrated books, spear-headed the publication and commissioned the painter Samuel Howitt (1756-1822) to develop 40 illustrations for the work.