A review by ederwin
Wild Animus by Rich Shapero

1.0

Not nearly as bad as I hoped. I hoped this would be monumentally bad -- so bad it's funny -- but it is just ordinarily mediocre.

It starts with this guy living in Berkeley who gets tired of city life and wants to escape to a more natural setting where he can commune with nature, take acid every day, dress in a goat costume, climb a volcano, join a goat family, and get chased by wolves. How could I not read that? Apart from some minor details -- wool makes me itchy -- that perfectly describes me! I got hooked on that idea and before I knew it I was halfway through. I actually read the whole thing, ... and I regret it.

After you learn the basic idea, there is nothing more to it. The prologue already tells you that he will die in a volcanic eruption while simultaneously being eaten by wolves, so there is really no suspense.

I got this book for free. That is typical. If you paid money for it, you are unusual. The author has given out 1000s and 1000s, perhaps hundreds of thousands of free copies of this book in nice hardback editions. The crazy story of him giving away so many copies is far more interesting than this book itself.

If you only read one book about a man turning himself into a goat, please don't make it this one. [b:GoatMan: How I Took a Holiday from Being Human|26031368|GoatMan How I Took a Holiday from Being Human (one man's journey to leave humanity behind and become like a goat)|Thomas Thwaites|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1447619312l/26031368._SX50_.jpg|45957739] is much better, has pictures of the goat suit, and isn't even fiction.