A review by corar
The Hidden Life of Deer: Lessons from the Natural World by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas

2.0

In 2007, Elizabeth Marshall Thomas noticed that the oak trees around her home were not producing acorns. Worried that the local wildlife, espcially the deer and wild turkey, would be unable to survive a winter without this important food source, she began feeding them corn. During this season, she observed the behavior of the deer and learned a lot about them. I was hoping that I would learn a lot about them too by reading this book, unfortunately that was not the case. While her observations were interesting, often she strayed into assumptions and speculation as to why a deer was acting a certain way, not because it is what she observed but because that is how she would think if she was a deer. She also spent way too much time in the book justifying her reasons for feeding the wildlife despite the fact that the New Hampshire Fish and Wildlife agency strongly discourages the practice. I was disappointed that I did not learn more about the behavior and social structure of deer. I did not expect a scientific study or data, but I was hoping that the observations would be more than her guessing at the reasons they do something. I do have a background in wildlife biology, perhaps this book would be better for someone that loves animals that wants to read about someone else that loves animals and their enjoyment of viewing wildlife.