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A far-reaching, urgent, and thoroughly engaging exploration of our relationship with animals – from the acclaimed Financial Times journalist.
This might be the worst time in history to be an animal. But is there a happier way?
Factory farms, climate change, deforestation and pandemics have made our relationship with the other species unsustainable. In response, Henry Mance sets out on a personal quest to see if there is a fairer way to live alongside the animals we love. He goes to work in an abattoir and on a farm to investigate the reality of eating meat and dairy. He explores our dilemmas around over-fishing the seas, visiting zoos and owning pets, and he meets the chefs, activists, scientists and tech visionaries who are redefining how we think about animals.
Henry Mance is the award-winning Chief Features Writer at the Financial Times. He has contributed to a number of other publications including Tatler, GQ and Radio Times. He lives in London with his wife and two young daughters, plus their cat and various frogs.
"Written with humour and humanity, Mance's argument is both convincing and urgent: we need to make dramatic changes to our lifestyle if we want to prevent ecological catastrophe."
– P.D. Smith, Guardian
"This fascinating book makes a persuasive, sanctimony-free case for treating animals more humanely."
– The Times
"How to Love Animals is compassionate, funny and utterly readable. What's more, Mance does something of enormous value: he surprises himself and the reader, too [...] In marrying this openness with his clarity of vision, Mance offers a new window on the climate emergency."
– Clea Skopeliti, i Newspaper
"Persuasive [...] wry and on occasion laugh-out-loud funny. Like all the best reporters, Mance possesses an open mind and a strong moral compass, he's thorough and game for anything and he's good at drawing people out [...] After reading this thoughtful and galvanising book, I've realised that it's better to keep trying to live in a way that shows compassion and respect for animals, and to sometimes fail, than to give up altogether."
– Sophie McBain, New Statesman
"Unsentimental, hugely enjoyable [and] full of fascinating details [...] Stylishly written and deeply researched, Mance [...] makes a powerful case in this important book, which calls for radical change to the way we eat, farm and manage wildlife in this human age."
– Gaia Vince
"Wise, funny, moving and incisive. I loved it."
– Tim Harford
"A whip-smart, thought-provoking and thrilling investigation into one of the most essential moral issues of our time. Eye-opening as well as moving, challenging as well as frequently amusing, How to Love Animals surprised and fascinated me."
– Lucy Jones
"Smart, provocative and funny, this book also throws down a huge challenge to all of us. You'll never look at your dog – or a glass of milk – in the same way again."
– Helen Lewis
"Henry Mance believes that the bad things we do to animals are the result of our failure to think through the consequences of our actions. How to Love Animals will remedy that failure, in a highly readable, informative and entertaining manner."
– Peter Singer
"[Mance's] lively first book argues for a profound reassessment of humans' relationships with other species [...] He is a skilful writer who never shies away from painful stories, and leavens even the grimmest episodes with humour. He also has a rare ability to couch strenuous ethical arguments in terms that are warmly familiar."
– Economist
"This clearsighted book offers a clarion call to not only foster greater sensitivity toward the animal world as a whole, but to recognize the Earth as more than just a "human-shaped" space. An urgent, humane, and exceptionally well-documented book."
– Kirkus Reviews
"Entertaining and thought-provoking, even if you loathe vegan sausage rolls."
– Piers Morgan
"A panoramic overview of our current relationship with those with who we share our planet."
– Lucy Kehoe, Geographical
"How to Love Animals is compassionate, funny and utterly readable. What's more, Mance does something of enormous value: he surprises himself and the reader, too [...] In marrying this openness with his clarity of vision, Mance offers a new window on the climate emergency – one of the most pressing issues of our time."
– Clea Skopeliti, i
"Intensely researched and carefully woven [...] varied and fascinating, and at times even funny. Mance [...] has a lively style; if the subject matter is heavy, his prose slips down effortlessly [...] I was gripped and provoked."
– Emma Beddington, Spectator
"Challenging, but also funny and refreshingly low in sanctimony, this book is no frothing polemic. It will doubtless alter many readers' understanding of the systems we all participate in and lead them to make different choices. For others, it should prompt the difficult moral reasoning that those of us who love animals but also profit from their suffering cravenly manage to avoid [...] Mance is an amiable guide: curious and open-minded."
– Melissa Harrison, Financial Times
