Zoo: A history of zoological gardens in the west by Eric Baratay and Elisabeth Hardouin-Fugier, Reaktion Books, £28, ISBN 1861891113 Reviewed by Adrian Barnett
WHAT’S the attraction of gazing at captive animals? It’s a good question and in Zoo, Eric Baratay and Elisabeth Hardouin-Fugier give us an in-depth answer. They explain why zoos lodge in the human psyche, their place in society, and how they developed over time. It’s a richly informative book.
Placing them in their social and cultural context, Zoo traces the development of animal collections from medieval bear fights through the menagerie of the Sun King to…
