The Council of Animals
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Average rating3.8
From national bestselling author Nick McDonell, The Council of Animals is a captivating fable for humans of all ages—dreamers and cynics alike—who believe (if nothing else) in the power of timeless storytelling. “‘Now,’ continued the cat, ‘there is nothing more difficult than changing an animal’s mind. But I will say, in case I can change yours: humans are more useful to us outside our bellies than in.’” Perhaps. After The Calamity, the animals thought the humans had managed to do themselves in. But, it turns out, a few are cowering in makeshift villages. So the animals—among them a cat, a dog, a crow, a baboon, a horse, and a bear—have convened to debate whether to help the last human stragglers . . . or to eat them. Rest assured, there is a happy ending. Sort of. Featuring illustrations by Steven Tabbutt
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The Council of Animals is a little fable about a group of animals who gather together after an apocalypse triggered by people to decide the fate of the human race.
So, I'd forgotten I'd wanted to read this book, until I found it at the library (KCMO and KCK public libraries FTW). I was intrigued and excited, because I am five and still love talking animals. And this book fit the bill for fable nicely. But it wasn't as good as I'd hoped. I feel like the narrative was a bit uneven. A good chunk of the book is the council itself, and then we're thrown into a rushed quest tale to save humans. There are some strange, awkward choices made with animals that become analogues for real-life cultural appropriation/racism. I don't think the author meant to minimize problems, but he did just that (re: ‘pooch' being a slur for dogs). And the animals personalities made very little sense. If you're going to have sinister, human-like primates, obvs they should be CHIMPS, not baboons. Horses aren't as stupid as the horse in the book. Crows shouldn't be religious fanatics. They're actually incredibly intelligent, with the intelligence of, like, a child of five (I maintain they're smarter than that). The delusional lizard is bizarre. The animals just didn't quite work. Though I liked the bear and the cat. It all just doesn't quite work. Though I like the solution for the humans.
