The Torah Encyclopedia of the Animal Kingdom is, thank God, very popular and receiving wide acclaim. However it does suffer from some drawbacks. One is that it is really heavy. Another, related to this, is that there is so much information in it, that it might be hard to get "into it." Not everyone wants to wade through page after page exploring the multitude aspects of lion symbolism, or the finer points of animal identification. Many people therefore probably just settle for looking at the beautiful photos. But I thought that it would be a good idea to provide a list of what I consider to be the most interesting parts of the book to read (which is admittedly somewhat subjective). So here goes:

• The second paragraph in the acknowledgements

• “The Wildlife of the Torah” pp. 29-31

• “The Prestige of Wild Animals” pp. 37-38

• “The Lurking Lion” pp. 93-94

• “The Lion Hunter of Zion” pp. 101-102

• Bear – entire chapter!

• “When the Wolf Lay with the Lamb” p. 166

• “Hour of the Hyena” pp. 176-177

• “Foxes and Jackals” p. 180

• “The Narrow Womb: Conception and Birth” pp. 234-235

• "Return of the Deer" p. 238

• “Writing Torah Scrolls on Gazelle Hide” p. 252

• “The Mighty Aurochs” pp. 280-281

• “The Return of the Re’em” p. 285

• Giraffe – entire chapter!

• “Hares, Hounds, and the Haggadah” p/ 325-6

• “The Untamable Onager” pp. 341-343

• Elephant – entire chapter!

• “Monkey Hands” – pp. 387-8

Enjoy! If you'd like to buy the book and simultaneously support The Biblical Museum of Natural History, please buy it at this link.