Rating: 
Summary: Another Winner
Review: I have been reading popular science books for an assignment in school and already reported on two others I really enjoyed-- Ants at Work and Nabokov's Blues. This was the third book I read and it was fascinating. I have two pets at home and have always had the feeling they were smarter than, just...animals. Mr. Lindens accounts are wonderful and make we wonder how he was able to track down so many incredible and insightful tales. My science teacher recommended each of these books. It was wonderful to learn more about butterflies, and science in general (even how scientists fight among themselves) in the Nabokov's Blues book, and the fascinating world of ants in Ants at Work. Yet, Parrot's Lament was even closer to home, not only because of the question of animal intelligence and ingenuity but it rekindling the sense of this I'd always had in animals anyway. Thanks Mr. Linden for a great Thanksgiving vacation read! Each of these books is great but since I can see you've written several I think you know where I'll be going for my Christmas reading project!
Rating:
Summary: An insightful, delightful book!
Review: I loved this book from start to finish. Eugene Linden's individual essays on the intelligence of different species are insightful glimpses into the sentience of animals. From the extraordinary and intelligent efforts of a female gorilla to escape her solitary enclosure to rejoin her friends and family in an adjacent enclosure (she succeeded twice in overcoming electric fences and a moat by using non-conductive and sturdy logs and branches) to a parrot saying, upon seeing her owner's dinner of a Cornish game hen, "Oh, no! Paco!", referring to her male companion kept in another cage, these stories delight with each new page. Linden is careful not to attribute too much intelligence to these animals unless the evidence supports it. He discusses possible ways these moments could be misinterpreted as well as why he believes they are proof that animals have more going on in their brains that some scientists are willing to admit. Read this book if you are willing to expand your view of what constitutes animal intelligence. Even if you are not persuaded by Linden's arguments (which are indeed compelling), you will find much to consider here. And you'll enjoy every word.
Rating:
Summary: An insightful, delightful book!
Review: I loved this book from start to finish. Eugene Linden's individual essays on the intelligence of different species are insightful glimpses into the sentience of animals. From the extraordinary and intelligent efforts of a female gorilla to escape her solitary enclosure to rejoin her friends and family in an adjacent enclosure (she succeeded twice in overcoming electric fences and a moat by using non-conductive and sturdy logs and branches) to a parrot saying, upon seeing her owner's dinner of a Cornish game hen, "Oh, no! Paco!", referring to her male companion kept in another cage, these stories delight with each new page. Linden is careful not to attribute too much intelligence to these animals unless the evidence supports it. He discusses possible ways these moments could be misinterpreted as well as why he believes they are proof that animals have more going on in their brains that some scientists are willing to admit. Read this book if you are willing to expand your view of what constitutes animal intelligence. Even if you are not persuaded by Linden's arguments (which are indeed compelling), you will find much to consider here. And you'll enjoy every word.
Rating: 
Summary: A good book, with some unsettling errors...
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed reading this exploration of animal intelligence. Linden writes clearly and succinctly, and does a great job of weaving his stories together to support the points he makes. He has taken examples from both his personal experience, and from numerous print sources and interviews with other people. Most of the stories revolve around captive animals (as pets and in zoos - primarily because these are more easily observed), though some examples from the wild are included. In addition, an overwhelming number of these case studies involve the great apes (particularly orangutans and gorillas) and dolphins. This is to be expected, as these species are generally considered to be among the most intelligent, but there are also tales of birds, pigs, large cats, and others. The book is divided into nine categories. He begins with "Games and Humor," in which he explores the ways in which animals amuse themselves. "Trade and Barter" was one of the most interesting chapters, detailing the elaborate systems captive apes have been taught, where they can earn "money" for performing tasks for their keepers, and then spend that money on items they want, such as treats or toys. "Deception" discusses ways animals have tried to fool both their human counterparts and others of their own species. In "Mind Reading and Mental Chess" Linden explores the extent to which animals can be aware of others' states of mind. "Cooperation in Work, Conflict, and Healing" is another particularly interesting chapter, offering examples of service animals that have gone beyond their training to help humans. Included are stories of animals that actually seek out ill and injured people in order to offer them solace. "Tools and Intelligence" concerns that very sticky topic of whether humans, as tool-users, are unique. It appears that we are not, and Linden shows us numerous cases where other species have made use of tools to achieve their aims. The seventh chapter talks of escape attempts - cases where captive animals have shown remarkable ingenuity despite all their keepers' efforts to dissuade them. "Empathy and Heroism" gives us examples of animal heroes, and finally "A Place Where Humans are the Novelty" takes a brief look at those few wild places that are still relatively untouched by humans. While I really liked the book as a whole, however, there are a few things which cause me to knock my rating down to only four stars. First is that Linden undermines much of his own thesis by devoting an entire preface as a disclaimer that none of these stories can be used as scientific evidence. Perhaps the stories are anecdotal, but this is how much of scientific discovery begins - with pure observation of things. For those of us with wide exposure to animals, it is hard to deny that they do possess some remarkable mental capabilities, even without these stories as additional proof. And secondly, Linden has done a very poor job of checking his facts. Many of his examples come from animals at the Woodland Park Zoo, which is very close to where I live, and which I have visited numerous times. The first error that leapt out at me is relatively minor - the orangutan Linden refers to as "Tawan" is actually named Towan. But more alarming, one of Linden's stories involves the gorillas at Woodland Park. He claims that the gorilla Jumoke, when separated from the father of her baby, repeatedly tried to climb out of her new enclosure to rejoin him. This is all well and good, except that the "father" is billed as Alafia. Anyone can check the Woodland Park Zoo's website (www.zoo.org) and see that Alafia is, in fact, a female. So something is not right with that particular story. It could be that Linden just mixed up the names - there are a LOT of gorillas at Woodland park - but errors like this make me question the accuracy of the other accounts included. Has Linden made other mistakes in his research? Overall, though, I would still recommend this book to anyone with a casual interest animal intelligence. Some of the stories are heartwarming, others funny, and others downright amazing. The book is friendly to the layman and does not require any scientific knowledge. It is also well-written and easy to read. If you're doing a study or writing a paper, I would strongly advise you to double-check the specifics of any accounts you intend to reference (due to the above mentioned errors), but for general-interest purposes this book is good enough as is. It's a great testament to the often vastly underestimated intellectual powers of our furry, feathery, and scaly friends.
Rating:
Summary: Thought-provoking, funny and touching
Review: It's very obvious which side of the fence the author stands on in the debate over animal intelligence, but Linden never gets preachy about his theories. Instead he presents a collection of fascinating anecdotes and lets the evidence speak for itself. That's not to say he doesn't provide any scientific insight into the stories he's telling; he does, and from both sides of the argument. But this book is not about proselytizing, it merely wants to spin some tales about animals that are at times humorous (I laughed out loud several times), at times sweet and touching, and always thought-provoking. It succeeds in its goal. I couldn't help but feel for the killer whale who grieved after giving his pregnant mate a "sonogram" and discovering she'd miscarried, or laugh at the parrot who invited a wild bird inside for dinner, or secretly cheer on the orangutan escape artists who foiled their keepers at every turn. Mostly I couldn't help but marvel at the awareness and intellect that can be seen in all of these stories. Even being an animal lover to begin with, my next visit to a zoo will carry with it a whole new respect for the animals within.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, But Light
Review: Like a previous reviewer I first heard about this book in the NPR piece. Having read three of Linden's previous works -- Apes, Men and Language; Silent Partners (excellent!); and The Education of Koko -- I was immediately intrigued. However, having just finished it I must say it was a bit lighter than I expected. As Linden states in the Preface, this is a book of "anecdotes" about animal intelligence, not any serious scientific study of same. And he seems to draw no deeper conclusion from the various, and hugely entertaining tales than to marvel at them and say, in effect, "Gee, isn't that neat." There's also a predictable save-the-environment undertone which, while heartfelt, pushes the book further into maudlin territory. Overall then, an entertaining single-day read of no greater import than filling a day with mirth. Which, come to think of it, isn't so bad.
Rating: 
Summary: Pleasant, even moving, but very lightweight
Review: Linden gathers anecdotes from zoo keepers, pet owners, game preserve employees, and primate researchers to suggest the range and depth of animals' ability to plan, reason, invent and employ tools, and empathize or form relationships with unfamiliar and even traditionally hostile species. Some of the tales are highly amusing, terribly moving, or almost unbelievable. In the first category is the parrot's lament of the title, in which a female African grey bemoaned the fate of a male she did not like when her owner pulled a Cornish game hen out of the oven, and then grieved again when the owner showed her the male was still alive. As an example of the second, I think of the male orca who appeared to be monitoring his mate's pregnancy by placing his head against her tummy, and then battered his head against the edge of their Marineland pool in frustration shortly before she miscarried. Or the great ape that rescued a human infant that fell into its zoo enclosure. Unbelievable are the many stories of orangutan ingenuity in escaping their zoo cages and yards, or the friendship between the wild turkey and the retired race horse. I wanted to like this book more than I ended up doing. The issue of animal intelligence is an important and fascinating one, but I wish Linden had delved deeper into the philosophical and scientific implications. The anecdotes fly by with very little discussion. This approach was done better (and with remarkably little overlap in stories) a few years back by Susan McCarthy and Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson in _When Elephants Weep: the emotional lives of animals_; granted, their subject was more specifically emotions rather than cognition, but I found it a more thoughtful book. In addition, though _The Parrot's Lament_ is competently written, I found its phrasing a little inelegant at times. I recorded it aloud for a broadcast service for the blind and elderly shut-ins ("Golden Hours" at KOPB in Portland, Oregon), and found myself stumbling over the verbiage more often than usual.
Rating: 
Summary: half science, half ancedote
Review: Lovely prose for anyone not familiar with the study of animal cognition. The ancedotes were charming and heart warming, but the author lacks a bit of depth when discussing their implications. Great tirade at the end about saving the world from human distruction. Great read for those looking for entertainment with a bit of education.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating and impossible to put down -- a real winner
Review: Mr. Linden's subject matter is interesting enough -- the consciousness of animals -- but it is his writing that carries this book. His breezy style brings a page turning quality, as he explains difficult scientific concepts in a manner that is immediately accessible to all. This is a book that will force a challenge to those who would suggest that only humans live in the realm of consciousness. It wouldn't surprise me if the radical religious right turned this book into a lightening rod for their disapproval. Makes you wonder what is next for animal intelligence -- perhaps a monkey will write the next book, or at least be at the seat next to you in your next poker game!
Rating:
Summary: Funny and Smart
Review: One of the best books on animal intelligence out there, and side splittingly funny. Who knew orangutangs were so deft with tools? Or that parrots tormented other household pets for their own amusement? I couldn't put it down, and Linden makes a compelling case for applied intelligence in animals. But then, anyone who's ever lived with an autocratic cat or dog oriented towards global domination would be able to confirm that. A very enjoyable and smart book.
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