Dr. Jonathan Balcombe presents a Slide Lecture at Mid-Manhattan Library

Jonathan Balcombe
presenting a slide lecture on his book

Pleasurable Kingdom
Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good

Monday, November 24th, 2008
6:30 p.m. on the 6th floor
Mid-Manhattan Library
The New York Public Library
40th Street and 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10016
212-340-0887

Pleasurable Kingdom is the first book to focus on new evidence that animals, like humans, enjoy themselves. It debunks the popular perception that life for most is a continuous, grim struggle for survival. Instead it suggests that creatures from birds to bats to baboons may feel good thanks to play, sex, touch, food, anticipation, comfort, aesthetics and more. Combining rigorous evidence, elegant argument and amusing anecdote, leading animal behaviour researcher Dr Jonathan Balcombe proposes that evolution favours sensory rewards because they drive living things to stay alive and reproduce. He explains how our acknowledgment of positive feelings in other animals has important ethical ramifications for our relationship to them.

“Brisk, erudite and enormously entertaining — an excellent, approachable introduction to

the basic issues in animal behaviour.” — Publishers Weekly

“This entertaining and thought-provoking book is recommended for popular science

collections.” — Library Journal

“A well-argued thesis.” — Scientific American

“Superb — has set an agenda for future research. This book will change how we interact

with other animal beings.” — Marc Bekoff in Trends in Ecology & Evolution

Dr. Jonathan Balcombe was born in England, raised in New Zealand and Canada, and has lived in the United States since 1987. He has written many scientific papers and lay- articles on animal behavior, humane education, and animal research. In 2000, the Humane Society Press released his book The

Use of Animals in Higher Education: Problems, Alternatives and Recommendations. His second book, Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good (Macmillan), was released in May 2006.

A popular speaker, he has given invited presentations in the USA, UK, Canada, Japan, India, Brazil, Israel and mainland Europe. In January 2007 he completed a 15-stop lecture tour of medical and veterinary schools in India. Dr. Balcombe is currently Senior Research Scientist with Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, in Washington, D.C. In his spare time he enjoys nature-watching, biking, piano, vegan cooking and trying to understand his two cats. He lives in Germantown, Maryland.

The event is co-sponsored by The New York Public Library and The New York Bird Club.

Elevators access the 6th floor after 6 p.m.
All programs are FREE and subject to last minute change or cancellation.