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    The Secret Life of Cows
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    The Secret Life of Cows
    Unavailable
    The Secret Life of Cows
    Audiobook3 hours

    The Secret Life of Cows

    Written by Rosamund Young

    Narrated by Rosamund Young

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    In this affectionate, heart-warming chronicle, Rosamund Young distills a lifetime of organic farming wisdom, describing the surprising personalities of her cows and other animals

    At her famous Kite's Nest Farm in Worcestershire, England, the cows (as well as sheep, hens, and pigs) all roam free. They make their own choices about rearing, grazing, and housing. Left to be themselves, the cows exhibit temperaments and interests as diverse as our own. "Fat Hat" prefers men to women; "Chippy Minton" refuses to sleep with muddy legs and always reports to the barn for grooming before bed; "Jake" has a thing for sniffing the carbon monoxide fumes of the Land Rover exhaust pipe; and "Gemima" greets all humans with an angry shake of the head and is fiercely independent.

    An organic farmer for decades, Young has an unaffected and homely voice. Her prose brims with genuine devotion to the wellbeing of animals. Most of us never apprehend the various inner lives animals possess, least of all those that we might eat. But Young has spent countless hours observing how these creatures love, play games, and form life-long friendships. She imparts hard-won wisdom about the both moral and real-world benefits of organic farming. (If preserving the dignity of animals isn't a good enough reason for you, consider how badly factory farming stunts the growth of animals, producing unhealthy and tasteless food.)

    This gorgeous book, which includes an original introduction by the legendary British playwright Alan Bennett, is the summation of a life's work, and a delightful and moving tribute to the deep richness of animal sentience.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateJun 12, 2018
    ISBN9780525627012
    Unavailable
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    Reviews for The Secret Life of Cows

    3.5/5

    34 ratings5 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Cows are among my favourite animals, so I was excited to start reading this little book. The introduction almost dampened my enthusiasm with its tales of woes regarding the intensive farming industry, but the rest of the book is overall rather cheering.Rosamund Young is an organic farmer who has spent decades observing the behaviour of her animals. She makes it clear from the start that the book isn't any sort of scientific study, and that she and her family/staff have interpreted things in their own ways. The book is largely a collection of anecdotes about cows, bulls and calves behaving in different ways - one loves apples and knows exactly when the first of the new season's crop are ready to eat; another takes a liking to truck exhaust fumes; a trio of young calves make friends for life; mothers teach their daughters about how to behave with humans; and so on.The tales are very charming and can't fail to make you go “awww” every now and then. There's also a lot to laugh at, and parts that are quite sad. I liked Young's unique way of describing each animal, although I don't think she's the best writer generally - but this doesn't really matter with this kind of book!
    • 2/5
      This is a new edition of a book first published in 2003. I cannot figure out why the publishers would choose to reprint it. It is a short book (137 pages) that felt like a long book.The editors did not carefully review it, leaving in a reference to the photo of two cows on the cover, when there is a single cow on the cover. The editors of this US edition, should also have helped clarify some of the information that is specific to the UK farm the cows described come from. Some of the anecdotes and information about cows are interesting, but they are not told well. More than once the narrative changed from one paragraph to the next, and I could not figure out the train of thought that lead to the change.I think I would love this book, if the storytelling were better.
    • 3/5
      Rosamund Young is first and foremost a farmer and runs Kite's Nest Farm in the Cotswolds. She's been observing animal behaviour since 1980 and began to notice that cows are intelligent animals with personalities as diverse as our own. In The Secret Life of Cows, Rosamund shares anecdotes about her animals, their behaviours and interactions in a personable and chatty manner. Every cow on her farm is given a name and Rosamund knows the complete family tree of all the cows on her farm. They play games, babysit, hold grudges and grieve. Her cows are able to communicate and let her know if another cow in the herd is hurt, and are surprisingly adept at problem solving. They also love to be groomed, who knew?I was interested to learn cows will seek out food according to their needs, (willow if they have an injury or stinging nettles when pregnant) highlighting and reinforcing the need for organic farming practices.Presented in an attractive little hardcover reminiscent of a clothbound classic, The Secret Life of Cows would make a lovely gift this Christmas for animal lovers, hobby and full-time farmers.* Copy courtesy of Allen & Unwin *
    • 3/5
      Most people probably don’t even consider where the milk comes from when they reach to get it from the fridge for their morning cuppa. When they do venture into the countryside, the may be vaguely aware of these black and white animals in the fields as they flash past in the car. It is only when they have left the climate controlled atmosphere that they realise quite how big they are. Sadly, modern factory farming sees them as machines to either pump milk from or to be dosed full of antibiotics to grow at a rapid rate for slaughter.

      At Kite’s Nest Farm, Rosamund Young sees all her animals in a very different way, and her cows hold a special place in her heart. Each cow is named and rather than being forced to stay in a single field, they are allowed to roam freely around the farm so they can find the best grass or shelter as necessary. This freedom, coupled with the fact they there are not treated as commodities, means that their own personalities shine through. Her observations have shown that they are capable of forming life-long friendships, can hold grudges, play games when younger and grieve when another in the herd dies and in their own way can communicate with us mere humans.

      In this gently written, quirky and charming little book, Young sets about rewriting everything that you thought that you knew about cattle. In telling the stories of her animals, there are amusing anecdotes, moments of sadness and examples that show just how highly intelligent they can be. They seek out the plants that can help them when they are ill, and many of them know when to approach the family for extra assistance. This a book that is strangely moving and shows what can be gained from treating animals with the respect that they deserve and is a compelling case against the horrors of factory farming. 3.5 Stars
    • 3/5
      This was a delight to read. Rosamund Young's respect and affection for the animals in her care soon became clear - not just the cows, but the pigs, sheep and hens too! Although I didn't feel that I had learnt anything new by the time I had finished the book , this was probably because she was "preaching" to the converted!