What Animals Teach Us About Families
Kinship and Species in the Bible and Rabbinic Literature
$38.61
- Paperback
280 pages
- Release Date
21 March 2026
Summary
Reading the Bible and rabbinic literature to reimagine the bonds between animals.
Moving beyond debates about the ethics of animal consumption to focus on animals’ intimate lives, Beth A. Berkowitz examines the contribution of religious traditions and sacred texts to contemporary conversations about animals. Reading the four “animal family” laws of the Bible alongside their rabbinic interpretations from ancient times to today, she examines the bonds that animals form …
Book Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780520405233 |
|---|---|
| ISBN-10: | 0520405234 |
| Author: | Beth A. Berkowitz |
| Publisher: | University of California Press |
| Imprint: | University of California Press |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Number of Pages: | 280 |
| Release Date: | 21 March 2026 |
| Weight: | 422g |
| Dimensions: | 152mm x 229mm |
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Critics Review
“The writing is crisp, entertaining, informative and above all very thorough.”
* Research Gate *“It’s the rare book of Jewish scholarship that cites ‘Bambi’ and ‘Finding Nemo’ alongside the Babylonian Talmud and the first-century philosopher Philo, and that includes a chapter on what readers can do to ensure that animals are treated more humanely.”
* Jewish Telegraphic Agency *“In What Animals Teach Us About Families, Beth A. Berkowitz offers a compelling and innovative contribution to the intersecting fields of biblical studies, rabbinic literature, and animal studies.”
* Journal of the American Academy of Religion *“This book is an excellent contribution that breaks new ground in an understudied research area… . On every page, I found myself captivated by the little-known rabbinic tales, fascinated by the astute analysis, or provoked by the ethical implications of the work… . The book sheds new light on biblical laws, on rabbinic literature, on families, and on animals, and I recommend it to anyone interested in these topics.”
* Society of Biblical Literature *“This book is an excellent contribution that breaks new ground in an understudied research area. The so-called animal turn in scholarship has only recently taken hold in biblical and rabbinic studies, and this is the first contribution to deal in a sustained way with animal families (that most fundamental of social units). On every page, I found myself captivated by the little-known rabbinic tales, fascinated by the astute analysis, or provoked by the ethical implications of the work.”
Beth A. Berkowitz
Beth A. Berkowitz is Ingeborg Rennert Chair of Jewish Studies and Professor of Religion at Barnard College.
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