Book Review: Kingdom Under Glass by Jay Kirk

November 3, 2010

About:

Safari

The fictionalized depiction of a true event

Kingdom Under Glass: A Tale of Obsession, Adventure, and One Man’s Quest to Preserve the World’s Great Animals” by Jay Kirk is a historical fiction – biography tale, set in the late late nineteenth – early twentieth century, about the great taxidermist & conservationist, inventor and sculptor Carl Akeley, his wives Delia “Mickie” Akeley and second wife Mary Jobe Akeley.

Akeley is a legend, I’m surprised I haven’t heard of him before this book. On a jungle expedition he killed a leopard with his bare hands, somehow survived an elephant attach, stuffed Jumbo the elephant for P.T. Barnum, was an acquaintance of Teddy Roosevelt, invented a movie camera, used his fame to prompted King Albert of Belgium to create the world’s first wildlife sanctuary in the Belgium Congo (Virunga National Park) and I’m not even going to detail his scientific and artistic achievements.

  • 400 pages
  • Publisher ‏ : Henry Holt and Co.
  • Language ‏ : English
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : 080509282X

Book Review: Kingdom Under Glass by Jay KirkMy rating for Kingdom Under Glass – 5
Come on, can you resist a biography of a guy that killed a jaguar with his BARE HANDS? No, then buy it here!*
More Books by Jay Kirk*

Thoughts:

JumboJay Kirk has done the impossible, he made a book about a taxidermist not only interesting, but entertaining as well. Jay Kirk’s prose is beautifully written, brilliant, smooth and striking, however it is not for the faint of heart as there are intimate descriptions of the process of taxidermy – starting with the tracking of a perfect specimen.

The research that went into this book is amazing. At the end notes Mr. Kirk reveals his sources, from personal journals to published books and his thought process about making such assumptions as “Akeley thought…”(which is why I categorized this book as historical fiction).

A refreshing change from many other books is that Mr. Kirk is unapologetic about the attitude of the time – deep racism, impenitent colonialism and cataclysmic conservationism are par of the course. This type of narrative is very effective and sometimes even shocking.

However, the author never make such assumptions, criticizes or strays from the narrative – but let the deeds and words of these men speak for themselves. Both Akeley and Roosevelt believe that extinction is inevitable. Akeley, however, believed that he is using his skills as a hunter and taxidermist to further the cause of conservationist by preserving specimen (it seems he did not see the irony of killing several animals until getting the perfect one to preserve).

The author breathes life into the characters in a masterful way, with superb writing, an eye for detail and nuances which make us all individuals.

I feel it’s important to mention that I have read this book during the mid-term elections bonanza, when I couldn’t turn on the TV set, or visit an ad sponsored website without being bombarded with political ads. The book’s theme of trying to slowdown the world’s appetite of destroying our natural resources and not-so-natural resources in order to make a buck certainly hit home.

Synopsis:

The book is divided into four parts:

Prologue: where we meet Carl Akeley in the African jungle hunting a silverback gorilla to add to the museum’s collection. At this time, the gorillas are considered almost a legend.

Part One: The Resurrectionists – we are introduced to a cast of characters, including Carl’s friends and wife. The

Carl Akeley

Carl Akeley

narrative flows as we follow Carl from his childhood interest in this seeming morbid preoccupation, to dead end jobs. His big break came when P.T. Barnum’s elephant Jumbo died and he was chosen to stuff the big fellow. Following more years of hard work, Carl finally emerges as the premier taxidermist of his time.

Part Two: Ahab the Veldt – Convinced that most animals will soon be extinct, Carl & Mickie go to Africa to collect animals for the museum. By “collecting” they mean killing the animals for the museum’s exhibits; if the animal they killed is not to their satisfaction, they will lay it aside and go after the perfect specimen. Along the way they meet many of the world’s rich and famous who are also clamoring to bag an exotic animal before they can no longer do so. Fighting sickness, disease, hostile natives, stubborn tour guides and herds of elephants, as well as the childless Mickie adopting a monkey puts a strain on their relationship.

Part Three: Life in the City – After several years living in tents in Africa, adjusting to the luxurious life in New York City is not as easy as it sounds. The fact that Mickie brought her adopted monkey back from Africa, who wrecks havoc on the house and the marriage doesn’t help. Carl, not wanting to be home, is busy at his job as well as inventing a better movie camera. After the marriage dissolves Carl goes once more to Africa, this time to find the elusive mountain gorilla. However, after witnessing the horrible death of a baby gorilla, he comes to the epiphany that maybe, just maybe, killing them is not the best way to preserver their legacy.
But Carl is still obsessed with finishing his elephant wing at the Museum.

Part Four: Under the Volcano – Carl goes back to the Congo to find his gorillas, this time taking his new wife Mary. Not getting George Eastman to commit anymore money to the life work at the museum puts Akeley in a foul mood.
I won’t spoil the ending, but it is ironic as can be.

To this day, the Akeley Hall of African Mammals is a testament to Carl Akeley’s contributions to the world of science.

Akeleys Hall Of Elephants

Akeley’s Hall of Elephants in the Museum of Natural History, NYC

This is book is an amazing, superb book – buy it here!*
More Books by Jay Kirk*

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer:I got this book for free
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account, the money is usually spent on books

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Kingdom Under Glass: A Tale of Obsession, Adventure, and One Man's Quest to Preserve the World's Great Animals by Jay Kirk
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Kingdom Under Glass: A Tale of Obsession, Adventure, and One Man's Quest to Preserve the World's Great Animals by Jay Kirk

Wrap Up

Kingdom Under Glass: A Tale of Obsession, Adventure, and One Man's Quest to Preserve the World's Great Animals by Jay Kirk

Kingdom Under Glass By Jay Kirk

12 Comments

  • Bb11cad71e61c644290db50b5ab5f14a
    SamNovember 4, 2010 at 3:13 am

    This book sounds wonderful! I’m putting it on my to-read list, thanks for the recommendation.

    • 86c0a0f97ec725b64c693cd9b30e3aa1
      zoharNovember 4, 2010 at 10:26 am

      You’re welcome, it’s a worthwhile read.

  • 32051a4fe5c3b86e3dfde76c49be8c3f
    MeghanNovember 17, 2010 at 11:24 pm

    Wow, this sounds like a well thought-out book. Not my style but I found you on the blog hop @frugality Is Free…nice eh?

    • 86c0a0f97ec725b64c693cd9b30e3aa1
      zoharNovember 17, 2010 at 11:53 pm

      Very nice 🙂
      I didn’t think this book was my style either but the writing is fantastic and the story is exciting.

  • 7938a8bd2e93eecabe210202a662ad3d
    EvelynNovember 20, 2010 at 11:17 pm

    I too am amazed that the Akeley name is not at all familiar to me! I have been an animal lover all my life and to not know a peculiar person with a peculiar idea like this is, well, odd. The book sounds like a good read. Added it to my Wish List. 🙂

    • 86c0a0f97ec725b64c693cd9b30e3aa1
      zoharNovember 21, 2010 at 9:23 am

      Thanks for the comment, I have not been familiar with Akeley’s name either, to my shame I have seen his displays several times in Akeley Hall.

  • 9773bf008521e29abed7a4b6c2397f74
    rachat de creditNovember 22, 2010 at 5:15 am

    Man, really want to know how can you be that smart, lol…great read, thanks.

  • E0e11013d2226ac18260ed87ddb9003d
    JRFrugalMomNovember 22, 2010 at 11:27 pm

    This sounds like a very powerful book, and your review is excellent! I can see this as a book my boys will want to read, when they grow up.

    Thank you for participating in the Book Lover’s Blog Hop @ Story Time Under the Stars and Frugality Is Free. I hope you will link up a book review and participate in this week’s Book Lover’s Blog Hop as well.

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    • 86c0a0f97ec725b64c693cd9b30e3aa1
      zoharDecember 1, 2010 at 10:48 am

      Thank you very much, your kind words are much appreciated.

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    James R DespainDecember 27, 2010 at 12:36 am

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