We specialize in hard to find items
All Categories
A Dog in the Cave: The Wolves Who Made Us Human
Share Tweet
*Price and Stocks may change without prior notice
*Packaging of actual item may differ from photo shown
- Electrical items MAY be 110 volts.
- 7 Day Return Policy
- All products are genuine and original
About A Dog In The Cave: The Wolves Who Made Us Human
Product Description We know dogs are our best animal friends, but have you ever thought about what that might mean? Fossils show we’ve shared our work and homes with dogs for tens of thousands of years. Now there’s growing evidence that we influenced dogs’ evolution—and they, in turn, changed ours. Even more than our closest relatives, the apes, dogs are the species with whom we communicate best. Combining history, paleontology, biology, and cutting-edge medical science, Kay Frydenborg paints a picture of how two different species became deeply entwined—and how we coevolved into the species we are today. From School Library Journal Gr 7 Up—It may come as no surprise that our canine companions descended from wolves, but this title describes a coevolution and cooperation with humans that may have begun much earlier than scientists once estimated. The 1994 discovery and carbon dating of tracks of a wolflike dog and a boy in France's Chauvet Cave reveal that humans and dog companions walked together 26,000 years ago. This is an unfolding story, leading readers through the basics of evolutionary science and how findings lead to anthropological theories. The variations in breeds today are explained in terms of artificial vs. natural selection. American paleoanthropologist Pat Shipman suggests that wolves may have helped modern human ancestors survive the Paleolithic era, when Neanderthals could not, by teaching humans how to delegate pack responsibilities of protection, scouting, and babysitting. In turn, wolves learned to follow a human's gaze. The investigative puzzle emphasizes the importance of asking questions and collaborating with scientists from other fields to come up with answers. Color-blocked pages offer explanations of scientific processes, profile field-related tools, and relay asides about canine fanciers and 9/11 rescue dogs. The latter part of the book focuses on the intelligence, personality, and trainability of dogs and on current research on a shared community of disease-preventing microbes that shine a positive light on "sloppy dog kisses." VERDICT This is narrative nonfiction at its best—high interest and engaging, with meaty interdisciplinary science exploration. A top choice for tweens and teens.—Vicki Reutter, State University of New York at Cortland Review ★ "This narrative blend of history and science belongs on all shelves." —Booklist, starred review ★ "This lively blend of science and history is an outstanding example of narrative nonfiction." —Kirkus, starred review ★ "This is narrative nonfiction at its best—high interest and engaging, with meaty interdisciplinary science exploration. A top choice for tweens and teens." –SLJ, starred review "Sidebars and color photographs supplement and expand on the central narrative, which is all but certain to leave readers thinking about their dogs, and themselves, in entirely new ways." —Publishers Weekly "Evident throughout [ A Dog in the Cave] are the author’s passion and curiosity." —Horn Book About the Author Kay Frydenborg lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and two dogs. She's the author of numerous books for young readers including Chocolate, A Dog in the Cave, Wild Horse Scientists, They Dreamed of Horses, and Animal Therapist. Website:
