The Chicken Book

Liberating today's chicken from cartoons, fast food, and other demeaning associations, this remarkable book at once celebrates and explains our most noble fowl. As it traces the rise and fall of Gallus domesticus from the jungles of ancient India to the assembly-line hatcheries sprawled across modern America, this original, frequently astounding work passes along a trove of knowledge and lore about everything from the chicken's biology and behavior to its place in legend and mythology.

The book includes lively discussions of the chicken's role in literature and history, the cruel attractions of cockfighting, the medicinal uses of eggs and chicken parts, the details of the egg-laying process, and the basics of the backyard coop, along with recipes and much more.

Entertaining and insightful, this is a book that will change the way we regard this too often underappreciated animal.