The cover is what really drew my into this book. It's absolutely beautiful, but the book itself really wasn't for me and I alternated between reading and skimming through it.

I loved the cover for this book and it is what really drew me in. The story overall is good; I was very interested because of what was written about the book but to be honest, this was not really my cup of tea. It was nicely put together and the plot was there, but I felt like it could have been better written at parts. However, this was a fantastic idea and I am glad to have read it.

3. 5 stars

This book offers an informative look at our history with nature. The author uses thoughtful and sometimes painful examples of how we've shaped our environment and provides a framework for what we could continue to improve upon (needless to say, we've got serious work to do). At times, this book was difficult to get into, but I appreciated that it had an encouraging ending.

I received an e-copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Incredible informational and endlessly engaging. This book made me want to tell everyone around me what I learned about the fascinating and constantly changing history of our culture's relationship with the environment. The first 75% is pretty depressing since we were crap at the environment until pretty recently. However, it ends on a very encouraging note, emphasizing how far we've come and how much nature has recovered.

An engaging book that goes into depth about humanity's abuses of nature and the consequences and laws that came as a result. I struggled through some areas, and breezed through others. This book was alternating between dry and engaging.

A interesting dissertation on our relationship to the environment and the damage we as humans have done. It is from the viewpoint of the past history of destruction to the planet and animals and how we can move forward. A good read for all concerned about the health of our planet . I recommend this reading for all environmentalists and those that wish to broaden their knowledge about how to save our planet and stop past destruction.

I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was going to be dry, but it is written in a conversational style that kept me reading well past when I should have shut the light off. I learned a great deal too, which is always a nice bonus.
I'm very glad I was chosen to read an ARC, so thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.
I'll definitely be buying a copy for a particular friend I know would enjoy it.

How much more can our planet take? We seem so intent on destroying everything on our planet. We have had many successes through the centuries from finding cures to diseases but we have also created so many bad ones. We have taken land from the ones that it belonged to, cut down forests in the guise of advancement. We have almost destroyed the animal kingdom and believed that we have known better when it comes to what is best for them. We still have a long way to go before we can make any difference do we really have what it takes to save our planet? A good read did find it very long and some of it was very drawn out but it all makes sense to what our lives are right now. I received a copy via Netgalley & the publishing house in exchange for my honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this in-depth piece on exploitation and our environmental triumphs but as others have alluded to it tends to give the impression that the fight is over. Yes, we have made a lot of progress but we still have an awful long way to go until we treat animals as our equals. There is a lot of solid information here, and it certainly isn't as dry as it could've been; being a law graduate I found the discussion of laws and regulations interesting and Outwater highlights the slow evolution of the law to protect the environment. Of course, you can't consider animals and habitats in isolation as climate change and a multitude of other issues naturally come to the fore and are connected to ecology.

Wild at Heart is well worth your time if you're interested in ecology, our planet, animals and environmental issues, and I especially recommend to animal activists.

Many thanks to St Martin's Press for an ARC.

I enjoyed how succintly this book covered so many years and issues. My main issue was that positive impacts of laws and regulations were positioned as "problem solved". Environmental protection is an ongoing issue and a daily fight and from reading this one may think we're done.

A good read, it meanders a bit in its detailing the history of exploitation of nature in North America and the gradual shift to a more balanced outlook.