Through nine emotionally vivid stories, all narrated from animal
perspectives, Talia Lakshmi Kolluri's debut collection explores themes
of environmentalism, conservation, identity, belonging, loss, and family
with resounding heart and deep tenderness. In Kolluri's pages, a
faithful hound mourns the loss of the endangered rhino he swore to
protect. Vultures seek meaning as they attend to the antelope that
perished in Central Asia. A beloved donkey's loyalty to a zookeeper in
Gaza is put to the ultimate test. And a wounded pigeon in Delhi finds an
unlikely friend.
In striking, immersive detail against the backdrop of an ever-changing
international landscape, What We Fed to the Manticore speaks to the
fears and joys of the creatures we share our world with, and ultimately
places the reader under the rich canopy of the tree of life.