About the Author

Helen Cowie is Lecturer in History at the University of York. She is the author of Conquering Nature in Spain and its Empire, 1750-1850 (2011) and Exhibiting Animals in Nineteenth-century Britain: Empathy, Education, Entertainment (2014).

Reviews

"Llama beautifully weaves together the anthrozoology and cultural history of four South American camelids--the domesticated llamas and alpacas and their respective wild counterparts, the guanacos and vicuñas--with their biology and evolution. From the use of camelids by indigenous peoples for wool, meat, and transport to these animals' modern-day participation as golf caddies, therapy animals, and wedding-day mascots in the United States, the narrative Cowie tells is at once sweeping and studded with compelling scholarly details."--Barbara J. King "Times Literary Supplement"

"Cowie's Llama is a very useful case study of the mania exhibited by Europeans and Euro- Americans and Oceanians for acclimatization projects, many of which have entailed unintended consequences. But llamas have been fairly benign as introduced species go. Wool is the main attraction, and still at a premium. But llamas, good-natured on the whole, can also be used as petting-zoo and therapy animals. And they are excellent in the role of guards. They can't do much to intruders except spit on them, but they are large enough to scare away coyotes and foxes, and their spit is nothing to be trifled with."--Tim Morris "lection"