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Under the Henfluence

Inside the World of Backyard Chickens and the People Who Love Them

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
Since first domesticating the chicken thousands of years ago, humans have become exceptionally adept at raising them for food. Yet most people rarely interact with chickens or know much about them. In Under the Henfluence, culture reporter Tove Danovich explores the lives of these quirky, mysterious birds who stole her heart the moment her first box of chicks arrived at the post office. From a hatchery in Iowa to a chicken show in Ohio to a rooster rescue in Minnesota, Danovich interviews the people breeding, training, healing, and, most importantly, adoring chickens. With more than 26 billion chickens living on industrial farms around the world, they're easy to dismiss as just another dinner ingredient. Yet Danovich's reporting reveals the hidden cleverness, quiet sweetness, and irresistible personalities of these birds, as well as the complex human-chicken relationship that has evolved over centuries. This glimpse into the lives of backyard chickens doesn't just help us to understand chickens better-it also casts light back on ourselves and what we've ignored throughout the explosive growth of industrial agriculture. Woven with delightful and sometimes heartbreaking anecdotes from Danovich's own henhouse, Under the Henfluence proves that chickens are so much more than what they bring to the table.
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    • Publisher's Weekly

      December 12, 2022
      Journalist Danovich debuts with a heartfelt account of raising pet hens. After spotting a chicken coop in a Brooklyn front yard, Danovich was inspired to adopt her own upon moving to Portland, Ore., where she acquired Peggy, Joan, and Betty (named after the Mad Men characters). Chickens “can change your life if you let them,” she suggests, enumerating the benefits of keeping the pets and offering detailed portraits of hers: Peggy “was the bravest in the bunch” and Joan was deferential while Betty preferred “comfort over exploration.” Danovich grew her flock after suffering losses, including Betty’s death by one of Danovich’s dogs, which the author recounts with grief and guilt. She weaves in a powerful indictment of the poultry industry’s practice of confining chickens to tiny cages, and tells of how she rescued from an egg farm two adult chickens who had been so poorly treated they had to learn such fundamental behaviors as foraging and taking dust baths. Danovich’s commitment to her pets endears and provides an intimate look at animals more often thought of as food than friends (“They weren’t just any someones—they were individuals with a place in both the flock and in my life that would be irreplaceable”). Anyone who’s mulled the possibility of setting up a backyard coop will find this the next best thing.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Listening to Tove Danovich is like spending time with a deeply enthusiastic and knowledgeable chicken-loving pal. Journalist and hen-keeper Danovich offers pleasantly playful but informative accounts of our long fascination and relationship with chickens--set against the backdrop of her own suburban hen keeping. She moves from whimsical tones to those conveying deep curiosity about the questions she pursues while documenting the roots of her own flock and her exploration into the history and current climate of poultry keeping. As Danovich offers her own anecdotal experiences with her hens alongside cameos of other chicken keepers/obsessives, listeners are drawn into a fascinating and broody world. Even for the henless, it's impossible not to be engaged by this immersive blend of personal narrative and lightly investigative journalism. J.C.G. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
    • Library Journal

      Starred review from June 10, 2024

      Journalist Danovich leaves New York City for the suburban utopia of Portland, OR, and the move rekindles a long-held desire to raise chickens. Reading her own story with emotion and conviction, Danovich describes how charmed she was when her first three chicks--each with its own personality and voice--arrived via the U.S. Post Office. While chronicling her journey raising backyard chickens, Danovich delves into the history of chickens on the family farm. She visits the site in Iowa where her chicks were hatched, uncovers the story of wild chickens in Hawai'i, discusses the role of chickens as pets, and explores the culture surrounding show chickens. Danovich interviews farmers, hobbyists, and industrial chicken hatchery personnel. She highlights the plight of roosters, a largely unwanted bird, and discovers that veterinary care for chickens is scarce, and she notes that a poor economy correlates with a rise in chicken keeping, as was especially evident with the COVID pandemic. VERDICT An informative and enjoyable listen, interweaving Danovich's personal experiences with entertaining details about historical and current issues in the world of chickens.--Joanna M. Burkhardt

      Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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