Will Cuppy (author of The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody and one of the great American humorists of the 20th century) here considers notable birds and animals whose habits (and often existence) disturbed him ("Birds Who Can't Even Fly," "Optional Insects," "Octopuses and Those Things"), as well as more mundane creatures like the frog, the gnat, and the moa, who have no visible vices but whose virtues are truly awful. Spanning the breadth of the animal kingdom, Cuppy neatly classes his observations for easy reference: Problem Mammals, Pleasures of Pond Life, Birds Who Can't Sing and Know It.