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Overview
Taxidermy is everywhere these days—from hip restaurants to posh clothing stores. Yet few realize that behind these "stuffed" animals is a world of intrepid hunterexplorers, eccentric naturalists, and museum artisans, all devoted to the paradoxical pursuit of creating the illusion of life.
Into this subculture of intensely passionate animal lovers ventures journalist Melissa Milgrom, whose trek stretches from the family workshop of the last chief taxidermist for the American Museum of Natural History to the studio where an English sculptor preserves the animals for Damien Hirst’s most disturbing artwork. Milgrom tags along with a Canadian bear trapper and three-time World Taxidermy Champion as he re-creates an extinct Irish elk using DNA studies and Paleolithic cave art for reference. She even picks up a scalpel and stuffs her own squirrel. Transformed from a curious onlooker to an empathetic participant, Milgrom takes us deep into the world of taxidermy and reveals its uncanny appeal.
Synopsis
The bird judges argued and squawked until their eyes landed on a mount that left everyone speechless. It wasn't something regal and symbolic like a bald eagle or exotic like a brilliantly plumed macaw, but two English tree sparrows one protecting its nest from the other a subtle narrative with a delightful mise en scene. Bird droppings indicated that the sparrows inhabited the area. A feather in one sparrow's beak animated the process of buildingg a nest. Crouching down to see it from all sides, the judges detected not a single flaw. "The sideshow is three hundred sixty degrees," they agreed, gazing into the little world before them as if it were alive.
The New York Times Book Review - Max Watman
"Taxidermy" evokes hunting cabins and mounted white-tailed deer, pheasants in flight and lacquered largemouth bass—kitschy trophies memorializing a good kill—but in Still Life, Melissa Milgrom proves that the truth is more complicated and far more interesting…By capturing the jizz of the taxidermic world, Milgrom has pulled back the curtain on a surprising and intense culture within which meat and animals—both dead and living—are very real.
Editorials
From the Publisher
"Hilarious but respectful." —Washington Post"Engrossing." —New Yorker
"[A] delightful debut ... Milgrom has in Still Life opened up a whole world to readers." —Chicago Tribune
"[A] literate, fascinating history." —People
"If you’re an outdoorsman, museum-goer, or a pragmatic animal lover, find this book, grab a shopping bag and stuff it." —Yankton Press & Dakotan
"An absorbing tour." —Boston Globe
"Milgrom’s eye for detail and sense of humor makes Still Life an entertaining and educating look at this intriguing subculture." —Florida Times-Union
"Under Milgrom’s direction, readers may find themselves more interested in – and entertained by – the world of taxidermy than they thought imaginable." —Christian Science Monitor
"A delightful, illuminating journey through a passionate subculture that prizes the natural world (even if nature's inhabitants are dead when taxidermists work their magic on them)." —Shelf Awareness
An "absorbing blend of bright-eyed reportage and hands-on participation...a genuine appreciation for a true art form, an enthusiasm the author imparts with style in this substantial study."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Dwight Garner
…a pinballing tour through a poorly understood world. In Still Life [Milgrom] loiters in the company of both hobbyists and experts, reads the industry's trade magazines and its classic texts and visits (and competes in) taxidermy competitions…her book is filled with piquant and arcane details.—The New York Times
Max Watman
"Taxidermy" evokes hunting cabins and mounted white-tailed deer, pheasants in flight and lacquered largemouth bass—kitschy trophies memorializing a good kill—but in Still Life, Melissa Milgrom proves that the truth is more complicated and far more interesting…By capturing the jizz of the taxidermic world, Milgrom has pulled back the curtain on a surprising and intense culture within which meat and animals—both dead and living—are very real.—The New York Times Book Review
Justin Moyer
Though she never quite gains an appetite for taxidermy…[Milgrom's] love of her subject's quirkiness comes through nonetheless. Her coverage of the World Taxidermy Championships, for example—a biennial gathering where taxidermists "strut their stuff as celebrated animal artists"—is hilarious but respectful. If Milgrom weren't such a capable writer, readers contemplating this event might have been begging to be put out of their misery.—The Washington Post