Any fan of Richard Scarry’s Busytown books will recognize the character of Lowly Worm. Even though we have long known how essential earthworms are to maintaining the health and productivity of soil, we still view worms and other “creepy-crawlies” as lesser beings. Anthropological linguists even have a category for these animals that are unworthy of serious human engagement: “wugs” (a term that merges the names of two of the lowliest of critters: worms and bugs).
Bethany Brookstone’s Pests explores the relationships between us humans and other animals that we consider “pests” (at least some of the time). When we read the introduction—A Pest is _____?—Brookstone gets right to the heart of the matter. The essential question here is not “What is a pest?” but rather “When is a pest?” Some pests seem always to have been considered threats or annoyances, others seem to be considered pests at some times and...
University of California Press