Wild Animals I Have Known

First published in 1898, “Wild Animals I Have Known” is the work of naturalist Ernest Thompson Seton, which is recognized as one the first entries into the genre of realistic wild-animal fiction. To this day Ernest Thompson Seton is probably best remembered as being one of the founding members of the Scouting movement in America. Influenced by Lord Robert Baden-Powell, who founded a scouting movement in the United Kingdom, Seton would start a youth program called the League of Woodcraft Indians in 1901 which would merge with the other scouting organization, including Daniel Beard’s Sons of Daniel Boone, to form the Boy Scouts of America in 1910. Seton wrote the first “Boy Scout Handbook” and his championing of camping and woodcraft is widely recognized as the pioneering force for the scouting movement in America. “Wild Animals I Have Known” is a collection of eight naturalistic tales based on Seton’s experiences. Criticized by some as overly sentimental portrayals of wild animals, this collection remains to this day a charming collection of natural tales. This edition includes a biographical afterword.