ELEPHANT BOWLING AND OTHER ANIMAL PLAY

A look at the games animals play.

In the introduction to this posthumously published companion to Orangutan Hats and Other Tools Animals Use (2021), Haynes observes that wild creatures play for many of the same reasons that human children do: to hone their abilities and to release “happy hormones.” Laberis’ accompanying illustrations cement the parallel between humans and animals, showing a diverse array of youngsters racing about and hiding. The rest of the narrative focuses on more than 20 games, organized into two segments: activities that build skills (tug of war, wrestling) and those that are pure fun (sliding down snowy hills, bodysurfing). Cheerful, cartoon-style animals cavort across the pages, not entirely anthropomorphized but clearly smiling and having a good time. Mongooses play hide-and-seek underground, while Arabian babblers—birds native to the Middle East—offer each other a King of the Hill challenge in the trees. Kangaroos, hares, and rabbits play pat-a-cake, young orangutans “dress” themselves in vines and twigs, and chimpanzees dance to the rhythm of a waterfall. Haynes packs a lot of information into a text that doesn’t talk down to readers. A map of six continents shows where these various species play—all over the world.

Readers will be surprised and pleased to see just how closely animal behaviors mirror their own.