“This splendid debut from Davis, a science writer for London’s Natural History Museum, surveys the dazzling variety of sexual behavior and expression in the animal, fungi, and plant kingdoms. . . . The fascinating science makes a resounding case that the natural world features more diverse expressions of sexual activity and biological sex than commonly believed. The result is a much needed corrective to blinkered notions of what’s considered ‘natural.’”

Publishers Weekly

“Reveals that the natural world is more complex and inclusive than people often assume. . . . Gorgeous. . . . An absorbing and meticulous science text, A Little Queer Natural History shares an important perspective.”

Foreword Reviews

“Many people, including researchers and people who are simply interested in animal behavior, have written off queer sexual behavior in nonhuman animals for any number of reasons, including that it is offensive or so rare as to be meaningless. However, times are changing, and science writer Davis’s fascinating new book A Little Queer Natural History explains how queer animals and plants not only aren’t rare but are rather common, and studying their behavior more closely can open our eyes and hearts to the astonishing diversity of sexual behavior and biology found in nature.”

Marc Bekoff | Psychology Today

"A beautifully illustrated book celebrating the 'non-heteronormative biology and behaviors that exist in the natural world.' Gorgeous photographs accompany stories of hermaphroditic fish, lesbian gulls, and male swan couples raising chicks as well as spotted hyenas in female-centric colonies. . . . Davis’s colorful encyclopedia takes on ‘scientific’ literature dating back to Aristotle, critiquing it for its biases and 'moral language' regarding the diversity of sexual expression. By looking so closely at the queering of the natural world, the author underlines and celebrates an expansive view of erotic behavior. Rooted in empiricism, with no anthropomorphizing or didacticism allowed, A Little Queer Natural History is a valuable counterweight against the homophobia bred by today’s culture wars."

The Arts Fuse

"The book excels in showing the reader the complexity of nature, of reproductive systems, all the different ways genes can be packed into chromosomes, how the environment or other living beings can influence what crawls out of an egg.”

10,000 Birds

"Nature is a rainbow. This concise book (just 125 pages) offers an enjoyable and illuminating look at the diversity of the natural world and shows that Earth’s plants and animals (including us) are far from binary."

The Revelator

"In his book, A Little Queer Natural History, science writer Davis gives a sampling of the enormous variety of gender and sexual behaviors in the plant, fungal and animal world and the ways some scientists have twisted themselves into knots to find non-sexual explanations for gay sex in animals. . . . Davis [talks] about the gender fluid, intersex, asexual, gay, gender changeable, multi-sexual, rainbow splendor of the natural world."

KQED's Forum

"However you learned the facts of life, it changed you forever and in the new book, A Little Queer Natural History by Davis, there's more to the wild story. You are not alone. Just look around. . . .Davis stuffs each entry tight with real scientific information, and he uses actual scientific terms to do it. There's zero dumbing-down in that, but Davis is quick to explain terms and ideas, which helps readers to completely understand what's here. For sure, you'll feel like a smarty-pants as you make your way through this book. . . . A Little Queer Natural History is a smart book, perfect for quick reads at random at this busy time of year. If that's what you need now, enjoying it's a fact of life."

Out South Florida

"The book delves into the complexity of sexual reproduction and determination, including the influence of genes, hormones, environment, and chance. Examples include turtles with sex determined by egg incubation temperature and butterflies with male and female biological tissue. The author challenges readers to reconsider assumptions and prejudices by showcasing overlooked animal and plant behaviours in nature."

Australian Wildlife

"Definitely a book for this current age. . . . A good, interesting, quick and quirky read."

Western Australia Bird Notes

“A very welcome slap on the wrist for those who so ignorantly claim that same-sex love, intimacy, and bonding are ‘unnatural.’ Davis’s splendid book is a most useful settler of arguments and silencer of bigots.”

Stephen Fry