I was given a NetGalley widget for this one a year ago and I just got around to reading it and dangit it was so good. I am so thankful for the opportunity to have consumed this wildly relevant fictional tale, which felt not at all fictional, more like historical fiction, due to the times. The cover initially was what drew me in, but I'm so thankful to have stuck with it because the outcome was magical.

I really liked these stories that where told from the perspectives of the animals.
Some where sad, while others gave hope.
The use of two narrators for these stories wasn't clear to me.

What an imaginative book!! I alternated ebook and audio and I enjoyed reading via both modalities. The narrators were fantastic!

I don’t give short stories enough love and this one was perfect for me. It was so unique to read through an animal’s eyes and dare I say it was FUN. I really enjoyed these stories and this collection as a whole.

A mixed review on this one. This short story collection is narrated by two voices: Nikki Massoud and Neil Shah. Both read slowly and the speed needed to be adjusted accordingly. But, I simply didn’t enjoy the stories read by Neil Shah as much. It’s hard to tell from a listen how much the writing style plays here. TBH, I think I might not have read this at all without the voice of Nikki Massoud. The anthropomorphic nature of the collection was (nessessarily?) a bit stilted in language.

These stories are captivating. Kolluri is really giving us an interiority to these animals that many authors excise or bypass when they write animals into their work. These animals have families, friends, origins, loyalties, ambitions, and are intent on walking their path.

She shows her appreciation, love, and willingness to acknowledge the sentience of our animal neighbours and companions. Interweaved with each animal is their environment and how vividly she portrays them.

Kolluri has written a deeply considered collection of stories that take readers across the world, from disappearing tundra to a conservation camp to a zoo in a zone beseiged by violence, each constructed with an awareness of our time and the repercussions of our greed, lack of understanding, and callous actions.

Truly a collection that stuns and is affecting in its thoughtfulness.

I really enjoyed reading this book more than listening to it. The narrators changed over stories, and the voices of some were very monotone. I did not like the one in the whale story.
I did enjoy the stories being told from the perspectives of animals, it was a very inventive style of writing. There were themes of environmentalism, but they weren't shoved in your face. It was a subtle way of showing how we are harming the planet and affecting animals' lives. The stories were sometimes funny but mostly reflective or sad.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of What We Fed to the Manticore by Talia Lakshmi Kolluri.

Unfortunately I stopped after almost halfway through. I am simply not the right audience for this one. They are stories about animals, anthropomorphizing them to talk and interact in a human way. I just can't, I'm not interested. Add to that, the languages were full of magic and lore, which is also not my bag.

I fully realize how unfair this review is, because I'm sure that others might love it, it's just not for me.

4.5 stars

I actually wish this book could be longer! Having two separate narrators wasn’t really necessary though. It is difficult to understand or know what animals are thinking, so this book is great to open your mind. I’d consider having a physical copy of this book in my personal collection.


(ALC received from NetGalley in exchange for honest review. Thank you!)

An unusual title captions this nonagon of animal-oriented tales, captured from animal viewpoints, exploring our planet's past, present, future; ethics and survival; myth and practicality, in a collection suffused with deep thought, insight, and intuition, all bathed and basted in magical realism.


All the audio version's narrators are chosen well; my favorite is the initial narrator who delineates the ethics of survival in the gentility of her narration.