5 stars

“An intrepid investigation of the criminal world of wildlife trafficking-- the poachers, the traders, and the customers and of those fighting against it. Journalist Rachel Nuwer plunges the reader into the underground of global wildlife trafficking, a topic she has been investigating for nearly a decade. “

Enlightening, educational, enraging and emotional. Poached pushed a number of emotional buttons in me. I am just having a hard time dealing with the injustice of losing so many animal lives and species to poachers. I do not care about the “reasoning” people give for poaching. It is just plain wrong. I seldom have such an emotional response to a book. I truly appreciate the work it took to research and write this book.

This is one of those books that will touch the heart of anyone who reads it. I truly believe Poached should be mandatory reading for high school and college students across the globe. The author has done an astonishing job of showing every aspect of the “poaching trade”. Every student or for that matter; person who reads this book will be changed and educated by the stories within it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. The views given are my own.
#NetGalley #Poached

"Poached: Inside the Dark World of Wildlife Trafficking" by Rachel Love Nuwer is exactly what it sounds like. A book mainly focusing on the elephant, rhino, bear and tiger aspects of it, the author first goes to places like Vietnam, Africa, and China, to speak to not only animal hunters, but also wildlife ranger in the area's to really see what's going on. There are a few pictures scattered throughout the book, and it's really an eye opening journey. I think everyone should read this book.

This book wants to help save wildlife and spread the word about what's really going on, and that's exactly what it does. I feel like I've learned so much, like animal trafficking is a billion dollar industry and is ranked just behind drugs, guns, and human trafficking. Globally, there are less than 30,000 rhinos in total, and there are less than 4000 tigers in the wild but many more in farms. Pangolins have quickly become the world's most trafficked animal, with a million dead over the last ten years.

Not only does the author know a lot about the subject, but she also traveled to learn more about it, so that everyone who reads this book could also know more about it. Some topics the book touches on are the wealth in some regions that may have an impact on this, the places animals like these have ended up after being saved, countries with wild meat illegal but still restaurants that serve them, animal farms versus non profit animal sanctuaries.

Overall if you pick up this book, be prepared to read about some sad things. Just know that it doesn't have to be like this. There are good pictures, and a happy ending. The only thing is, if we don't do anything about these problems then they'll just keep getting worse. I learned about animals that are close to extinction, ones that are working to come back, and which ones are gone already. I'm really glad I got the chance to check it out, and you should if you get the chance. Even if you're not into books that aren't fiction, I think everyone should know about topics like these and I'm glad this book came out.

Thanks for reading!
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Poached is a very detailed look into the world of poaching. Rachel Love Nuwer travels to parts of the world where poaching is most dominant and gets an inside look at it through research and interviews. It's informative and eye-opening.