Oxana Timofeeva''s <i>The History of Animals: A Philosophy </i>is an original and ambitious treatment of the "animal question". While philosophers have always made distinctions between human beings and animals, Timofeeva imagines a world free of such walls and borders. Timofeeva shows the way towards the full acceptance of our animality; an acceptance which does not mean the return to our animal roots, or anything similar. The freedom generated by this acceptance operates through negativity; is an effect of the rejection of the very core of metaphysical philosophy and Christian culture, traditionally opposed to our ¿animal¿ nature and seemingly detached from it.With a foreword by Slavoj ¿i¿ek, this book is accessible, jargon-free and ideal for students and all those interested in re-imagining how we engage with animals and the environment.