THE EXTINCTION CLUB

Part intellectual travelogue, part historical study, part biological monograph, part writer's memoir, magazine writer Twigger's charmingly eccentric book about the rare Milu deer is difficult to classify. The Milu, which could have been designed by committee, has a camel's neck, a donkey's tail, cow-like hooves and stag's horns. For a millennium, this unusual species was the private stock of Chinese emperors. Then in the 19th century, a Basque missionary priest, Père David, became fascinated by the creature and spread word of it in Europe. Unfortunately, the Milu did not thrive in the game preserves of the European aristocrats who imported it and also went extinct in its native China during the chaos of the Boxer Rebellion. The one stroke of luck for the poor creature was the 11th Duke of Bedford, who carefully nurtured the deer in Bedfordshire, England. Nowadays, thanks to his conservation efforts, the deer is so abundant that well-heeled hunters can travel to wild game reserves, especially in Texas, and hunt the Milu for a fee. In the course of this story, Twigger takes the reader on a freewheeling journey through his own life and winningly reflects on marriage, Darwin, Egypt, mythopoetica, evolution and extinction. This is a lighthearted and truly unusual romp through natural history. (July)