When one of the sheep in the author's herd turns out to be an unenthusiastic mother, the natural failure of something so basic as the maternal instinct sets Allport to wondering about parenting, "this most ordinary, most extraordinary of things." The result is this wide-ranging exploration of the nature and evolution of the relationship between parents and children. Fully conversant with the latest research in biology and animal behavior, the author turns a naturalist's observant eye upon the natural world of her backyard, and of human society as well. While such an exercise is second nature to someone with Allport's professional training, the lucidity of her prose and the clarity of her thought are such that any reader with the slightest interest in "parenting in the animal world and ours" will be eager to join her.