Nursery School

On a July morning in 2015, a raccoon died at the corner of Yonge and Church in Toronto. That evening, Conrad’s passing was marked by a candlelight vigil, his furry body surrounded by framed photographs, flowers, and notes of heartfelt remembrance. One city councillor proposed leaving compost bins open in Conrad’s honour, and NPR would later declare Toronto the “­raccoon capital of the world.”

This is just one of many stories that Daniel Heath Justice, holder of a Canada Research Chair at the University of British Columbia, draws upon in his deep dive into the biological, taxonomical, historical, and cultural significance of Procyon lotor. His latest book, Raccoon, joins over a hundred entries in Reaktion’s Animal series (which also includes Justice’s previous contribution, Badger). This is more than just a thorough primer on the nocturnal mammal whose roots can...