Mankind is unique. Our senses, our emotions and our sophisticated way of life set us apart from other life forms. Animals cannot feel pain, so we are told. Goldfish have an attention span of only two seconds, that's why they swim around the tank. Plants are just a mass of tissue, without sense of their surroundings. We believe that only humans dream, and our species is unique in its ability to fall in love, create a home, experience passion. Here is a gripping new thesis that demolishes such views. Here we learn that life in all its glorious variety is rich with sensation and birds, even fish can mourn for lost love. We encounter an all-embracing new vision of life for a new era. In an era when concern for animal welfare is so dramatically visible, this book offers a revolution in popular attitudes. Never again will we feel so infinitely superior to the other species with whom we share the planet.