Publisher, Random House Audiobooks (1993)

"DRAMATIC...ENTHRALLING...EXPERTLY CRAFTED...Michener treats each of these creatures with fundamental respect, and in many cases, admiration and awe, if not outright love." --The Virginian-Pilot & The Ledger-Star

"Contain[s] the dramatic elements of a life--the wonder of birth, rites of passage, lots of conflict, much of it physical and bloody, and death...As characters in a Michener novel, a beaver can know loneliness, a buffalo can bide his time, a salmon can feel encouraged, and a woolly mammoth can 'luxuriate' in the ecological rewards of a plains fire." --Boston Sunday Herald

"Delightful...Nature writing at its most fluid and involving." --Booklist

From James A. Michener, America's favorite story-teller, comes this treasury of sixteen tales about the natural world. Millions of readers have been captivated by the stories of the woolly mammoth in Alaska, the wily gander in Chesapeake, the awesome birth of the Hawaiian Islands in Hawaii, and the evolution of the Rocky Mountains in Centennial. These and other excerpts from Michener's superb novels are here collected in a single volume, along with one never-before-published story. Together they offer a mesmerizing journey through the natural world, across time, and around the globe. Mr. Michener re-creates the planet Earth as it existed millions of years ago when dinosaurs flourished; he vividly describes the vast forces that created the geological wonders we know today; he explains how, in the millennia-old struggle for survival, some species endured and evolved while others disappeared. Several stories illuminate man's relationship with animals, such as the love between master and dog in Chesapeake and the antagonism between homeowner and armadillo in Texas. Illustrated with seventeen drawings, each occupying two full pages, Creatures of the Kingdom is sure to enchant readers of all ages.

In these sixteen wonderful stories, bestselling author James A. Michener lights up nature's most awesome and beguiling handiwork--from the sublime shaping and reshaping of earth's land and seas to the ridiculous armadillo whose assault on a bit of Texas real estate paid off handsomely. Chosen from Michener's most popular books--including one story never before published in paperback--these mini-masterpieces take us deep into the secret lives of animals and the hidden world of nature. In them we hear the music of the spheres and feel the heartbeat of creation.

About the Performer: John Cullum has starred on television on Northern Exposure as Holling Vincoeur, and guest-starred on Quantum Leap and PBS's Edith Wharton series, among others. His film credits include Hawaii and Sweet Country.