Review: The Last Coyote

The Last Coyote by Jack Olsen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I don't know why the intro here extolls this a "historical novel", it is plainly a nonfiction account of the excessive use of the The M44 cyanide device (also a 'coyote-getter', 'cyanide gun' or a 'cyanide trap') used for the elimination of coyotes blamed for the loss of profits. It lures predators with an attractive smell, often from a small piece of bait, then uses a spring to propel a dosage of sodium cyanide into the predator's mouth. The sodium cyanide combines with water in the mouth to produce poisonous cyanide gas.

This work documents the manipulations of disingenuous sheep herders to over-report such loss and harangue a spineless Fish & Wildlife agency to over-use of this poisoning device. Here is a litany of unintended victims, including people, pets and endangered species. This is an important message and something to confront and something within the greater subject of agricultural subsidies (should dairies be reimbursed for soured milk?) for us as a society to consider carefully.

A poor narrator and frequent re-reads detract from this audiobook.

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