Paper Tiger

Paper Tiger: How Pictures Shaped the Thylacine (Forty South Publishing) is a history of the thylacine, or Tasmanian ‘tiger’, that draws us closer to the animals who served as models for illustrations. It takes the reader on a journey behind artists’ brushstrokes and photographers’ lenses into the world of science, printing processes, publishing entrepreneurs, circulating libraries and bounties and reveals how inaccurate published images were . . . and how profoundly they affected attitudes toward the few remaining members of the species.

Written with sensitivity and an eye for detail, Paper Tiger uncovers forgotten drawings and lost photographs from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, telling a story full of mystery and revelations. It demonstrates how pictures and words have a vital influence on a species’ survival. As the rate of extinctions escalates, we are also reminded that sympathetic pictures have the power to provide hope for endangered animals.

Paper Tiger is a compelling book for anyone interested in history and images, or concerned about the natural environment, animal extinctions and conservation issues. It also provides a visual resource for art gallery and museum curators, print collectors and zoologists

ISBN 978 0 9922791 xx
August 2014

Paper Tiger: A Visual History of the Thylacine. First edition. Brill Academic Publishers, 2010.

This edition of Paper Tiger in Brill’s Human-Animal Studies Series was aimed at human-animal studies scholars, zoologists, conservationists and cultural historians. It contained 80 illustrations and was published as a soft cover book that was marketed to university and institutional libraries, mainly in Europe and USA. It is now out of print, but available as an Ebook on Brill’s website.

The 2014 revised edition of Paper Tiger above, with the subtitle How Pictures Shaped the Thylacine, has a revised text, completely new layout and cover design and 20 additional illustrations. It is aimed at a general, educated audience and is available at an affordable price.