Panda Love: The Secret Lives of Pandas (2024)

As a panda lover, everyone knows this book was going to earn a 5-star rating from me! Filled with fantastic photos and interesting panda conservation facts, this would make a much-appreciated gift for any panda lover in your life.

This is a lovely coffee table book filled with adorable panda photos and short paragraphs explaining how China has saved these national treasures. Recently, a docent at the Memphis Zoo told me that pandas were carnivores which adapted to eating bamboo because it was plentiful in their habitat. These book confirms that information. This book is for every panda fan!!!!

Panda Love by Ami Vitale was such a fun and informative read.
The book starts with an introduction to the author, giving her background. Ami Vitale is a photographer and writer with National Geographic magazine, interested in panda conservation efforts since visiting China multiple times.
A lot of the book focuses on panda mating.
I learned pandas used to be as elusive as bigfoot because they could only be found in the remote mountainous regions of central China. The Western world captured its first panda alive in 1936.
One con about this book is that it mentions pandas' past digestive system and behavior. It does not explain how their digestive system and behavior changed. Pandas' diet changed from meat to bamboo.
Another remarkable random fact I learned and did not know before reading this book is that pandas developed a sixth toe.
This book has 157 pages filled with modern pictures of pandas and small-paragraph explanations. The last part of the book discusses how humans are committed to helping this vulnerable species.
I recommend this book to anyone interested in Pandas and wildlife conservation.

This book is delightful! The photos are gorgeous and really bring these amazing beings to life. The text focuses on the endangered animals back and how China celebrates them. The photos are the highlight and really give you a look into the lives of these bears and how they are fighting to save them.

I love Giant Pandas, who doesn't? Ami Vitale is an acclaimed photographer and I have followed her photography on Panda conservation via Instagram. Hence, when I saw that she has released a photobook on these beautiful creatures, I ended up buying it. While the book has cute photos and brief accompanying text, it largely ignores the wildlife habitat destruction and animal trade in China. I am sure the access to China's poster animals came at a cost. However, it is rather contradicting that while China spends millions on saving Giant Panda, it has allowed the breeding and trading of wild animals for meat to continue. The trade, controlled and catering to the wealthy few, has been cited as the underlying cause behind many viral outbreaks and the coronavirus pandemic. Vitale being a photojournalist would know all this and am sure understood the shallowness in just printing cute photos of these furry miracles. Photos can say a lot, especially when words fail to move people. However, this book falls short of all those objectives. However, go ahead and buy it if you really want to keep some cute panda pictures near your bedside.

Short and fun information accompanied by stunning photos!

This book is a complete joy, and the story Ami Vitale tells is an inspiring one. The effort and care going into ensuring pandas survive that is shown in this book, and the panda facts can teach one more than what these fluffy beasts eat. My favorite quote, "Giant pandas are masters of adaption. 'We humans are used to changing the environment to suit our needs,' says Zhang Hemin, director of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP). 'The difference is that pandas changed themselves to suit the environment.'" I hope Ami Vitale tells more stories like these, as even though it was short I love the perspective she provides through her photos and captions.

Great read for biologists, ecologists, photographers, and Panda lovers in general! Ami Vitale captures amazing moments throughout all aspects of China's Panda repopulation of it's most prized ambassadors. Highly recommend picking this one up!

So different to what I'm used to but I loved the insight into the life of pandas. The pictures were beautiful.