Under the Henfluence

Inside the World of Backyard Chickens and the People Who Love Them

By: Tove Danovich

Narrated by: Tove Danovich

Since first domesticating the chicken thousands of years ago, humans have become exceptionally adept at raising them for food. Yet most people rarely interact with chickens or know much about them. In Under the Henfluence, culture reporter Tove Danovich explores the lives of these quirky, mysterious birds who stole her heart the moment her first box of chicks arrived at the post office.

From a hatchery in Iowa to a chicken show in Ohio to a rooster rescue in Minnesota, Danovich interviews the people breeding, training, healing, and, most importantly, adoring chickens. With more than 26 billion chickens living on industrial farms around the world, they're easy to dismiss as just another dinner ingredient. Yet Danovich's reporting reveals the hidden cleverness, quiet sweetness, and irresistible personalities of these birds, as well as the complex human-chicken relationship that has evolved over centuries. This glimpse into the lives of backyard chickens doesn't just help us to understand chickens better—it also casts light back on ourselves and what we've ignored throughout the explosive growth of industrial agriculture. Woven with delightful and sometimes heartbreaking anecdotes from Danovich's own henhouse, Under the Henfluence proves that chickens are so much more than what they bring to the table.

©2023 Tove Danovich (P)2023 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Very informative & important story, must listen

Delightful narrative, although sometimes emotionally jarring, about burgeoning home poultry scene in USA, rescuing aged out hens from agribusiness farms, history of American poullets.  Some parts hard to hear: routine destruction of unwanted male poullets after sexing birds, confined hens forced into daily egg production, varieties bred without feathers for super fast harvest. The short brutal Hobbesian life of factory farm chickens replete with reproductive problems, osteoporosis, never seeing outside world. Bright spots include fact that chickens are quite smart, eggs from birds that forage taste good, hens can be loving birds and therapy chickens make terrific stand ins for dogs and cats. Chickens deserve a better quality of life. Tove's book is thoroughly and thoughtfully researched.  Really makes you think!

Enjoyable Listen

I learned about the author from the Ologies Podcast and just knew I needed to read her book. I really enjoyed it and learned a lot.

Absolutely lovely

This book was such a lovely read/listen. I’ve been following Tove’s hen account on Instagram for the last couple of years, and I’ve been waiting quite impatiently for her book to release. It didn’t disappoint!

The World According to Chickens

Charming, informative, and appealing. Even if you don’t love chickens, this book is an interesting insight into a world few of us ever regard. I learned so much as well, who knew about chicken shows? Highly recommend!

Charming and informative

We are just over a year into our lives with chickens and can’t believe the joy they bring. Our lives grow fuller as our flocks expand. We currently have 19 oops roosters that bring much of that joy. This book brings out the wonder we experience in watching, learning, and interacting with each of them. It touches on the pain of loss tenderly. It even brought me to tears a number of times. Thank you for this!