New book " Stolen World" DON'T BUY IT!

[Shawn(snakebite)]

A new book by Jennie Erin Smith is due out called Stolen World . Its apparently about reptile smugglers and the illegal counterpart of it all. Unfortunately she has labelled all reptile hobbyists and anyone who deals and breeds them as evil people. She is one of the many examples of an individual trying to make a name for herself by bashing herpetoculture. She has weasled herself and charmed her way into countless reputable breeders and dealers homes falsely supporting them and then turned around to publish a book that trash talks them all and illustrates them as a "diseased people". Don't support her work , don't buy her book and if you see one use it for toilet paper. My sincere regards to all those people who were dooped into her false motive of writing about a positive reptile endeavour.

Now , I know by posting this it makes you want to find the book but its falsely written and its motive is deceitful. Its not about illegal smuggling , its bashing all reputable reptile enthusiasts.

Bottom line , she is against what we love to do and she is attacking us all as a collective. Don't support it is my goal within this post.

[Shawn(snakebite)]

I quote ,and I beleive this statement unfortunately....

" Just take this as yet another lesson for herpers-journalists, TV and all forms of publicity are the enemy of our hobby. It has been demonstrated thousands of times-the public and politicians cannot be "educated". "

[joeysgreen]

I passed this review on to one of my favorite online book dealers.

[joeysgreen]

Shawn, how did you find out about this, and are you sure what you are passing on is true? No copies have arrived yet for review.
These facts were shared with me from Allen Salszberg of the Herp Digest,
" I know is she has been working on it for 10 years 7 research 3 writing. Has tapes and documentation for everything. Her publisher, Crown, owned by Random House wouldn't publish it if she didn't. Their lawyers went through it three times to make sure.
"
Further facts and opinion
"Her motive as an owner of herps herself is to clean up the image of the herp world. Something I agree with. She doesn't mention anyone's names unless she got their written permission and she concentrates on two well know smugglers. Hank Molt and Crutchfield. And she doesn't let the Zoos of the hook."

In an interview she also had said that reckless development of land, tearing down of tropical rain forests and Destruction of their habitat were the greatest threats to herps; I don't think she mentioned the pet industry.

So I"m uncertain where you came across your information, but I would take it with a grain of salt.

Ian

[jennie]

Hi folks; I just registered to defend my book a bit. I am not anti-trade and have not "labelled all reptile hobbyists and anyone who deals and breeds them as evil people" as Shawn above put it. This is a serious misconception, and at this point not a review at all, but hearsay. It's a very interesting story dating to the early 1960s and I think anyone in the trade would enjoy it. Younger people would learn a lot about how the trade came to be. Much of the fuss is being drummed up by Tom Crutchfield who does not like how he's portrayed. However, I think I treated Tom fairly and gave him a lot of room to explain his thoughts and actions. Again, I am hardly anti-trade; just telling a good story that, I believe, needed to be told. Canadians will be able to buy it from Scotty Allen at [e-mail]. Thanks, Jennie Smith

[saskatchewanexotic]

Hey Jennie, Thanks for your input!

[joeysgreen]

Thanks Jennie, I didn't expect you to arrive. I appreciate your input.

Ian

[Shawn(snakebite)]

I take it all with a grain of salt too and my first impression and what I have seen on the issue or should I say Jennies book has been nothing positive for people involved with herps. I guess everyone will have their own opinion on the matter once read. Yes , the history of it all is interesting to know . For the record I do not side with Tom or Hank . I do feel though that a public display of singling them out puts a bad vibe for all within the reptile trade. The public and politicians won't see the single few who overstep the boundaries but will judge the industry as a whole negatively. I'm not convinced anything good for herpetoculture will come out of this written opinion , based purely on the bad attetnion its brings to our hobby , which lets face it , will override all else that the public will find in the book. People will only see the bad examples , and the wrong people will cling to those . A rock solid example of this already is the countless bans on reptiles due to the irresponsible few who have brought the bad attetnion. The public , government doesn't see the majority of us responsible keepers but sees clearly the bad few , thus issue bans and restrictions. They don't care about the good , all they see is the bad .

Jennie , I'm afraid the bad in the book will overshadow anything good is all. Maybe not your fault but undoubtedly what the majority will see about the industry. The main focus should be on habitat destruction. Its through captive propagation that we ensure their survival and unfortunatly as things are going , the only reptiles , especially the real exotics will be in captivity . They can't survive in their natural , wild habitats . Now thats the real shame.

Thanks Ian for bringin forth the knife wielding , or pen wielding author. Makes for a good discussion. Thanks for your input Jenny , but if you really love the hobby ... you should of wrote strictly on positive examples of it . Flooding the book with that would push it forward or " clean it up" more so I believe. Not as good a story though probably hey ? Thus why the news and media always have nothing but negative images and topics produced . Negativity brings much more attention. You'd have to admit to that , right? You can't fight the good fight by surfacing negative aspects , you have to pour out the positive to flood over the negative . Thats how you win , thats progression, thats moving forward.

[kaley]

K, I haven't been around here much lately, and haven't read the book in question.

But Shawn, why would you say that someone should only write the good stuff? Why blow sunshine up people's asses?

IF there are problems in the industry (and I KNOW that there are...far too many breeders are nothing but "puppy mill" type operations, and wild caught reptiles are another big can of worms!) and there are legitimate environmental concerns, why shouldn't those be addressed?

The only way to fix problems and make positive progress - on any issue whatsoever - is to know what the problems are.

Kaley

[Shawn(snakebite)]

My point exactly , you said " you know there are problems" . Its known , as in every aspect in lifes ventures. People have a natural tendency to lean to the negative aspects and views in everything. Its not blowing sunshine up peoples asses to dish out positive aspects of it. Or are good things that hard to take in genuinely ? The downfall of the human species is to fixate on the problems . What you choose to give attention to , breeds more of it. Theres a fine line of noting the problem and then focusing your all on it. So yes, You are right Kaley , theres nothing wrong in knowing the problem , but alot wrong in setting up shop and rooting down in it. Take note of the issues and go on and set an example and facilitate and invest in the positive avenues and affairs . Take the higher path and fly with those who project light rather than wading in the duck poo. You can't fight the "problem" by fighting the problems . Its energy wasted in the wrong direction.
I think theres enough dark , and its too bad sunshine has to be force fed.
Keep your shades on , prowl in the catacombs and remain "starstruck"

We all have opinions , I have shared mine on this matter and appreciate and respect the ones posted . Nothing wrong with different points of view. We can all take something from both ends and people will be split as with every other topic we come across. I have put enough energy , more than enough into this post and that will be all from me here. Its free to fill up now with someonelses last word.

[saskatchewanexotic]

Just an update:
Reptile collectors are a strange breed. In an interview on Urban Jungles Radio (Jennie Erin) Smith says most are moderately to severely handicapped in social skills, perhaps due to their odd obsession of keeping creatures in the basement that eat live chickens and mice for dinner. Mostly, they converse with others who share and understand their passion, and what better way to impress their peers than by possessing a rare and sought-after specimen? How many risks would they take to accomplish that? Quite a few, it seems.



- From a book review of "Stolen World" by Jennie Erin Smith.

Here is the entire review for those who ask:

The Internet Review of Books

Reviewing recent books in the fields of science, social science, history, art, music, current affairs, and fiction with attitude and passion: An Intelligent Guide for Intelligent People.



Friday, March 4, 2011



Stolen World



BUY THIS BOOK Non-fiction



Human reptiles?





STOLEN WORLD:



A Tale of Reptiles, Smugglers, and Skulduggery

By Jennie Erin Smith

336 pp. Crown



Reviewed by Sarah Morgan



"The reptile business is a disease,

and you can't retire from a disease."

--Henry Molt



With a cast of characters straight out of a Carl Hiaasen or Elmore Leonard novel, Jennie Erin Smith takes her readers on a wild ride into the world of reptile trafficking. And, yes, much of her new book, Stolen World: A Tale of Reptiles, Smugglers, and Skulduggery, takes place in Florida, and it's all true.



Using two larger-than-life personalities, Hank Molt and Tom Crutchfield, she deftly writes about the history of collecting, transporting, and selling illegal reptile species. A freelance science writer who is interested in “herps” herself, Smith first got wind of the story in 1996. Someone told her there might be some illegal species at a reptile expo in Florida. She went, met the two men, and spent the next ten years interviewing sources and writing. The scope of the book is enormous, covering more than thirty years and a group of highly unorganized international thieves and con men.



Hank Molt grew up in Philadelphia, infatuated with reptiles since his youth. By 1965 he had dropped out of college and gone to work for Kraft Foods, where he was given a car for his sales job. “Molt hated everything about the job except the station wagon, which he would commandeer on weekends to visit zoos.” It turned out that zoo curators in the 1960s and 70s were nothing more than glorified collectors themselves willing to overlook falsified permits and import documents. Molt was all too eager to acquire what they were looking for. He quit Kraft, phonied-up credentials and research in order to look credible, and went into business selling and collecting rare reptiles.



By far the most sociopathic character in the book, and there is a host of others to compare him to, Molt regularly stiffed or stole from his clients, but he also comes across as quite likable. He was certainly a generous historian of the trade for this book. By 1979, he was prosecuted under CITES, the Convention on International Trade and Endangered Species Act.



Tom Crutchfield grew up in rural Florida. No zoos or institutions of higher learning for him. He “came from a line of wealthy English adventurers, military men, and seamen, the kind of people who like to be in charge and who do not play well with others.” His reptile education was very different from Molt's.



All across the south in the 1940s, Florida being no exception, roadside snake shows were a big attraction, and many of the snakes they used were illegals from Latin America. Crutchfield worked for one of the best, Ross Allen, and from him learned about handling snakes, as well as crocodile wrestling. He inherited his bad temper from his relatives.



With Hank Molt on probation and the zoos skittish about doing business with him, Crutchfield carried on in where Molt left off. The two men were both partners and enemies, and eventually Molt would testify against Crutchfield when he too was prosecuted and convicted of smuggling. In the reptile business, Molt says, “Ancient hatreds revert to friendships with the promise of money, and ancient friendships revert to hatred with the first transgression.”



Although the two men are highly entertaining in their own right, there is much more to the book than Molt and Crutchfield's turf wars in the United States. Smith writes about smugglers in Europe, Asia, pretty much wherever people covet invertebrates.



Reptile collectors are a strange breed. In an interview on Urban Jungles Radio Smith says most are moderately to severely handicapped in social skills, perhaps due to their odd obsession of keeping creatures in the basement that eat live chickens and mice for dinner. Mostly, they converse with others who share and understand their passion, and what better way to impress their peers than by possessing a rare and sought-after specimen? How many risks would they take to accomplish that? Quite a few, it seems.



Smith writes about species stolen from Madagascar (Ploughshare tortoises), Ethiopia (Ethiopian mountain vipers), Fiji (Fiji Iguanas), Australia, as well as Latin America and Hispaniola (Haitian boas). She tracks their routes through corrupt government agencies, airports, planes, immigration, zoos, trade shows, and onto the Internet.



Imagining yourself in a scene from the movie Snakes on a Plane turns out to be not that much of a stretch, according to Smith. These men and their mules often carried reptiles on board flights either in their carryon luggage or on their person, sometimes rolled up in socks or in pockets. Increased airport security since 9/11 and the advent of TSA officials have made smuggling more difficult, but the trafficking continues.



Environmentalists or PETA advocates may have a hard time reading this book as many of the smuggled animals end up dead, either from neglect or from the rigors of transit. But a full cast of smugglers who are out to cheat everyone, and often inadvertently cheat themselves, keeps this book a gripping read.

[bear24]

Jennie Erin Smith, anybody know what she looks like I just want to have dirty looks and a few nasty words ready if I ever meet the mean #itch. I believe I'm very socially advanced so this is uncalled for slander. She just wanted to make some cash and saw a struggling industry willing to talk to her honestly. I'm very disappointed not in the book but the way Jennie has hocked it at the expense of the reptile industry. A great writer would present the information in a way that does not alienate thier sources or thier subject matter. For some reason the book makes me feel like the smelly kid at the back of class just waiting for the bell to ring so I may go steal baby snakes out of orphans hands!

A freelance writer, let's clarify an unemployed writer. That says it all. Go get a real job!

[saskatchewanexotic]

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaqg8aeaIC8

I have a mixed reaction. It seems to me that it is an amazing collection of stories that she mistakenly represented with some ignorant, undeserving blanket statements.
It would seem that Jennie missed the mark with her advertising objective on her novel. I don`t believe she did. I am pretty sure that Jennie knows what she is doing making the comments that she is making. Honestly, I probably wouldn`t have thought twice about this book if she hadn`t made the effort to derogate ALL reptile enthusiasts. Now she has me going "Who is this bitch?" And since researching her - I know I will read the book.

It seems to me it is full of a bunch of awesome stories of the old guys who (stolen or not) brought many of the species that we love to keep to North America for the first time.