The Arrogant Ape

*A book of the year in the New York Times*
*Longlisted for the Nayef Al-Rodhan Book Prize*
*Winner of the Cosmos Book Prize 2026*
*Winner of the Phi Beta Kappa 2026 Award in Science*

'I wish this book had been published five hundred years ago and been compulsory reading ever since' Jay Griffiths, author of How Animals Heal Us

'A crucial and transformative read' Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast

'Will leave you in awe' Justin Gregg, author of If Nietzsche Were A Narwhal

Most people are certain that humans are the most intelligent, sophisticated, successful species on earth. But what if we're wrong? And what if our arrogant human exceptionalism is leading us to exploit the earth at the expense of other species - and destroy our own world in the process?

In The Arrogant Ape, leading primatologist Christine Webb challenges our belief in human superiority by revealing underappreciated wonders of nonhuman life - from the language of songbirds and prairie dogs, to the cultures of chimpanzees and reef fishes, to the acumen of plants and fungi. She shows how human exceptionalism has even crept into the sciences, distorting how we study and understand other species. With fresh research into the rich social, emotional and cognitive lives of animals, and compelling stories from all over the world, The Arrogant Ape demonstrates how our belief in our own importance is directly linked to some of the greatest threats against us and our environment - and offers a hopeful, inspiring way forwards.

'With compelling stories and fresh research [Webb] gives us a paradigm-shifting way of looking at other organisms on their own terms, one that is revolutionizing our perception both of them and of ourselves' Phi Beta Kappa Society