The biologist Nathan H. Lents shows that humans and animals are not as different as once believed: the same evolutionary forces of cooperation and competition have shaped both human and animal behavior. He describes the strides scientists have made in decoding animal behavior to explain that we are distinguished only in degree, not in kind.

In Not So Different, the biologist Nathan H. Lents argues that the same evolutionary forces of cooperation and competition have shaped both humans and animals. Identical emotional and instinctual drives govern our actions. By acknowledging this shared programming, the human experience no longer seems unique, but in that loss we gain a fuller understanding of such phenomena as sibling rivalry and the biological basis of grief, helping us lead more grounded, moral lives among animals, our closest kin. Through a mix of colorful reporting and rigorous scientific research, Lents describes the exciting strides scientists have made in decoding animal behavior and bringing the evolutionary paths of humans and animals closer together.