"The subtitle of this comprehensive, lavishly illustrated reference book terms it 'an homage' to Timothy Lawlor’s acclaimed Handbook to the Orders and Families of Living Mammals, which was published in 1979, revised, but out of date following Lawlor’s death in 2011. As wildlife ecologist Kelt and mammal curator Patton note, Lawlor’s final edition featured about 4,170 species of mammal; today’s figure is 6,495. 'Do not be overwhelmed,' they advise students, 'simply revel in the diversity that is the Mammalia.'"

Nature

"The class Mammalia includes twenty-seven extant orders and 167 families, each characterized by diagnostic features. All these groups and features are covered in Lawlor’s 1979 Handbook to the Orders and Families of Living Mammals, a widely used laboratory manual that is now several years out of date from a taxonomic perspective. This new volume, written by Kelt and Patton, is modeled after and represents the successor to Lawlor’s classic book. The manual is not a key and instead focuses on the diagnostic characters of twenty-eight orders and 140 families. The higher-level taxonomy has been updated by recognizing the major supraordinal groupings. . . . The volume also covers mammalian anatomy, including the skull, the skeleton, teeth, and soft tissue. The figures include range maps, phylogenies, drawings of animals, and black-and-white photos of skulls, many of which illustrate diagnostic traits. . . . The book is a success overall. This reviewer will certainly use it as a lab manual the next time he teaches mammalogy. Recommended."

Choice

“An outstanding contribution to our efforts to teach students and professionals the wealth of recent literature that is recasting our understanding of the world’s mammals. I applaud Kelt and Patton for keeping Lawlor’s name associated with this massive revision. It isn’t so much ‘Lawlor’s . . .’ anymore, but it is very generous of these authors to recognize his initial efforts and contributions in teaching a next generation of mammalogists. The glossary and illustrations are excellent and most helpful. This book will be the standard for years to come.”

Robert M. Timm, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, and past president, American Society of Mammalogists

“Kelt and Patton have greatly expanded Lawlor’s work with new taxonomic and systematic organization, many more and better illustrations, and a more extensive bibliography. This new rendition is much improved. There is hardly a better manual for comparing old and new taxonomic and phylogenetic constructs for the Class Mammalia. Relations of groups of mammals, and Mammaliaformes, are clearly presented. Characteristics of each order and family are clearly and succinctly listed. Drawings and photos are first rate and clearly illustrate the desired points for each character/group. This book will have a place on the bookshelf of every mammalogist worldwide.”

Michael A. Mares, director, curator, and professor emeritus, Sam Noble Museum, University of Oklahoma, and past president, American Society of Mammalogists

"Kelt and Patton take mammalogy from a 1990’s flip phone  to  iPhone  13.   A Manual of the Mammalia is entirely on a  higher  plane."

Journal of Mammalogy