Bitch Audiobook By Lucy Cooke cover art

Bitch

On the Female of the Species

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free + $20 Audible credit

$8.99/mo. after 3 months. Cancel anytime.
Get this deal
Offer ends on July 15, 2026 at 11:59 PT.
More purchase options

Bitch

By: Lucy Cooke
Narrated by: Lucy Cooke
Get this deal

$8.99/mo. after 3 months. Cancel anytime. Offer ends July 15, 2026 at 11:59pm PT.

Buy for $25.19

Buy for $25.19

A zoologist’s “compelling and often hilarious” (Science) look at the queens of the animal kingdom

Somewhere in the ocean, an orca matriarch leads her pod to better hunting grounds. At the same time, a male clownfish, alone after the death of his mate, changes sex. All the while, humans battle over sex and gender: One side argues evolutionary biology dictates how we should be, and the other that it’s a patriarchal tool and shouldn’t matter at all.

In Bitch, zoologist Lucy Cooke rewrites the science of evolution and sex, showing how a band of pioneering, feminist biologists have uncovered the dizzying diversity created by evolution. In their work, Cooke finds a new understanding of what being female can mean and how evolution itself can work.

Never before in history has being female been so scrutinized. Rising to meet the moment, Bitch is a fierce, funny, and revolutionary scientific manifesto with a new perspective on the female animal that is much more inclusive, true to life, and fun. Biological Sciences Evolution Evolution & Genetics Gender Studies Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Science Social Sciences Thought-Provoking
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

“Lucy Cooke blows two centuries of sexist myths right out of biology. Prepare to learn a lot — and laugh out loud. A beautifully written, very funny and deeply important book.”
—Alice Roberts, author of Evolution
“Fun, informative and revolutionary all at once, Bitch should be required reading in school. After reading this book one will never look at an orca, an albatross, or a human the same way again. And the world will be better for it.”
—Agustin Fuentes, professor of anthropology at Princeton University and author of The Creative Spark
Well-researched Content • Fascinating Facts • Excellent Narration • Entertaining Presentation • Educational Information

Highly rated for:

All stars
Most relevant
An excellent overview with great detail of the female species in the animal world. The research shows how the female of many species are the dominant figure not men

Excellent & informative

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I just loved this! I am always a bit hesitant to download a book read by the author, but Lucy Cooke does a first-rate job reading her fantastically informative and entertaining book.

Amazing!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This was a good experience. I think I will listen at least another time. It is always especially good to listen to the author read her own work.

I liked this book very much … and learned a lot

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A vivid journey to expand your mind and understanding of evolutionary biology. Truly a great read.

Fascinating & Fun

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Through a series of entertaining and mind-stretching examples from across the Animal...er...Queendom, Cooke takes us on a journey that disassembles everything we think we know about sex and gender. From sapphic albatrosses to sex changing barnacles, Cooke tells stories of the research proving that sex and sexual behaviors are much more complicated and flexible than Darwin and much of evolutionary biology would have us believe. As she draws the critical connections between this research and our misguided thinking about sex and gender among humans, she helps all of us see how much richer the world is than we ever imagined, and to feel the urgency of protecting it as the species poised to teach us about our own evolution are threatened with extinction.

Everyone should hear this book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews