When I was six I used to monitor the paddling pool to ensure that no insect ever got trapped in the water. I was the David Hasselhoff of bees, earwigs and the occasional lacewing.

I have always, and will always love animals.

Even the rubbish ones.

Animal Reviews was a website born of conversations between my best friend Max and I about the relative pros and cons of different animals.

I decided to write up our important research, and put it on the internet.

"People review CDs, books and films, so why not animals? This website sets forth with a tongue in cheek attitude to fur and feather kind, and very entertaining it is too."
– The Guardian

The website built up quite a following, and grew to include celebrity interviews with people like Adam Buxton, wildfowl-related reader letters, and guest reviewers. We once interviewed a man called Glenn who carved wooden owls.

The website’s popularity led to a Yahoo! Best of the Web nomination, which led to an XFM radio feature, which led to a live interview on the BBC, which led to several meetings with a literary agent, which led to a book deal with Virgin Books, which led to crushing disappointment when Random House bought and then immediately liquidated Virgin Books.

Never mind.

Here are a couple of pages from the book that never was:

The site isn't online now, but Animal Reviews was incredibly rewarding. It legitimised silly conversation between friends, it helped me tune my writing, and as my first viral success it made me realise that sometimes all it takes is a really good idea to make things happen. I’ve tried to keep that in mind ever since.

A great experience for a couple of years (fourteen if you're a dog).