A Series of Opinionated Animals Prepare to Laugh. Prepare to Cry. Prepare to Care.

Michelle Lerner never expected animals to become the best storytellers of her life.

When a frantic phone call summoned the Harvard-trained lawyer to save a neurologically impaired squirrel, she didn’t hesitate. It wasn’t the first opinionated animal to cross her path, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

Over the years, Michelle’s household became home to an unforgettable cast of eccentrics: Monster, the squirrel who serenaded the neighborhood with squirrel opera while searching for almonds; Lamby, a disabled sheep who wore children’s skateboarding elbow pads, demanded blue corn chips, and herded cats; Shire, the injured police horse whose courage inspired Michelle’s pioneering work in animal law; rescue dogs, leukemia-positive cats, an imperious chicken, and a host of other creatures whose personalities proved every bit as complex—and opinionated—as the humans around them.

Warm, wickedly funny, and deeply moving, A Series of Opinionated Animals is far more than a collection of charming animal stories. With the wit of a seasoned lawyer and the heart of a lifelong advocate, Lerner explores grief, family, resilience, justice, and the astonishing relationships that can grow between species. Along the way she helped establish one of Harvard Law School’s first animal law programs, founded a no-kill rescue, and discovered that compassion is rarely tidy, often exhausting, and always worth the cost.

Filled with unforgettable characters, laugh-out-loud moments, and surprising emotional depth, A Series of Opinionated Animals reminds us that the lives we change often end up changing us even more. It’s a joyful, compassionate memoir about love in all its wonderfully messy forms.

Michelle Lerner is a former public interest attorney, animal law pioneer, and author. A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School, she co-founded its Student Animal Legal Defense Fund, and successfully lobbied for Harvard’s first animal law class. She later drafted municipal and state legislation, co-chaired the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Animal Law Committee, and founded a local rescue that achieved no-kill status for the animals it took in. After a disabling illness, she turned to writing stories. Her critically acclaimed debut novel, Ring, was published in 2025. It was longlisted for the prestigious Aspen Words Literary Prize.