Animals (Tamariki).

For all you animal lovers, have a read of books about horses, cats, pigs and many more who go through trails, journeys and are even heroes in their own stories. From Black Beauty to Fanatstic Mr Fox, you can't can't go wrong with this list.

Updated August 20, 2024
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Watership Down
Adams, Richard
Paper Book
Now with a new introduction by Madeline Miller, the New York Times bestselling author of The Song of Achilles and Circe. The 50th anniversary edition of Richard Adam's timeless classic, the tale of a band of wild rabbits struggling to hold onto their place...
The one and only family
Applegate, Katherine
Paper Book
An instant #1 New York Times and indie bestseller! For more than a decade, readers have been enchanted by the modern classic The One and Only Ivan, a Newbery Award winner and a #1 New York Times bestseller, and by its bestselling sequels, The One and Only Bob and The One and Only Ruby....
The one and only Ruby
Applegate, Katherine
Paper Book
An instant #1 New York Times bestseller! From beloved powerhouse author Katherine Applegate comes The One and Only Ruby, starring the adorable baby elephant from the Newbery Medal-winning modern classic The One and Only Ivan and its bestselling sequel, The One and Only Bob. Ruby's...
The one and only Ivan
Applegate, Katherine.
Paper Book
The #1 New York Times bestselling and Newbery Award-winning novel The One and Only Ivan is now a major motion picture streaming on Disney+ This unforgettable novel from renowned author Katherine Applegate celebrates the transformative power of...
The velveteen rabbit : or How toys become real
Bianco, Margery Williams
Paper Book
Nursery magic is very strange and wonderful. This classic illustrated story continues to be loved by generations of families. "There was once a velveteen rabbit, and in the beginning he was really splendid," this story begins. "On Christmas morning, when he sat wedged in the...
The incredible journey
Burnford, Sheila Every.
Paper Book
Fans of Old Yeller, Where the Red Fern Grows, and Shiloh will love this timeless classic about two dogs and a cat that embark on a journey to return to their owner and inspired the movie Homeward Bound.      An inquisitive Labrador...
Snake and lizard
Cowley, Joy
Paper Book
From award-winning author Joy Cowley comes an engaging story of two unlikely, but inseparable friends. Snake is elegant, calm and a little self-centered, while Lizard is exuberant and irrepressible. Through a series of small (and not so small) adventures, the two friends bicker, compete with each...
Fantastic Mr Fox
Dahl, Roald
Paper Book
Boggis is an enormously fat chicken farmer who only eats boiled chickens smothered in fat. Bunce is a duck-and-goose farmer whose dinner gives him a beastly temper. Bean is a turkey-and-apple farmer who only drinks gallons of strong cider. Mr Fox is so clever that every evening he...
Esio Trot
Dahl, Roald.
Paper Book
From the bestselling author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The BFG!  Mr. Hoppy is in love with his neighbor, Mrs. Silver; but she is in love with someone else--Alfie, her pet tortoise. With all her attention focused on Alfie,...
The tale of Despereaux : being the story of a mouse, a princess, some soup, and a spool of thread
DiCamillo, Kate
Paper Book
The beloved author of Because of Winn-Dixie enlightens us with a tale of adventure, despair, love, and soup. Welcome to the story of Despereaux Tilling, a mouse who is in love with music, stories, and a princess named Pea. It is also the story of a rat called...
The diary of a killer cat
Fine, Anne.
Paper Book
The hilarious confessions of a ferocious feline Poor Ellie is horrified when her cat, Tuffy, drags a dead bird into the house. Then a mouse. Before long, another apparent victim arrives though the cat-door. Can softhearted Ellie get her beloved pet to change his wild, wild ways...
The wind in the willows
Grahame, Kenneth
Paper Book
Hoot
Hiaasen, Carl.
Paper Book
This Newbery Honor winner and #1 New York Times bestseller is a beloved modern classic. Hoot features a new kid and his new bully, alligators, some burrowing owls, a renegade eco-avenger, and several extremely poisonous snakes. Everybody loves Mother Paula's pancakes...
Mossflower : a tale of Redwall
Jacques, Brian.
Paper Book
The Redwall series is soon to be a Netflix original movie! The thrilling prequel to Redwall, a must-read for any fan of the beloved, bestselling Redwall saga. The clever and greedy wildcat Tsarmina becomes ruler of all Mossflower Woods and is...
Babe : the gallant pig
King-Smith, Dick.
Paper Book
Knopf is proud to present a handsome 20th-anniversary edition of Dick King-Smith’s bestselling novel that became an Academy Award–nominated movie. When Babe arrives at Hogget Farm, Mrs. Hogget’s thoughts turn to sizzling bacon and juicy pork chops—until he reveals a...
A collection of Rudyard Kipling's Just so stories
Kipling, Rudyard
Paper Book
"Fans of Kipling's work will appreciate the new look and newcomers to the classic stories will be taken in by the bold artwork and approachable trim size." -- Publishers Weekly How did the rude Rhinoceros get his baggy skin? How did a 'satiably curious Elephant change...
Frog and Toad : the complete collection
Lobel, Arnold
Paper Book
Celebrate the power of friendship with all four of the beloved Frog and Toad I Can Read stories by Arnold Lobel This 9x9 hardcover treasury includes the complete art and text from four classics: Frog and Toad Are Friends, Frog and Toad Together, Frog and Toad All Year, and Days with Frog...
Winnie-The-Pooh
Milne, A. A.
Paper Book
One of the most beloved icons of children's literature, Winnie-the-Pooh!   Since 1926, Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends--Piglet, Owl, Tigger, and the ever doleful Eeyore--have endured as the unforgettable creations of A.A. Milne, who wrote this book for his son, Christopher...
The silver brumby
Mitchell, Elyne
Paper Book
"The Silver Brumby took me cantering into the world's wilder places." - Geraldine McCaughrean A silver brumby is a rare and special creature, prized both by other horses and by men... A silver brumby is special, but he will be hunted by man and horse alike,...
The butterfly lion
Morpurgo, Michael.
Paper Book
ILLUSTRATED BY CHRISTIAN BIRMINGHAM.A lyrical and moving tale of a young boy growing up in Africa, and his lifelong friendship with a white lion. âeoeAll my life Iâe(tm)ll think of you, I promise I will. I wonâe(tm)t ever forget you.âe Bertie rescues an orphaned white...
War horse
Morpurgo, Michael.
Paper Book
A powerful tale of war, redemption, and a hero's journey. In 1914, Joey, a beautiful bay-red foal with a distinctive cross on his nose, is sold to the army and thrust into the midst of the war on the Western Front. With his officer, he charges toward the enemy, witnessing the...
Why the whales came
Morpurgo, Michael.
Paper Book
Two children befriend the old man known as the Birdman of Bryher and help him lift a curse from their island.
Wild born
Mull, Brandon
Paper Book
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Mull comes Spirit Animals, an epic book series that leaps from the page into a riveting online game. Your book is the key to claim your spirit animal!In the world of Erdas, four children are about to discover if they have a spirit animal bond, a rare...
Silverwing
Oppel, Kenneth
Paper Book
Shade is a young silverwing bat, the runt of his colony. But he's determined to prove himself on the long, dangerous winter migration to Hibernaculum, millions of wingbeats to the south. During a fierce storm, he loses the others and soon faces the most incredible journey of his young life....
Nim's island
Orr, Wendy
Paper Book
A girl. An iguana. An island. And e-mail. Meet Nim–a modern-day Robinson Crusoe! She can chop down bananas with a machete, climb tall palm trees, and start a fire with a piece of glass. So she’s not afraid when her scientist dad sails off to study plankton for three days, leaving her...
Immortal guardians
Schrefer, Eliot
Paper Book
A dark threat faces the world of Erdas in this riveting new saga from the New York Times bestselling series.A heart-pounding new adventure from the New York Times bestselling series.In the world of Erdas, every child must discover if they will summon a spirit animal, a rare and...
Black Beauty
Sewell, Anna
Paper Book
The illustrations for this series were created by Scott McKowen, who, with his wife Christina Poddubiuk, operates Punch & Judy Inc., a company specializing in design and illustration for theater and performing arts. Their projects often involve research into the visual aspects of...
The adventures of Nanny Piggins
Spratt, R. A
Paper Book
Three children and their hilariously subversive nanny pig embark on zany adventures in this award-winning middle grade debut illustrated by Caldecott winnter Dan Santat. The three Green children are cared for by a nanny pig. Yes, a pig--a fabulously sassy and impeccably dressed...
Stuart Little
White, E. B.
Paper Book
The classic story by E. B. White, author of the Newbery Honor Book Charlotte's Web and The Trumpet of the Swan, about one small mouse on a very big adventure. Stuart Little is no ordinary mouse. Born to a family of humans, he lives in New York City with his...

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