Animal (Fiction and Nonfiction)

It's a wild world and we're just living in it. Try this list for reads about wildlife, ecology, and human/animal connections that matter for survival.

Updated June 6, 2024
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Silk : a world history
Prasad, Aarathi
Paper Book
A Next Big Idea Book Club Must-Read for April "Aarathi Prasad's Silk: A World History is a love song to this protean material. . . . Beautiful [and] fascinating." --Wall Street Journal "Aarathi Prasad spins a masterpiece of a story, as luminous, supple, and surprising as the...
What an owl knows : the new science of the world's most enigmatic birds
Ackerman, Jennifer
Paper Book
An instant New York Times bestseller! A New York Times Notable Book of 2023 Named a Best Book of 2023 by Publishers Weekly From the author of The Genius of Birds and The Bird Way, a brilliant scientific investigation into...
Eight bears : mythic past and imperiled future
Dickie, Gloria
Paper Book
Bears have always held a central place in our collective memory, from Indigenous folklore and Greek mythology to nineteenth-century fairytales and the modern toy shop. But as humans and bears come into ever-closer contact, our relationship nears a tipping point. Today, most of the eight remaining...
The last animal
Ausubel, Ramona
Paper Book
Teenage sisters Eve and Vera never imagined their summer vacation would be spent in the Arctic, tagging along on their mother's scientific expedition. But there's a lot about their lives lately that hasn't been going as planned, and truth be told, their single mother might not be so happy either....
Our kindred creatures : how Americans came to feel the way they do about animals
Wasik, Bill
Paper Book
A compassionate, sweeping history of the transformation in American attitudes toward animals by the best-selling authors of Rabid Over just a few decades at the end of the nineteenth century, the United States underwent a moral revolution on behalf of animals. Before the...
The other family doctor : a veterinarian explores what animals can teach us about love, life, and mortality
Fine, Karen R.
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER . Calling all animal lovers! A heartwarming memoir about one woman's career as a vet and the unique role pets play in our lives."Filled with compassion and wisdom, Karen Fine is a healer whose own wounds have deepened her gifts for bringing animals and their...
On animals
Orlean, Susan
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER "Magnificent." --The New York Times * "Beguiling, observant, and howlingly funny." --San Francisco Chronicle * "Spectacular." --Star Tribune (Minneapolis) * "Full of astonishments." --The Boston Globe
Nursery earth : the wondrous lives of baby animals and the extraordinary ways they shape our world
Staaf, Danna
Paper Book
It's time to pay attention to baby animals. From egg to tadpole, chick to fledgling, they offer scientists a window into questions of immense importance: How do genes influence health? Which environmental factors support--or obstruct--life? Entire ecosystems rest on the shoulders (or...
How to be a good creature : a memoir in thirteen animals
Montgomery, Sy
Ebook
A New York Times bestseller! National Book Award finalist Sy Montgomery reflects on the personalities and quirks of 13 animals--her friends--who have profoundly affected her in this stunning, poetic, and life-affirming memoir featuring illustrations by Rebecca Green. ...
The soul of an octopus : a surprising exploration into the wonder of consciousness
Montgomery, Sy
Paper Book
Finalist for the National Book Award for Nonfiction * New York Times Bestseller * A Huffington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of the Year * One of the Best Books of the Month on Goodreads * Library Journal Best Sci-Tech Book of the Year * An American Library Association Notable...
Perestroika in Paris
Smiley, Jane
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER * From the Pulitzer Prize-winning and best-selling author: a captivating, brilliantly imaginative story of three extraordinary animals--and a young boy--whose lives intersect in Paris in this "feel-good escape" (The New York Times). ...
Venomous lumpsucker
Beauman, Ned
Paper Book
A dark and witty story of environmental collapse and runaway capitalism from the Booker-listed author of The Teleportation Accident. The near future. Tens of thousands of species are going extinct every year. And a whole industry has sprung up around their extinctions, to...
Pony confidential
Lynch, Christina
Paper Book
An NPR "Book of the Day" In this one-of-a-kind mystery with heart and humor, a hilariously grumpy pony must save the only human he's ever loved after discovering she stands accused of a murder he knows she didn't commit. Pony has been passed from...

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