How about good animal books?

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

When I was little I read Black Beauty, the Black Stallion books, Misty of Chincateague, Beautiful Joe, and all the Albert Payson Terhune "Lad" books. I cried at Old Yeller and Grey Friar's Bobby and The Incredible Journey. Also read "Ring of Bright Water" and "Rascal". If anyone has missed these old reliables - go get them right now from your library or a used book store!

I am still just a total sap for a good animal centric type story.

I'm looking for more modern takes. I bought and was disappointed with Marley and Me - no there there. I have read better almost every day in the Pets Forum and can't believe that book became a best seller.

What are your suggestions?

[madeline_con]

1. I hear "Because of Winn-Dixie" is good.

About an adopted stray dog. I've never read it. It's also a movie.

[jtwine]

16. animal

farm by orwell

[Muttocracy]

2. Bones Would Rain from the Sky by Suzanne Clothier

Especially of interest to dog trainers, people in dog rescue but a fantastic read.

edit to add link:
http://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=dtb752

[pennylane100]

3. My pet goat

does it for me.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

4. Of couse that is in the pantheon of

Books Read Aloud By Presidents Ignoring Attack on Country.

In fact, I think it's safe to say, it stands alone.

[YankeyMCC]

5. "The Animal Dialogues"

by Craig Childs

I'm suggesting something here that's a bit out of the box of what you probably had in mind but I'm thinking you might find it very interesting and entertaining/engaging.

It's a series of stories of encounters the author has had with wildlife in his travels mostly through wilderness areas but not always.

Although not a fictional novel these stories are well written and engaging stories.

[japple]

6. Tad Williams' book, Tailchaser's Song - a cat fantasy tale

Copied from amazon:

Fritti Tailchaser a young ginger tom not yet a full grown hunter, is the main cat among a host of appropriately named feline peers in this extravagantly detailed fantasy. When his best friend, Hushpad, vanishes, Fritti embarks on a quest to find her, and so enters the list of jousters against the evils of the world. His many trials and adventures bring him into contact with a veritable galaxy of cats, who speak a language for which a glossary is provided. This feline epic culminates in a decisive battle with an evil cat god. Creating as fully realized a habitat as that of Watership Down and other imaginative animal communities, California radio personality Williams's first novel should engage the fancy of cat lovers.

I loved all of the James Herriot books, too.

[raccoon]

7. Cleveland Amory's book about the cat he adopted. nt

[ailsagirl]

30. The last installment (The Best Cat Ever) was so touching.

For anyone who has lost a beloved animal, it really resounds.

[BOSSHOG]

8. "Travels with Charlie" by John Steinbeck

Obviously not a "modern" take but a nice story about the traveling adventures of a man and his trusted sidekick. Harmless. Thought provoking. Calming. Charlie is a poodle by the way.

[Richardo]

20. Someone else recommended this book to me just the other day...

...must be time to read it then! :hi:

[ailsagirl]

29. I loved that book-- he devoted a section to all the crazy white

bigots in Louisiana who were demonstrating against desegregation.

Highly recommended

[pitohui]

9. "the great auk" by alan w. eckert, one of the most disturbing novels i read as a young teen

obviously the tale does not have a happy ending so bring your hankies

i'm kind of guessing on the author, as i did not take note of authors in those days, but i googled around and it almost has to be this book, how many novels were written called "the great auk?"

i can't think of any modern animal novels that are as good, too many animal novels are just crap like that lady who writes the "cat who" mysteries, it seems like they assume if you like animals and have a heart then you have an empty head

[Rancid Crabtree]

10. Koontz

His Watchers novel is a great read...story about a dog named Einstein, genetic engineering, The Other, a misfit afforded a moment of saving grace. Fear Nothing and Seize the Night are a couple more good Koontz stories. While Einstein is a special golden retriever, in these two, Night (as I recall, although I might be confusing the dog's name with a dog I knew by that name) is a black lab. retriever, and in his Odd Thomas stories/novels, there's a cool German shepherd and I won't spoil it for you but the Odd Thomas books are worth a read.

[Gwendolyn]

11. "Life of Pi" is sweet and a great read.

There's also "Timbutu: A Novel" by Paul Auster, which is a gut-wrenching novella about an abused dog, written from the animal's perspective.

Also, "A Dog's Life" by Peter Mayle, which is funny and cute. :)

But if you haven't read it, "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel is a wonderful novel, about a young boy who's shipwrecked with a tiger named Parker. It won the Mann Booker a few years back.

http://www.amazon.com/Life-Pi-Yann-Martel/dp/184195392X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1222396544&sr=8-1

[RebelOne]

12. "Marley and Me" is a great book.

It is about the worst dog ever. It's has been No. 1 on the NYT Best Seller List.

[KC]

27. I

love that book !

KC

[raccoon]

13. I love animal books too. Wish I could find one

about prairie dogs or beavers.

[Rancid Crabtree]

15. Charlie the Tramp

This probably isn't what you're looking for, but I remember a book from way back...Charlie the Tramp, somewhere on the Curious George level, about some rodent, maybe a woodchuck, coulda been a beaver, (been awhile) that carried his belongings tied up in a handkerchief at the end of a pole swung over his shoulder. Guess you could try to catch that Animal Planet show...those prairie dog-like creatures...Africa maybe...don't recall the name...polecat manor?...meercat manor?

[Sabriel]

14. Farley Mowat has some good ones.

Never Cry Wolf

Clan Apis is a really good graphic novel with bee characters.

[Uncle Roy]

26. Yes! "The Dog Who Wouldn't Be" and "Owls In The Family" are both gems. (nfm)

[pscot]

17. Have you ever read Kazan?]

It's an oldie but goodie, written in 1914 by James Oliver Curwood. It's about a sled dog who is lost in the Alaskan bush. You might find it used online. If you like it, he wrote lots of books and was a big hit during the 20's.

[Kare]

24. A good book....

Curwood had a few dog stories I think. Kazan is a good book though.

That kind of storie of course brings to mind Jack London, White Fang and The Call of the Wild.

Then there is Jim Kjelgaard who wrote all of the 'Big Red' books among others. Many many good dog books, juvenile fiction, but still very good.

I think some one already mentioned Albert Payson Therhune wonderful books all of them.

People seem to dwell on the most well known book by some authors and discard the others that are equally good reads.

Some one mentioned "All Creatures Great and Small" by James Herriot. That was only one of 5(?) books that he wrote. All of them very good.

To get away from dogs there is of course "Frosty a raccoon to remember", "The bears and I" (which was made into a disney movie way back when), "Stripped coat the skunk" (Lippincott (I think) very good for animal stories)
Then there is the mystery author who has all of the "Cat who Had ... " books. I have only read one so I can't claim they are all good.
There is "Seal Pup" which I think was also a disney movie in the good ole days.
And who can forget "The Yearling" not too terribly much about animals but still a classic.
One of my favorite horse books is "Smokey" by Will James. Also in horses is the Fury series by Albert Miller.

I can't remember all of the authors names but I am sure you can get them just by a simple search.
I could go on and on.... One of my favorite subjects when I was younger. I still love to read these books.

I was disappointed to find nothing that I didn't know from anyone else here. I was hoping to find some new author that I hadn't been aware of. I was suprised by some of the answers though, books that I thought no one had heard of came up.

[IcyPeas]

18. 4 animal books come to mind:

in no particular order:

-Watership Down by Richard Adams

-The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

-All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot

-The Book of the Dun Cow by Walter Wangerin Jr.

not sure if they fit your bill for "modern" but there it is.

have fun.

[raccoon]

19. “Blitzcat” by Robert Westall.

“Lord Gort is an ordinary cat: she has no magic powers and rarely does anything more than what other cats can do. When her master leaves home to fight the Germans in World War II Lord Gort sets out to track him down. In the course of her travels the black cat is befriended by a lonely volunteer in the Observer Corps, a maverick sergeant, an elderly carter and a young war widow. Adopted by the rear gunner of a bomber plane, Lord Gort flies on numerous missions over enemy territory. ..”

http://www.amazon.com/Blitzcat-Robert-Westall/dp/033039861X

[Sequoia]

21. A children's book about a cat called "Jenny"

who wears a red scarf. Friends with a Firehouse cat (easy read kids' book) who causes mayhem and mischief but saves the day in the end. Very cute stories. I gave them to my kid when she was a tot and I won't part with them now.

[terryg11]

22. Watership Down by Richard Adams

Not sure if it's what you're looking for but it involves rabbits and is a great read

[Paladin]

23. Outstanding Book

Far and away my favorite animal book, ever.....

[LeftishBrit]

25. Doreen Tovey wrote some lovely books about cats

"Cats in the Belfry", "Cats in May", etc. Don't know how easy they are to get hold of; but I recommend them.

[Vanje]

28. Nop's Trials by Donald McCaig

[ailsagirl]

31. Beautiful Joe was wrenching for me.

I just remember the cruelty, unfortunately. I know it has a happy ending.

http://www.beautifuljoe.org/

[Lydia Leftcoast]

37. That was one of my favorites when I was a kid

Too bad more people don't know about it. It's a bit didactic from an adult point of view, but there are plenty of interesting subplots, such as Joe finally getting his revenge on his cruel first master.

[ailsagirl]

32. I loved all "The Cat Who..." books

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_Who_series

[Lydia Leftcoast]

38. Those are fun

A bit precious, but fun.

[Are_grits_groceries]

33. My Cat Spit McGee by Willie Morris.

He wrote My Dog Skip. Both are great.

[LWolf]

34. While not entirely an "animal book,"

this one cannot leave animal lovers, especially dog lovers, unmoved:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=208x15931

[Bigmack]

35. It's not "just" an animal book,

but "Narrow Dog to Carrcassone (sp?)" is a CHARMING book about an English couple with a whippet who take a narrow canal boat across the English Channel and travel down the canals of France with their "narrow dog." It's by Terry Darlington, and both my husband and I found it DELIGHTFUL! And that's a rarity in itself! Ms Bigmack

[Richardo]

36. My mother-in-law gave me 'Enslaved by Ducks' for Christmas

A memoir of a rural homeowner and his 27 animals. Rabbits, parrots, parakeets, cats, ducks, etc. Amazingly, no dogs.

Pretty funny so far...

[japple]

39. For Christmas, I received a copy of Dewey, The Small-Town

Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron and Bret Witter. It is the heartwarming story of a kitten who was stuffed into the library drop box on the coldest night of the year and how he grew to be a famous library cat in rural Iowa. I'm not finished with it yet, but it has been a lot of fun. Dewey was quite a character and and had fans and supporters all over the globe.