All About Animals discussion

Tell us what book/s you have read and loved about animals.

i know a book that is all about horses. its called canterwood crest books every horse lover would love it is 100% good it is the best book.so people who love horses should read thoes books.

I posted the 1st one on the poll to vote on for Oct. monthly pick. Thanks for the suggestion.

I am hoping to get this group moving more but since I just started it about a month ago, I guess it takes a little bit.

The Misty of Chincoteague series

True Colors by Kristen Hannah was one of my favorite books too. It's about horses.

Also loved Marley and Me

Here's a couple more of my favorite animal books...

"One Good Dog" by Susan Wilson (This was about a stray dog)

and

Kings of Colorado by David E. Hilton (This is about horses and a detention center. Our book group where I live did this one and everyone loved it.)

If you want a good book for kids this one is wonderful...

"Dear Mrs. LaRue: Letters from Obedience School" by Mark Teague --(It's about a dog who gets sent to obedience school and writes home to his owner to complain.)

Terri wrote: "Also loved Marley and Me"

I watched the movie but never read the book.

I've loved so many animal books over the years! All Creatures Great & Small is one of my favorites, the Walter Farley books starting with The Black Stallion, Homer's Odyssey (featuring Homer the Blind Wonder-Cat) and Chosen by a Horse.

has anyone read the canterwood crest books yet ?

Yes

A horse called Elvis is an excellent book it gets really sad sometimes and I would recommend it to everyone

I have not read this book but i will read it, it is called horse's shadow i read the back and it about this girl that falls in love with an canadian horse but at the end the horses have to go to war

Terri wrote: "The Misty of Chincoteague series"

I loved those also and ones by Mary O'Hara which were set in WY. The most recent animal book that I sure enjoyed was Dewey the Library Cat. I have searched and searched to vote for the December read but cannot seem to find the right spot.
I also like to read books about owls.

My Friend Flicka

Thunderhead

Green Grass Of Wyoming

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World

Santa paws. Read when I was a kid. Awesome

Brodie the horse lover girl wrote: "I have not read this book but i will read it, it is called horse's shadow i read the back and it about this girl that falls in love with an canadian horse but at the end the horses have to go to war"

Yeah I marked it as to read it seems sad

Hello everyone,

Call me old-fashioned (or just old) but for heart and soul (and humor) you have to give the James Herriott books five stars.All Creatures Great and Small; And, All Things Bright and Beautiful.

My last animal book was Following Atticus: Forty-Eight High Peaks, One Little Dog, and an Extraordinary Friendship--maybe I got caught up because I am an old Austrian Mountain Goat who lived in New Hampshire--and I couldn't even imagine dragging a little Schnauzer up 48 peaks--in the winter! (Although I could have done without the father/son psychological conflict in it). Still, a heart-warming story.

Aside from "Until Tuesday" I have read the bookA Big Little Life: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog and the book [book:Scent of the Missing: Love and Partnership with a Search-and-Rescue. These are two awesome books as well!

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll have to check those ones out as well.

probably Black Beauty.

Bonnie wrote: "probably Black Beauty."

I also loved that.

A Harry The Dirty Dog Treasury: Three Stories by Gene Zion and Saucy's Puppies. Both were among the first books I've ever read, and the first that I remember reading over and over.

As for more modern books, Watership Down (though that's really more a fantasy of people made up to be rabbits, and one of the funniest books I've ever read (well, the first half of it anyway) Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod.


At some point the humor faded and the book became more serious. It's a great read though, but I liked the funny parts so much I missed them when the more serious stuff started happening.

and for ficiton The Incredible Journey (a youth read) and more modern, Bloodline by James Rollins, who is himself a Veterinarian, has a major caracter written in as a war dog with his handler.

There are so many! But a couple that truly stand out are The Art of Racing in the Rain and Merle's Door - both about dogs. And for books to enlighten as to what actually happens to animals, Diet for a New America and Eating Animals.

My favourites are the Warriors series by Erin Hunter. Similar to 'Redwall', without the weapons and cute outfits though, this series explores the lives of feral cats living in clans (sort of tribe-like) and whose lives revolve around family, responsibility and spirituality.

I just finished my new favorite animal book: The Daily Coyote

The Daily Coyote: Story of Love, Survival, and Trust In the Wilds of Wyoming

Here's some more really good books that I loved...

"A Walk Across America" by Peter Jenkins (about a guy who was tired of his life and set across America with his dog.)

"Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. (It was made into a movie but I loved the book too.)

"Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer (Another book that was a movie.)

"Unspoken" by Angela Hunt. (Angela Hunt is one of my all time favorite authors. I think she can write anything and no books sound alike. She really does her research when writing.) This book was about gorilla's using sign-language.

Thought of one more...

"Lone Wolf" by Jodi Picoult.

The Nine Emotional Lives of Cats and The Other End of the Leash changed my life. Wonderful books that can be practically applied.

I would add Wesley the Owl but I could never bring myself to finish it because I know he dies.

I don't love animal fiction. I guess I don't see the point. But biographies and books about animal behavior I devour.

I cant Decide it is hard maybe Taming Me by Cathy Unruh.

The Phasian Bird by Henry Williamson
Alba The Last Wolf by David Stephen
Jack by Brian Carter
Six Pointer Buck by David Stephen.
All fiction. I do like some animal biographies like Squirrel On My Shoulder by John Paling but in general I'm not keen on them.

Inge: have you seen the BBC series All Creatures Great and Small? It's a great, true to the books series. Alf Whight (James Herriot) was a charming writer. You should read his biography: JAMES HERRIOT, The Life of a Country Vet by Graham Lord.

I loved and

Awesome, just awesome :)

Where the Red Fern Grows
Saaaaaaad

My favorite is still Call of the Wild. Reading it as a ten year old, it was exactly the kind of book I was looking for--gritty, real, savage. But beautiful. I just wish that I still had my original copy--had such a lovely picture of Buck at the head of the pack, with a beautiful snarl on his rugged face.

The Call of the Wild

~☆ Alice☆~ wrote: "Bonnie wrote: "probably Black Beauty."

I also loved that."

I loved Black Beauty too, just recently got my first bicycle since I was a kid (40+ years ago) and named it Ginger in honor of Beauty's companion :o) It's kind of an orangy chestnut color :o)

Beautiful Joe ;o)

My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell
An Appreciation by Stewart McFarlane
I found a copy of this book in Dasa books in Bangkok recently. I bought it without hesitating. Seeing it again was like meeting with an old friend. It has been one of my favorite books since the age of ten. This was also the age of Gerald Durrell, when he began his five year sojourn on the Greek Island Corfu in the mid 1930’s. The book was published in 1956, so Durrell must have written it in his 30’s.
The account of his life on the island, and his formation as a naturalist and animal collector, is an enchanting read. His explorations of the island and encounters with its people and wildlife are warm, funny and very informative. He wanders through the olive groves and over rocky shores and beaches, with his faithful dog Roger; and delights in the wildlife. His skills as a naturalist are honed and nurtured by the wise and kindly Dr Theodore Stephanides , who was a Greek physician, poet, naturalist and translator, and a good friend of Lawrence Durrell, the writer and older brother of Gerald. Dr Stephanides wrote a definitive study of the freshwater life of Corfu which is still cited as a standard reference work. He initiates Durrell into the fascinating life and courtship of trapdoor spiders, as well as beetles and many other species.
Gerry was not a scholar in the formal sense, but the young Durrell quickly learns the colloquial Greek of Corfu. This helps him befriend the locals. Thus equipped, he is quickly welcomed by the neighbors, mainly shepherds, olive growers and fisherman, who he can interrogate about the local wildlife. It also helps ensure that he is never short of food and hospitality on his explorations of the island. Typically, he struggles with French under the formal instruction of a tutor, but picks up his Greek quite naturally. He even manages to communicate effectively with the mute Rose Beetle Man. An eccentric wandering hawker who wears patched up multicolored clothes, and to Gerry’s delight has a hat decorated with tethered rose beetles, which take off and fly around him as he plays his flute. He proceeds to sell Gerry a young tortoise after an elaborate mimed session of bargaining. The fact that Gerry isn’t carrying any money at all is not a problem. The hawker will meet up with Gerry the next day and collect his payment.
Part of the appeal of the book is the account of his succession of tutors’ attempts to provide him with an education. One tutor, George, a lanky Englishman, discovers that only way to progress is to make every session, regardless of the subject, somehow relate to natural history. So math problems become questions about how long it would take different numbers of caterpillars to eat through eight leaves. Maps drawn in Geography lessons are quickly populated with the appropriate wildlife, with the produce of these countries as an after-thought. Hannibal’s journey through the Alps to attack Rome is illuminated by Gerald knowing the name of every elephant in his invasion force, as well as how they were cared for. Before the Battle of Trafalgar, Nelson was bird watching with his telescope as the French fleet approached.
The account of Durrell family and their long suffering mother, is one of the delights of the book. As the author explains he intended the book to be an account of the natural history of Corfu, “… but I made a grave mistake by introducing the family into the book in the first few pages. Having got themselves on paper, they then proceed to establish themselves and invite various friends to share the chapters”.
Actually, they help make the book so appealing. Witnessing the antics and humor of the young writer Lawrence Durrell (Larry) at the tender age of 23 to 28, is highly entertaining. The account of Gerry’s magpies ransack of his room is hilarious. No doubt Larry didn’t see it that way. The dismantling of his typewriter and the decoration of his precious work in progress with magpie-shit and ink, does not seem to have hindered Lawrence Durrell’s progress as a writer. In my view, he was one of the greatest English writers of the twentieth century. Typically humane, in response the magpie’s attempted sabotage of Lawrence Durrell’s writing career, the family don’t order young Gerry to get rid of the magpies, but arrange to build a large aviary for them in the garden. It is Larry who provides the names for many of Gerry’s animals, including the two new puppies, Widdle & Puke. In addition he provides the name for Gerry’s boat, the Bootle-Bumtrinket, built by the other brother Leslie, to aid Gerry’s explorations of the Corfu coastline.
One of the heroes of the book is Spiro, the local taxi driver who worked in Chicago for seven years before returning to Corfu. He adopts the family and takes over any tricky negotiations with local officials. He adores Mrs Durrell, and haggles on her behalf for the best deals for any goods and services they need. When their long awaited luggage is retained by customs, Spiro takes the entire family down to the customs office and launches a typical tirade on the customs officer, who is claiming it is his duty to examine the luggage of imported merchandise. Spiro explodes… “What you mean dutys? is it your dutys to attack innocent foreigners, eh treat em like smugglers, eh?” He picks up their two huge cases and heads for the door , saying, “I know you Christakis, sos don’ts you go talking about dutys to me. I remember when you was fined twelve thousand drachmas for dynamiting fish. I won’t have any criminal talking to me about dutys”. All this is taken in good part, even by Christakis the customs officer; who later appears as one of the guests at a party hosted by Mrs Durrell. I should add at this point the Mrs Durrell insisted that Gerry explains in his Introduction to the book that, she is a widow, “…as she penetratingly observed, you never know what people might think”. The book is also dedicated to Mrs Durrell.
Sadly the Durrell family’s Greek idyll came to an end in 1939, due to the impending War with Germany. They returned to England. Lawrence Durrell and his wife remained on Corfu and had to escape to Alexandria when the Nazis arrived in 1940. Many Greeks suffered greatly under Nazi occupation. Lawrence Durrell’s book, “Prospero’s Cell” which he wrote in the 1940’s, is also set in Corfu and recounts his life there. He wrote most of the book while serving as Press Officer for the British Embassy in Egypt.
It was Lawrence Durrell who encouraged Gerald to write and publish, and Gerald Durrell produced many other books, mainly about his collecting expeditions for the Jersey Zoo and Conservation Centre, which he founded. All Gerald Durrell’s books are highly readable. I have always been a voracious reader, and between the age of ten and fifteen I devoured almost everything that Gerald Durrell wrote. He became hero of mine for his pioneering work in rare species conservation and environmental protection, and his complete delight in animals.
My Family and Other Animals remains his greatest work in my view. Almost fifty years later it was this book that inspired me to write the account of my own life with animals, and some of the unusual places I encountered them, including Buddhist temples in Taiwan, A Zen monastery in Northumberland, a Chinese martial arts training centre in Penang, Malaysia, and elephant camps in Thailand, Thai Islands in the Andaman Sea, Sarawak East Malaysia and not forgetting a University in the North of England, Monterey Bay in California and Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands.
Dr Stewart McFarlane is a well-known scholar of Chinese Religions and Buddhism, and a teacher of Chinese Martial Arts. He was Director of Asian Studies at Liverpool Hope University until his retirement in 2004. He now lives in Thailand and works with rescued elephants.
He is the author of:
OF MICE & ZEN. ANIMAL ENCOUNTERS IN THE LIFE OF A WANDERING BUDDHIST Mowbray Publishing, 2013,
E-book on Amazon (Kindle) or in EPub format from: www.taichi-exercises.com/about/stewart
Free sample chapter on Goodreads.
His other books include:
TAI CHI FOR LIFE. HEALTH & FITNESS Mowbray Publishing 2011
T’AI CHI CH’UAN. WISDOM IN ACTION IN A CHINESE MARTIAL ART Mowbray Publishing 2011
Buddhism, Skillfulness and Mastering Life. DHARMA STORIES, ANCIENT & MODERN Mowbray Publishing 2012
The Ways of the Spiritual Warrior. EAST ASIAN MARTIAL ARTS AND THEIR TRANSMISSION TO THE WEST, Mowbray Publishing, 2013
All the above E-books can be found on Amazon (Kindle format) or in EPub format from:
www.taichi-exercises.com

100 Heartbeats by Jeff Corwin. It is about endangered species with the majority having less than 100 hence the name.

I love ... &

...And, if you are a horse-lover, I blog my fiction horse-book reviews at:
http://brittneyjoybooks.sqsp.com/jour...

Brittney

chcek out this beautiful zoo book:

https://www.behance.net/gallery/learn...

:) :)