Animal Books

This different view of the Vietnam War is filled with adventure, the danger, and the hardwork on the part of a young soldier and a German Shepard. The author's method of telling the story from two points of view adds to the knowledge of the war experience. What a surprise to learn that the dogs were not brought home again after their time in Vietnam! Luckily Cracker's fate was positively different.

This is book for children. I should have known this because Kadohata has written several children's books (Newberry Award on some of them) and the story line is appropriate for children, not deep enough for adults. The happy ending, although I'm not sure it could have happened that way considering the rules that the military enforced at that time (Vietnam War), could only be appropriate for children.

The rules have changed since this book was written, though, and I wonder if the change of rules would have made for any kind of story compelling enough to write a book about.

For a kid that has dyslexia this was a wonderful buy. He is beginning to love to read again... And this book helped.

I got this book for my 11 year old after he requested it at a book fair where they wanted 5.40 more for it and was thrilled to find it less here. Although, when I got it I figured it was a kids book, I found that after picking it up out of curiousity I enjoyed it too. The switching between the soldier and the dog thoughts are very smooth and the portrayal of a soldier and his relationship with a K9 I felt was pretty much dead-on. I like that they portrayed an era of history with a story but still stuck to reality. Happy Reading!

Cracker is a terrific story about one of the unsung heroes of the Vietnam War, namely the K9's. It's great the way the author has written from both the soldier and the dog's point of view. It's also great to see that war dogs are finally getting some attention. This book also introduces the Vietnam War to a new generation of kids. The war and the dogs that saved so many lives should never be forgotten. Anyone interested in another war dog historical fiction--this time a World War II real war dog hero should try Chips a Hometown Hero. Chips: A Hometown Hero Both of these books are great for any dog lover's collection!

Congratulations to Mira Tweti and Lisa Brady for producing such a delightful children's book. We think it is absolutely wonderful. Of course the magic of it is that it is not only for children, it is important for adults to read it as well. While being wonderfully entertaining and involving, it manages also to be educational and makes the reader aware of the responsibilities that come with owning a pet, particularly one of the parrot family. These are very intelligent birds who deserve better than to be placed in a cage and forgotten.The book also mentions that even parrot poop has its place in the ecological chain. A nice touch! The closing pages were of great interest as well, focusing on the important Parrot Project in Indonesia, and the serious problems many parrots have in captivity. Well done! More like it please!

Barry McKnight & Roger Cowland.
Australia.

MIra Tweti is an award-winning animal welfare journalist whose focus is parrots and this book is based on years of research. It's a "must read" as the OC Register reviewer said and no one should miss this great story. Tweti's in depth research and knowledge about parrots shows! It's accurate down to the backgrounds which are of mountains in New Guinea, to the facts about Lorikeets, to their behavior and to how they and other parrots fare in captivity.

This book is gorgeous and has a nice story. It's fun to read, but remember it's fiction.
As it's intended to be a semi-'educational' book I am bothered by a variety of incorrect information. Everything from the idea of a wild-caught parrot turning up in a New York pet store to the ecological role of parrots in the wild is incorrect in this book.
Rainbow lories are very common birds in the wild, found throughout Indonesia and Australia - common to the point of being serious pests of vineyards and orchards and being common backyard birds visiting birdfeeders in Australia.
While wild caught birds undoubtedly suffered to adjust to captivity - it has been illegal for wild caught parrots to be imported into the US for decades. Though there is a small amount of illegal trade existing in some rare and valuable species, rainbow lories are not one of those, being commonly bred. The very idea of any wild caught rainbow lory making it into the US very highly inplausible.
Parrots (even lories) also are seed predators - meaning they crush and hull seeds they eat, killing them. They have no role in dispersing seeds. I have seen my own birds selectively pick out, crush and eat even tiny seeds from figs, strawberries, raspberries, ect. If you find your parrot has undigested seeds in its droppings, you had better get it to a vet! Parrots absolutely do not have any kind of ecological role in seeding the forest.

In Everyway, this is a beautiful book. The delightful, heartwarming tale illuminates the wild life of this intelligent, highly social family of birds and educates on the tragedies and responsibilities associated with keeping them as pets. Very fun, vibrant illustrations grace the pages. And it doesn't stop at the end of the tale, but goes a step beyond to provide interesting histories of real-life birds and information on how one can help.

I bought Here, There and Everywhere and I love it. The artwork is absolutely stunning and the story is as interesting as it is educational. I will be purchasing a bunch more to give as gifts to all the children I know as well as my parrot loving adult friends.

I definitely recommend buying this book!

my husband and I knew Daisy. She would be so glad to see us, especially Bill, as he helped with her baths.When you looked into her eyes [and Daisy looked into yours] you could see eternity. Everything Helen wrote about really happened. We gave her book as gifts to five people and each one read it and each one learned something new. This is a must read for anyone who loves animals and for anyone who is curious about life, death and the afterlife.

Anyone who loves and respects, and has a close bond with animals
can not help but love this book. Helen Weaver tells a heartwarming story of loss and then continued communication with her beloved dog Daisy. People who don't "dig" this book are really not in tune with animals. It stirs all the good emotions in those who do.
Bernard Wasserman, D.V.M., author of The Dog Who Met The Queen and Other Stories.

This warm and sentimental story on the subject of animal communication is a must for all Animal Lovers. As we think of the love given by our four-footed and winged friends, we must realize that there is an intelligence there to be respected and cherished. The author has given an important slice of her life,
expressing a sensitive and caring attitude toward her dog, Daisy. Anyone who has ever owned a pet will understand the feelings involved.

This is a must for dog-lovers and particularly meaningful (just ask its many fans) to people who have loved and lost a dog.

Weaving, no pun intented, though Daisy's story is the story of her remarkable person Helen and Helen's remarkable mother.

The Daisy Sutra suprised me in its exploration of human-dog relations. I was touched by the humor, pathos and finally metaphysical reach of this little gem. I have bought 5 for gifts. Deep, rich, rewarding read.

I got this for my husband for his birthday because he lived for 5 years in Africa as a child and his father used to hunt big game, so he loves reading books like this, and he said this one was an outstanding read.

Reading books by authors like Capstick is a very good alternative to reading fiction. When you are reading fiction, however scary, thrilling and realistic it may be, at the back of your mind you know that it is fiction. Some of it may not even be plausible. When you are reading true adventure, it is then that you can realise the closeness of death to life, you can identify with the characters more closely, and you can feel their fear of something as primeval and primitive as claws, fangs and horns. You can also feel their elation at escaping injury.
This book is not meant only for hunters and any one reading it will learn something new on practically every second page.On the whole I did not like it as much as much as "death in the long grass". Still, the book has its chilling moments. It also has its share of dark humor. The author does not defend hunting and "cropping" of elephants as much as he does in death in the long grass.
Halfway through the chapter on leopards, I lost touch with what the author was trying to say.

Originally published in 1983, this book describes big game hunting in Africa. After a brief introduction, each subsequent chapter contains details and anecdotes about hunting each of the Big Five game animals of Africa (Cape Buffalo, Rhino, Elephant, Leopard, and Lion). In particular, this book is largely about the dangers of hunting each of the Big Five. All I can say is that being a safari guide/hunter must be an incredible life. I purchased this after reading Hemingway's `Green Hills of Africa' and Robert Ruark's `Robert Ruark's Africa' and was not disappointed. There isn't really a single narrative through this book, it is written in a more of a conversational style, almost as if you are sitting with Capstick in camp in the evening after a day of hunting and he is recounting various tales, `urban legands', and historical anecdotes about hunting each of the big five over a Scotch whiskey. If you don't know who he was, Peter Capstick was a hunter, guide, and prolific author who passed away in 1996. Capstick writes about a much later era than Ruark or Hemingway, things have clearly changed. There are more people about (farming, grazing animals, etc.), and the game is heavily controlled by the national authorities. Overall this is a very good, if not uniquely outstanding, read. Capstick writes with an easy prose, and the pages just sail by. After working through this book, you're quite likely to get the urge to pack up a few of your shootin' irons and buy an airline ticket to Nairobi (I know I did!). I give it only four stars though as much of the ground covered by Capstick has been well tread by others (e.g. everyone seems to feel the need to give their opinion about which of the big five is the most dangerous). I also liked Ruark's writing style more, and there was something more romantic and dangerous about safari hunting in Ruark's era (this is no fault of PC though) - they really were out in Indian territory. The more modern safari isn't quite so wild. In any case, if you love the outdoors, hunting, and testing your mettle against some of the world most dangerous game (or at least reading about it!), I would highly recommend this book. A little different than hunting white-tailed deer!

Many other reviewers have characterized "Death in the Dark Continent" very, very well. It is a bit more graphic than Capstick's earlier "Death in the Long Grass", but not much.
But you definitely do NOT have to be a hunter to thoroughly enjoy Capstick. I think, though, there are a lot of non-hunters who simply haven't discovered how good Capstick really is at "grabbing you, making you sweat blood, and not releasing you until you've died three times, passed Elvis and Hoffa twice, and are coming around for heart attack number 4. Capstick is not just " a hunter with a typewriter". He is Hannibal Lecter mixed with Edgar Allen Poe and Stephen King multiplied by Norman Bates and home-schooled by JAWS. If you thought Amityville and Elm Street were scary, you were wrong. Peter Capstick will show you Scary in "Death in the Dark Continent". If you thought "The Pit and the Pendulum" was mind-wrecking, you were wrong. "Mind-wrecking" starts on page 152 of Death in the Silent Places. Read it early in the day.

If you havent read Capstick, you are missing out on a treat. Not only are his stories, graphic, exciting and compelling, his style of writing is nothing short of superb. Genuinly exciting, and often laugh out loud funny, all of his books are fantastic. When talking about the turn of the century past-time of "galloping lions" (described as "dangerous as typhoid") he writes:" THe elements recquired for the monotony breaking past time were a fast horse, a good rifle, a few lions and not much concern about the future".

Not for the faint of heart, there is a number of gory stories about the fatal encouters that people have, and some well placed warnings about taking any dangerous animal lightly.

A lot like his first book, "death in the long grass" Capstick writes about individual animals- with a chapter on the "big five", Buffalo, Rhino, Elephant, Leopard ( the best chapter in the book- beatifully written) and Lion. As before he relates his own experinces, plus encouters as described by his friends.

I would recommend Death in the LOng Grass as a first Capstick book, but this is still most highly recommended.

I bought this for my 4 yr old daughter last year for Christmas 2006. She was almost 4. She loved it and still goes back to it, to look at. It is a great book with wonderful illustrations and very good information. I highly recommend it for ages 2 up to about 9 or so.

Our grandson loved this video. Its a nice change from all the other stuff they watch on TV.

I like any kind of books or dvd's about dinosaurs. I find it to be very interesting about how they lived and finally died off.

An adequate generalized book for kids. Beautifullly illustrated. The categorization is interesting although completely unscientific...obviously that is intentional...it's a worthy addition to a child's library.

Perhaps I'm a little premature in writing this review as we just received the book yesterday, but both my 3 year old and 5 year old really seem to enjoy this book. My daughter who, I'm sorry to say, would generally rather watch TV chose to read this book instead. Only problem is my son wants me to read it at bedtime and he is used to finishing a book and there's a lot of print and info. But we'll take it in segments. I think this will be enjoyed for quite a while. A good purchase.

Give them this book, and the dogs will be drooling! We use this book constantly for our own dog, and his friends! Recipes are easy, not one dog has complained yet! I do taste test the treats, and wow, very edible and delicious. Any dog would be so lucky to have a human in their life with this book!

What's in store bought dog biscuits? Who knows? No more guessing as we're able to make our own and know just what we're eating. Fun to make and fun to eat.

Although "The Doggy Bone Cookbook" is small, it is jam-packed with quick, easy to make recipes for natural dog biscuits that are sure to please even the most fussiest canine palettes! It even comes with a cute plastic doggy bone cookie cutter. I have already made four surefire hits from this book - Cinnabone, Pea-mutt Butter, Garlicky and Cheese, and Bark-B-Que, and my one-year-old Keeshond gobbles them right up. The ten recipes are easy and quick to assemble (making them quite appropriate for children to make!) and require minimal healthy ingredients for maximum taste. The book also includes helpful tips such as how to cook the biscuits to just the right consistency (something I had had problems with in the past). If you enjoying cooking, and care about feeding your dog foods and treats that contain natural ingredients (with no chemicals, food dyes or preservants), then this book is perfect for you!

I really enjoy making the recipes in this book and my dog really enjoys eating them (as do the dogs in his obedience class). I have only two issues with the book. First, I don't think that the batch sizes were changed from the original book to accomodate the smaller bone cookie cutter size, because I always end up with many more treats than it says I should have (not that my dog is complaining). Also, there are no recipes for dogs who have corn and wheat allergies as all call for either corn or wheat flour although I'm sure with a little work you could substitute oat or rice flour. All in all a fun and creative book!

Charley is on his second batch of bones. He likes to watch each cookie get cut out and put on the cookie pan. Smart dog knows what the Doggy Bone Cookbook looks like and stations himself below the counter to watch treats from preparation to tasting. Five woofs flavor!

At first I just borrowed this book but I found that it was so helpful that we needed to own it! It's got good views of horses in a variety of poses. Our children were able to use the step by step method with barely any help at all. Ages 5 and 7, they have been drawing since about 2 years old or so, and may be slightly more advanced in drawing skills than average. They also like horses a lot, but have sort of run dry on ideas for new ways to draw them. Now, instead of asking Daddy to draw horses running or rearing or jumping, they have a whole variety of examples to learn from in one book. Very nice.

Great illustrations in this book. It will make it fun for you to learn to draw horses.

This book brings many creative ways for any age to draw a variety of horses. I ordered it for my daughter's birthday, because she was going for a horseback ride and it would help keep the memories fresh for her. She enjoys drawing on a more professional level; thanks to this book.

This is a awsome book! it tells you step by step how to draw any kind of horse you want too. it is easy for anyone, like me, i'm definetly a beginner! If you love horses like i do, then you will love this book!

My daughter loves horses and constantly tries to draw them. This shows her the steps in order to draw a great looking horse!

these books are a delight to read. i first read them to our sons (the oldest is now 40). this set is for my grandson. charming, well written stories, all with an underlying moral.

These books are classics. I bought them for myself, but plan to read them to my children as they grow older. I had read "Charlotte's Web" in grade school. It was a pleasure to read the others!

So many kids books are written so poorly, and with such poor structure and weak story lines, they make it hard to convey any sense of flow or emotion to your kids. To pick up these classics reminds one of the golden age when authors wrote stories with meaning and impact. Glowing descriptions, scene setting introductions to chapters, polite conversations recorded in proper English, all this is the heritage of EB White and these books. Highly, highly recommended - your kids will not want to stop reading and listening...makes bedtime each night a joy because they can't wait to find out what happens next.

Louis is the main character and he is a swan. He can't talk to other swans. Sam Beaver, a boy takes Louis to school, where he learns to read and write. But this isn't work to other swans and actually Louis was in love with the beautiful swan, Serena, and she spurns hin because he was defective. And Louis's father, the old cob, does a difficult thing. He stoles a trumpet so his son would be able to win his love. Louis wins on his love and pay the trumpet money.

My 6-year-old daughter and I throughly enjoyed all three stories.

Most Creative Story: The "Trumpet Swan" because of the way White takes the reader to different places and settings through the eyes of Louis the Swan.

Most Profound Story: "Charlotte's web". Of all my years of education it took this simple book to grasp a real appreciation of nature and the web of life.

Funniest Story: "Stuart Little". Most of us have on more than one occassion laughed ourselves to tears upon reading, hearing, or watching some funny event. My last time occurred when reading about the trials and tribulations that Stuart had to endure in order to wash himslef in the morning (Picturing him swinging a mallot to turn on the hot water was for me hysterically funny!). I found the Stuart Little of this book much more cute and amusing than the one in a recent movie with the same title.

book! The pictures are wonderful, and the story itself is sweet and simple with lovely rhyming. My son loves it! He is now 3. If I could just give a 1/4 star less I would. I still believe this is a book worth adding to your children's home library. The only problem I found is the illustrator decided to draw a lioness instead of a lion. His roaring lion has no mane. The story indicates a lion in 'his den.'

My kids and i loved this book. The illustrations are great, the rhyming is fun, and the story is adorable. You'll love it.

A bored emu named Edward in a zoo envies his seal neighbours and decides life would be a lot more exciting as one of them. He hops the fences of both enclosures in this poorly designed zoo and lives life as a seal. The customers and staff at the zoo aren't the brightest and don't notice any difference between him or the other animals let alone return him to his own enclosure so he's all set being a seal. Only he overhears a member of the public say that his favourite animal is a lion so Edward decides to hop the fence again. Hanging out with the lions (who don't eat him for some reason) someone else mentions snakes are their favourite so he decides to become a snake. Is it really a desire to be different Edward is after or is it something else. Read this book and find out!

The illustrations are very well done with minute attention to detail resulting in very realistic colour sketches. My only criticism is that it would be nice if Edward had visited a few more animals but that's the only bad thing I have to say about this book.

There's also a sequel available called Edwina the Emu.

Edward the Emu is sick of being an Emu, so he tries out being a few other animals at the zoo, only to discover that the visitors have many favourite animals.
The story is told in a lovely verse and the illustrations are one of the best I have seen in any children's book. Edward The Emu is funny and engaging with a simple message of valuing oneself.
Highly recommended.

Edward the Emu is just a precious story with the funniest illustrations! My kindergarten students love this book! It is one we keep out all year and read lots of times. Edward makes us all laugh, especially when he is trying to be a snake, they think that is a really funny thing for an Emu to be a snake! You will enjoy this book.

This book, from my opinion, is really sad and heartbreaking, i mean, someone torturing and starving dogs to death, not to mention dogs dying, is bound to break anyone's heart. However, the book has its happy parts, which i enjoy.

This book changed my life!
It really made be want to go out and save every little puppy. But I realized it's impossable to change every puppy's life, so I should just try to be the best possable pet owner I can be.

Thank you so much for writing that novel. It was heart breaking and heart healing at the same time.

Eleven-year-old Margaret "Maggie" MacKenzie has grown up around animals. Since the death of her parents when she was a toddler, Maggie has lived with her veterinarian grandmother, Dr. Mac, and helped out around her clinic. It has always just been her and Gran - along with a younger veterinarian named Dr. Gabe - working side by side. But, suddenly, Gran has given three new kids from school - Brenna, David, and Sunita - along with her starstruck cousin, Zoe, the chance to volunteer alongside them. Maggie, however, has been placed on an extremely short leash, and been banished from the clinic until she pulls her grades up. Maggie couldn't be more disappointed. She knows everything about animals, while these new volunteers couldn't tell a lab from a golden retriever. It doesn't hurt that she's amazing with animals - especially dogs - and knows all the tricks to keep them calm, and make them happy. Unfortunately, with her homework so out-of-control, Maggie is forced to obey Gran's rules, and steer clear of the clinic. That becomes quite difficult, however, when various puppies begin making their way into the office, brought in by concerned owners. Each puppy is much too small to be away from their mother, and all are extremely sick. Maggie can't stand to see the puppies so close to death, and knows that there must be something she can do to save each pup. But the fact that she's just a fifth grader makes her feel as if there's nothing she can possibly do. As more and more pups pour in, however, Gran begins to suspect that something fishy is going on. And, with a little investigating, she discovers that each puppy was purchased from a scraggly old man at the Penn Street Farmer's Market. It's obvious that each of the dying puppies are malnourished, and mistreated, and Gran is convinced that the man is running a puppy mill. Maggie can't stand to see anymore pups end up hurt. So, pushing all thoughts of homework and extra-credit reports out of her mind, Maggie begins to devote her time to locating the puppy mill owner. While she's displeased to be forced to work with other volunteers, Maggie knows that one person can't solve a mystery as big as this one alone, and enlists the help of her new co-workers to help her track down Mr. Evil. But as she hits more and more dead-ends, Maggie begins to panic, and becomes convinced that, if she doesn't locate the puppy mill soon, more puppies will die!

Aside from Ben M. Baglio's ANIMAL ARK series, it seems that there are so few book series for middle readers that revolve around kids helping animals. Laurie Halse Anderson, however, changes that, with the release of her VET VOLUNTEERS series. While the lead character of FIGHT FOR LIFE, Maggie, seems slightly spoiled, and self-involved, the reader can certainly see where she may feel displaced by the introduction of new volunteers to the clinic. Her evolution from beginning to end is a large one, and certainly shows how much she grows throughout the course of the book. Maggie's compassion for animals, paired with her resistance to do homework, will certainly appeal to readers - especially those who find themselves on a crash course with bad grades. While Maggie's interactions with the other volunteers, as well as Dr. Gabe and her Gran, are quite enjoyable, and really give the reader the chance to choose a favorite character. I really must commend Anderson for her interest in penning a series for young/middle readers, that teaches the importance, and value of an animals life. With all of the animal abuse cases in the news nowadays, Anderson creates an outlet for animal lovers, that shows that they are not alone in their determination to save their four-legged friends. Her characters are interesting, and the dialogue is perfectly age-appropriate. Even more wonderful is the fact that Anderson includes a wide array of information regarding animal rights, puppy mills, and various animal rights laws that give readers the chance to learn more about the subject discussed. While the subject of puppy mills is fairly heavy, and the content of FIGHT FOR LIFE is oft-times gut-wrenching, it is a subject that needs more attention brought to it, and Anderson does just that within the pages of FIGHT FOR LIFE. A tear-jerking story perfect for animal lovers!

Erika Sorocco
Freelance Reviewer

I love this book because I love animals and especialy dogs. If you like or even love animals you should read this book. Right now my teacher is reading it to my class because of my reccomondation. If you get sad about animals dying you might not want to read this book.

This book was so good, I read it twice in 1 month! After I bought it, I didn't want to waste time so I started to read this book, in 3 or 4 days I was totally surprised that I was over already! This book is great for people of all ages and parents, this book may help your child relize the seriousness of a pet. Thats why I rated this a 5 star book. (also because they didn't have any higher ratings.)