Teacher holding book in classroom

Recommended Books with Humane Themes

Animal-themed books to promote empathy for people and animals


Empathy through Literature

RedRover maintains lists of children's books that highlight the human-animal bond, depict accurate animal body-language, and promote empathy for animals and people.

Want to recommend a humane-themed book? RedRover is always on the lookout for humane-themed books to add to our list. We are especially looking for books which highlight the human-animal bond, display accurate animal behavior, are beautifully illustrated, and do not overtly tell a message (the story invites the reader to discover the message instead). Book suggestions can be emailed to Readers@RedRover.org.

RedRover Readers
Program Books

Books about
Dogs

Books about
Cats

Books about
Other Animals

Books about
Pet Loss

Books about
Wildlife

Books about Animal Behavior

Suggest a
Book

Below is the list of books that are used in the RedRover Readers program. RedRover Readers has developed CASEL- and Common Core-aligned curriculum around these titles, provided after taking a RedRover Readers workshop.

Click here to download a list of the books in the RedRover Readers program.

Books about Dogs

RedRover's bookshelf: dogs

Beautiful Joe
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Because of Winn-Dixie
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Before You Were Mine
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Belle's Star
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Buddy Unchained
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Cheering for the Underdog: A Rescue Dog's Quest
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Chewy Louie
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Cookie's Fortune
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Danny Dog: A Rescue Dog Finds His Forever Home
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
A Day, a Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Dogku
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Elmer and the Talent Show
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Forever Buster: What a Name! What a Dog, We Exclaim!
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
The Forever Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
Frank the Tank - An Adopted Dog Tale
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Freckles & Willie: A Valentine's Day Story
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Fred Stays With Me!
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
The Good Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Hachiko Waits
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Harley Saves the Day
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
A Home for Dixie: The True Story of a Rescued Puppy
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
How To Speak Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and animal-behavior-and-...
JJ The American Street Dog and How He Came to Live in Our House
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
A Kid's Best Friend
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Lily Unleashed
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Looking Out for Sarah
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Love That Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Lucky Boy
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
The Lucky Tale of Two Dogs
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Maggie's Second Chance
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
The Magic Squad and the Dog of Great Potential
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Max Talks to Me
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Meet the Mutts: A CritterKin Tale
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Montague: The Pit Bull of Park Avenue
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Moose and the Smelly Sneakers
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Mutt Dog!
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Nico & Lola: Kindness Shared Between a Boy and a Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Not Afraid of Dogs
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Orville: A Dog Story
tagged: redrover-program-books, dogs, and redrover-recommended-books-with-hum
Our Very Own Dog: Taking Care of Your First Pet
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Out of the Cold
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Please, Puppy, Please
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Pole Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Rescue & Jessica: A Life-Changing Friendship
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Rescue Pup
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Rez Dogs
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Sad, the Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Sammy in the Sky
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
Saying Goodbye to Lulu
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
Second Chance: How Adoption Saved a Boy with Autism & His Shelter Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Stay: The True Story of Ten Dogs
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Thinker: My Puppy Poet and Me
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and dogs
Tiffany Rolls On
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and cats
A Very Unusual Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
The Way I Love You
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
Worzel Goes for a Walk! Will You Come, Too?
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and animal-behavior-and-...
Worzel Says Hello!: Will you be my friend?
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs
How I Love and Care for My Happy Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and dogs

goodreads.com

Books about Animal Behavior & Emotions

Books on our Animal Behavior list are non-fiction books that provide additional knowledge about animal behavior, especially communication, since this is so critical for building good relationships with animals. Click here for more information about the Animal Behavior & Emotions and Human Behavior & Emotions that can be found in the RedRover Readers program.

Books about Animal Behavior & Emotions

Animals Have Feelings, Too! : Exploring Emotions from A to Z
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and animal-behavior-and-emotions
How To Speak Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, cats, and animal-behavior-and-...
How To Speak Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and animal-behavior-and-...
How to Talk to Your Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, cats, and animal-behavior-and-...
Worzel Goes for a Walk! Will You Come, Too?
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and animal-behavior-and-...

goodreads.com

Books about Pet Loss

Books about Pet Loss

Albuquerque Turkey
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and pet-loss
Desser the Best Ever Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, cats, and pet-loss
Forever Buster: What a Name! What a Dog, We Exclaim!
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
The Forever Dog
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
Goodbye Mousie
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and pet-loss
Sammy in the Sky
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
Saying Goodbye to Lulu
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and pet-loss
Sonya's Chickens
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and pet-loss
The Tenth Good Thing About Barney
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and pet-loss

goodreads.com

Books about Cats

Books about Cats

Alya and the Three Cats
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and cats
The Cat Man of Aleppo
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and cats
Cat on the Bus
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Desser the Best Ever Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Duncan and Dolores
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and cats
Ginger
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Goyangi Means Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
The Happy Tale of Two Cats
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Hate That Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
How To Speak Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
How to Talk to Your Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Kitten Caboodle
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Lost and Found Cat : The True Story of Kunkush's Incredible Journey
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and cats
Marvin: Trap King for a Day
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Meow Means Mischief
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
My Cat Copies Me
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Nobody's Cats: How one little black kitty came in from the cold
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and cats
Rescue Kitty: A Special Cat, a Big Surprise, a Happy Ending
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
Scrawny Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
So, What's It Like to Be a Cat?
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, redrover-program-books, and cats
Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, dogs, and cats
The Upstairs Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
The Very Best of Friends
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
At Home Outside
At Home Outside
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
How I Love and Care for My Happy Cat
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and cats
goodreads.com

Books about Other Domestic Animals

Books about Other Domestic Animals

Belle, The Last Mule at Gee's Bend: A Civil Rights Story
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Black Beauty
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Call the Horse Lucky
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, redrover-program-books, and ot...
Charlotte's Web
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Each Living Thing
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Hello, Horse
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Hens for Friends
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and ot...
Jeannie Houdini: A Hamster's Tale
tagged: redrover-program-books, redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, and ot...
Little Flower
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Mango, Abuela, and Me
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Millie and Cupcake
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
One Unhappy Horse
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Sapphire the Great and the Meaning of Life
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Stealing Thunder
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
Waiting for the Biblioburro
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals
The Wild One
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and other-animals

goodreads.com

Books about Wildlife

Books About Wildife

Armando- An Adventurous Nine-Banded Armadillo Tale
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Birdsong
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Coyotes in the Crosswalk: Canadian Wildlife in the City
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Daisy and the Dirty Dozen
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Daphina - A Freed Bottlenose Dolphin Tale
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Dario and the Whale
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Dr. Rosie Helps the Animals
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Gamba - An Optimistic Mountain Gorilla Tale
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Goodbye Mousie
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, pet-loss, and wildlife
Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Goose Girl
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Goose's Story
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Grady the Goose
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Hoot
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
If the World Were 100 Animals: A Visual Guide to Earth's Amazing Creatures
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Janey Monarch Seed
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Jayden's Impossible Garden
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Johnny's Pheasant
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Look Up!: Bird-Watching in Your Own Backyard
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Mali - A Rescued Asian Elephant Tale
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Night of the Spadefoot Toads
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
The Ocean Calls: A Haenyeo Mermaid Story
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Owl Moon
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Sonya's Chickens
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum, pet-loss, and wildlife
The Thing about Bees: A Love Letter
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
Whale Trails, Before and Now
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife
What I Like About Toads
tagged: redrover-recommended-books-with-hum and wildlife

goodreads.com