The world is full of books… but when it comes to books about talking animals, or with a talking animal main character, there’s an unfortunate dearth of published authors with this specialty. Trust me. My life’s quest is to find them, and they are rare.
So, to help cure you of your talking animal story deficiencies, I’ve curated this list of good reads that feature critters on two legs or on four with minds of their own. Maybe your next favorite read is on this list!
If you know of any fantastic animal stories I am not featuring, please contact me so I can add them. More talking animal stories for all!
Books I’ve enjoyed
Watership Down by Richard Adams — My personal manual of leadership, this book about a civilization of rabbits struggling against mankind’s indomitable need to build and expand has more depth every year that I read it.
The Redwall series by Brian Jacques — I grew up on these, and I cut my teeth on writing by participating in fan-fiction contests for this series. You’ll notice my books contain a lot of food and feasting, and that’s Jacques’ fault!
The Named: Ratha’s Creature by Clare Bell — One of my all-time favorite series as a kid, and one I still look to as an author of animal fiction.
Borne by Jeff VanderMeer — I’m not sure what it is about reading a book on a plane that locks it into my memory, but Borne gets that rare distinction from me. Technically, Borne isn’t a “talking animal” but he sure knows how to communicate.
Fire Bringer by David Clement-Davies — Could this be the darkest book I read in my childhood? Nnnnope, because Watership Down is on the list. Uh, but seriously, this is pretty messed up for a book about deer society. However, it’s a great fantasy story with the right kind of “can he overcome?” protagonist quest that fantasy readers tend to adore.
A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L’Engle — I regularly re-read (or listen) to this book in times of great world-wide distress, when I need the comfort of a story that mirrors what I’m experiencing… Gaudior is a sasspot of a unicorn and I adore him.
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O’Brien — This is also darker than I remember as a kid, though of course the Don Bluth adaptation got that right… When I was 10, I had a bunch of mice, and of course named them all after O’Brien’s characters. (For the record, the two sequels, written by O’Brien’s daughter, were much less charming.)
The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden — Beyond charming, this book (and its sequels) absolutely sings with wonder, found family, and the power of curiosity and love.
The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett — A wonderfully wicked take on the tale of the Pied Piper, this is my favorite Pratchett by far. Maurice is a terrible person but an excellent cat.
The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis — Yeah, this one’s got some crystal-clear racism pulling the strings of the story, but I’d be remiss not to mention it. Bree and Hwin are some of the earliest talking animal characters I remember, and their antics and unpronounceable names were the star of what I think is the most mid entry in the Chronicles of Narnia.
The Plague Dogs by Richard Adams — Need something that will break your heart and devastate you for happy endings? Look no further than Snitter and Rowf and their horrific experience in a laboratory.
The Cold Moons by Aeron Clement — Watership Down, but with badgers!
Lionboy by Zizou Corder — Written by a mother-and-daughter duo, this book does an amazing job of walking the tightrope between fantasy and realistic fiction. Features talking lions and talking cats, oh my!
My own books
Have I mentioned that I write talking animal books? It’s true. The secret’s out.
Seeker — Opie is a human-dog hybrid called a daugment, and he’s trying to send money back to his drug-addled parents on Mars. He and some monkey-like aliens called the Shihari face a hostile planet and treacherous employers in my novella, which you can snag for free if you join my mailing list!
Daugment — What if the only way to escape your enemy was to become his dog? Uber-introvert Pitney Scolan just wants to be left alone, but an assassination plot by his arch-nemesis throws him (on four legs) into an intergalactic adventure of friendship and espionage. There are a lot of talking animals in this one.
Gods of Atlantis: Boiling Point — The miiquils of my “Gods of Atlantis” series aren’t animals, per se, but their choice of animal aspect gives them a lot of characteristics of the same. Follow Charra, Minnor, and Belario as they fall in love while they grapple with their island home falling into the sea.
A Mutiny of Pirates: Kinfolk — Okay, so the talking animal presence is light in this one. But there’s a daugment in this book, too. (I couldn’t help myself, they’re my favorites to write!)
Four of my short story collections — Wishes, Childhood Magic, Magical Creatures, and Prophecies — include talking animals. If you’re interested in reading and reviewing these, contact me!
Books on my to-read list
These have been recommended to me over the years, or were something I spotted on a list or in a bookstore and haven’t gotten around to reading yet. Approach with optimistic caution!
Sundiver (and the rest of The Uplift Saga) by David Brin — One of my good college friends recommended this series to me, knowing full well my tastes for talking animals. I picked up the second book of the series at a Half Price Books some years ago and have never gotten around to snagging Sundiver. However, it has consistently good reviews, especially for something deeply rooted in 1980.