Animal Stories: Fantasy

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If your dog put on trousers and brought you the morning paper and a cup of coffee, you probably wouldn't accept them quietly and start reading the sports page. While most characters in literature who encounter talking animals aren't that nonchalant about it, they seem a lot more accepting of bizarre phenomena than most real people would be. Is it just because they're characters in books? or is it because animals actually have quite a bit to tell us about human nature and the realities of the world we occupy?

There are real-life precedents for talking animals—parrots can speak, crows can acquire human vocabularies, and Balaam's donkey carried on a conversation with the reluctant prophet. Granted, birds with the vocal capacity for imitative speech and supernaturally gifted pack animals aren't really in the same league, but you get the idea. Just because most animals don't talk doesn't mean none of them can.

We're not suggesting Narnia is a real place, or rabbits actually have detailed mythologies, at least not in the sense most people would use words like "real" and "actual." But there are books about Aslan, and there are books about Bigwig and Fiver, Matthias the Mouse, and Mr. Toad, and in that sense those places and characters are real and actual. More importantly, what they tell us about life itself (through their stories, not over afternoon tea) is often true and real and actual.

Basically, stories about animals who apparel themselves in anything other than their own skin and fur, animals that fight with swords instead of claws and teeth, animals who bake their food rather than eating it raw or off the ground, animals that speak (either to humans or each other)—any story we carry of this kind will be found here. While animal fantasy shouldn't displace all other reading, it's important to remember that, in the end, there's very little meaningful difference between a character like Tom Sawyer and one like Abel the Mouse.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

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Parent Categories

Fiction & Literature

Classic Fiction

Animal Stories

Animal Stories: Fantasy

Fiction & Literature

Classic Fiction

Fantasy Fiction

Animal Stories: Fantasy

Subcategories by Grade

Preschool (Ages 4-5)

Kindergarten (Ages 5-6)

1st grade (Ages 6-7)

2nd grade (Ages 7-8)

3rd grade (Ages 8-9)

4th grade (Ages 9-10)

Subcategories

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail

546 Items found Print

"Stand Back," Said the Elephant, "I'm Going to Sneeze!"

by Patricia Thomas

from HarperCollins

for Nursery-1st grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

Abel's Island

by William Steig

from Square Fish Publishing

Animal Fantasy for 3rd-5th grade

1977 Newbery Honor Book

in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)

$5.94

Adventures of Bob White

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #23

by Thornton W. Burgess

Illustrated from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Bobby Raccoon

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #21

by Thornton W. Burgess

New edition from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Buster Bear

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #15

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Chatterer the Red Squirrel

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #13

by Thornton W. Burgess

Revised ed. from Dover Publications

for 3rd-6th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Danny Meadow Mouse

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #11

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55 $1.50 (1 in stock)

Adventures of Grandfather Frog

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #12

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Happy Jack

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #25

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 1st-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$3.40

Adventures of Jerry Muskrat

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #10

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Jimmy Skunk

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #22

by Thornton W. Burgess

Una Rep from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Johnny Chuck

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #6

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 1st-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Mr. Mocker

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #9

by Thornton W. Burgess

Illustrated from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Old Man Coyote

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #18

by Thornton W. Burgess

Later Printing Used from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Old Mr. Toad

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #16

by Thornton W. Burgess

Revised ed. from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Paddy the Beaver

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #19

by Thornton W. Burgess

Unabridged from Dover Publications

for Preschool-2nd grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Peter Cottontail

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #7

by Thornton W. Burgess

Reprint from Dover Publications

for 3rd-5th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Poor Mrs. Quack

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #20

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Prickly Porky

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #17

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Reddy Fox

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #5

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

Animal Stories: Fantasy for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Sammy Jay

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #14

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 2nd-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Adventures of Unc' Billy Possum

Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #8

by Thornton W. Burgess

from Dover Publications

for 1st-4th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$2.55

Aesop for Children

by Aesop, Milo Winter

from Scholastic Inc.

for Preschool-2nd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$4.00 (1 in stock)

Aesop's Fables

Illustrated Junior Library Series 4

by Aesop

from Grosset & Dunlap

Fables for 2nd-6th grade

in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)

Aesop's Fables

by Aesop

from Henry Holt and Company

Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-5th grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$9.34

Aesop's Fables

by Aesop, edited by Ann McGovern

from Scholastic Inc.

for Nursery-2nd grade

in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)

$2.00 (2 in stock)

Aesop's Fables

by Aesop

from Avenel Books

for Nursery-2nd grade

in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)

$6.40 (1 in stock)

Aesop's Fables

by Retold & Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

1st Ed. from Chronicle Books

for Kindergarten-3rd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$16.99

Aesop's Fables

by Aesop, Isaac Bashevis Singer

from International Collectors Library

for 6th-10th grade

in Ancient Literature (Location: LIT1-ANC)

Aesop's Fables

Puffin Classics

by Aesop

Reprint from Puffin Books

for Kindergarten-4th grade

in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)

$5.94

Aesop's Fables

Illustrated Junior Library Series 3

by Aesop

from Grosset & Dunlap

Fables for 2nd-6th grade

in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)

Aesop's Fables for Children

by Aesop & Milo Winter

Pap/Com from Dover Publications

for 2nd-5th grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$12.74

Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse

by Leo Lionni

Reissue from Dragonfly Books

for Kindergarten-2nd grade

1970 Caldecott Honor Book

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$6.79

Amos and Boris

by William Steig

from Square Fish Publishing

Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$6.79

Amos and Boris

by William Steig

from Scholastic Inc.

Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$2.40 (1 in stock)

Anansi and the Moss-covered Rock

by Eric A. Kimmel

Reprint from Holiday House

for Preschool-1st grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

Anansi the Spider

A Tale from Ashanti

by Gerald McDermott

1^st edition from Scholastic Inc.

for Nursery-1st grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$1.20 (1 in stock)

Angelina and the Princess

Angelina Ballerina

by Katharine Holabird

First Print This Edition

Picture Books for Preschool-2nd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$4.80 (1 in stock)

Angelina Ballerina

by Katharine Holabird

First Edition

Picture Books for Preschool-2nd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$4.80 (1 in stock)

Animals Under the Rainbow

by Aloysius Roche, with wood engravings by Agnes Miller Parker

from Sheed & Ward

for 3rd-6th grade

in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)

$6.00 (1 in stock)

Annotated Wind in the Willows

by Kenneth Grahame

from W. W. Norton and Co.

Fantasy for 4th-8th grade

in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)

$33.96 $20.00 (1 in stock)

Another Celebrated Dancing Bear

by Gladys Scheffrin-Falk & Barbara Garrison (illusttrator)

from Purple House Press

for 1st-3rd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$16.11

Ant and the Elephant

by Bill Peet

from Sandpiper Books

Animal Fantasy for Preschool-4th grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

Arthur's Honey Bear

An I Can Read Book Level 2

by Lillian Hoban

from HarperCollins

Animal Fantasy for Preschool-3rd grade

in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)

$3.99

Ask Mr. Bear

by Marjorie Flack

from Aladdin Paperbacks

for Kindergarten-1st grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$6.79 $3.20 (1 in stock)

Babar and Father Christmas

by Jean De Brunhoff

1^st edition from Random House Books for Young Readers

for Preschool-2nd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$13.56

Babar and His Children

by Jean De Brunhoff

from Random House Books for Young Readers

for Preschool-2nd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$16.14

Babar and Zephir

by Jean de Brunhoff

from Random House Books for Young Readers

for Preschool-2nd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

Babar the King

by Jean de Brunhoff

from Random House

for Kindergarten-3rd grade

in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)

$13.56

Babe the Gallant Pig

by Dick King-Smith

1^st edition from Yearling

Animal Stories: Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade

in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)

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