- Choose a theme that interests the whole family. (Themes are listed in alphabetical order.)
- Choose age-appropriate books within the theme for each family member. (Use the key below to determine genre. Purchase books from your local independent bookstore or support your local library, if possible!)
- Read, read, read!
- Use the discussion questions and activity ideas provided to share what you’ve learned with each other.
- Get outside and learn about nature from the source!
AN = Adult nonfiction
AF = Adult fiction
YA = Young adult (Ages 12+)
GN = Graphic novel
MG = Middle grade (Ages 8+)
PB = Picture book
JN = Juvenile nonfiction
PO = Poetry
Animals
AN
- Being With Animals: Why We Are Obsessed with the Furry, Scaly, Feathered Creatures Who Populate Our World by Barbara J. King
- Our Wild Calling: How Connecting with Animals Can Transform Our Lives- and Save Theirs by Richard Louv
- How to Be a Good Creature: A Memoir in Thirteen Animals by Sy Montgomery, illustrated by Rebecca Green
MG
- The Lost Rainforest series by Elliot Schrefer
JN
- Howl Like A Wolf: Learn to Think, Move, and Act Like 15 Amazing Animals by Kathleen Yale and Kaley McKean
- Cute as an Axolotl: Discovering the World’s Most Adorable Animals by Jess Keating, illustrated by David DeGrand
- The Lost Words by Robert Macfarlane, illustrated by Jackie Morris
PB
- A Stone Sat Still by Brendan Wenzel
- Hello Hello by Brendan Wenzel
Animal Migration
AN
- No Way Home: The Decline of the World’s Great Animal Migrations by David Wilcove
- A Season on the Wind: Inside the World of Spring Migration by Kenn Kaufman
MG
- Wild Wings by Gill Lewis
JN
- Home at Last: A Song of Migration by April Pulley Sayre and Alix Berenzy
- North: The Amazing Story of Arctic Migration by Nick Dowson and Patrick Benson
- Numenia and the Hurricane: Inspired by a True Migration Story by Fiona Halliday
Appalachia
AN
- Far Appalachia: Following the New River North by Noah Adams
- The Barefoot Sisters Southbound by Susan and Lucy Letcher
- A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson
- Bringing Down the Mountains: The Impact of Mountaintop Removal in Southern West Virginia Communities by Shirley Stewart Burns
AF
- Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
- October Sky by Homer Hickam
PO
- Affrilachia: Poems by Frank X. Walker by Frank X. Walker
- Elderberry Flood: The History, Lore, and Land of West Virginia by Louise McNeill
PB
- When I was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant and Dianne Goode
- Appalachian ABCs by Francie Hall
Bears
AN
- Search for the Golden Moon Bear: Science and Adventure in Pursuit of a New Species by Sy Montgomery
- Summers with the Bears: Six Seasons in the North Woods by Jack Becklund
- The Blue Bear: A True Story of Friendship and Discovery in the Alaskan Wild by Lynn Schooler
YA
- Dreaming the Bear by Mimi Thebo
MG
- Moon Bear by Gill Lewis
JN
- The Truth About Bears: Seriously Funny Facts About Your Favorite Animals by Maxwell Eaton III
PB
- Jasper’s Story: Saving Moon Bears by Jill Robinson and Marc Beckoff, illustrated by Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen
- Kuma-Kuma Chan, the Little Bear by Kazue Takahashi
- Moon Bear by Brenda Guiberson, illustrated by Ed Young
- Big Bear Hug by Nicholas Oldland
- Very Hairy Bear by Alice Schertle, illustrated by Matt Phelan
- The Deliverance of Dancing Bears by Elizabeth Stanley
- Snow Bear by Jean Craighead George, illustrated by Wendell Minor
- Baby Bear’s Adoption by Jennifer Keats Curtis and Veronica Jones
Beavers
AN
- Eager: The Surprising, Secret life of Beavers and Why They Matter by Ben Goldfarb
- Once They Were Hats: In Search of the Mighty Beaver by Frances Backhouse
- The Beaver Manifesto by Glynnis Hood
MG
- Jack: The Story of a Beaver by Shirley Woods, illustrated by Celia Godkin
JN
- Beavers (Superpower Field Guide) by Rachel Poliquin, illustrated by Nicholas John Frith
PB
- The Skydiving Beavers: A True Tale by Susan Wood, illustrated by Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen
- Beavers Build Lodges by Elizabeth Raum, illustrated by Romina Marti
- Five Busy Beavers by Stella Partheniou Grasso, illustrated by Christine Battuz
- Little Beaver and the Echo by Amy MacDonald and Sarah Fox-Davies
Big Cats
AN
- Bones of the Tiger: Protecting the Man-Eaters of Nepal by Hemanta Mishra
- The Man-Eating Tigers of Sundarbans by Sy Montgomery
- Chasing the Dragon’s Tail: The Struggle to Save Thailand’s Wild Cats by Alan Rabinowitz
- The Beast in the Garden: A Modern Parable of Man and Nature by David Baron
- The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen
- Snow Leopard: Stories from the Roof of the World edited by Don Hunter
- Cat Tale: The Wild, Weird Battle to Save the Florida Panther by Craig Pittman
MG
- Tiger Boy by Mitali Perkins
JN
- Saving the Ghost of the Mountain: An Expedition Among Snow Leopards in Mongolia by Sy Montgomery, photographs by Nic Bishop
PB
- Little Tigers by Jo Weaver
- Tigress by Helen Cowcher
- A Boy and a Jaguar by Alan Rabinowitz, illustrated by Catia Chien
- Snow School by Sandra Markle, illustrated by Alan Marks
Birds
AN
- That Quail, Robert by Margaret A. Stanger
- Vulture: The Private Life of an Unloved Bird by Katie Fallon
- One Wild Bird at a Time: Portraits of Individuals Lives by Bernd Heinrich
- The Birds of Pandemonium: Life Among the Exotic and the Endangered by Michele Raffin
- Flyaway: How A Wild Bird Rehabber Sought Adventure and Found Her Wings by Suzie Gilbert
- Rare Encounters with Ordinary Birds by Lyanda Lynn Haupt
- Birds of a Feather: Tales of a Wild Bird Haven by Linda Johns
- Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl by Stacey O’Brien
JN
- Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World’s Strangest Parrot by Sy Montgomery, photographs by Nic Bishop
MG
- Strange Birds: A Field Guide to Ruffling Feathers by Celia C. Perez
- Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
PB
- Birds by Kevin Henkes, illustrated by Laura Dronzek
- Hooray for Birds by Lucy Cousins
- The Birdwatchers by Simon James
- Feathers: Not Just for Flying by Melissa Stewart, illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen
- Vulture View by April Pulley Sayre, illustrated by Steve Jenkins
Black in Nature
AN
- Black Faces, White Spaces: Reimagining the Relationship of African Americans to the Great Outdoors by Carolyn Finney
- The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man’s Love Affair with Nature by J. Drew Lanham.
PO
- Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry edited by Camille T. Dungy
- Haiku: The Last Poetry of Richard Wright by Richard Wright
PB
- Hiking Day by Anne F. Rockwell and Lizzy Rockwell
- A Stone for Sascha by Aaron Becker
- Where’s Rodney? by Carmen Bogan and Floyd Cooper
Butterflies, Bugs, Spiders, and Stuff
AN
- Buzz, Sting, Bite: Why We Need Insects by Anne Sverdup-Thygeson
AF
- Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver
JN
- The Tarantula Scientist by Sy Montgomery, photographs by Nic Bishop
PB
- Waiting for Wings by Lois Ehlert
- Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly by Alan Madison, illustrated by Kevin Hawkes
- An Extraordinary Ordinary Moth by Karlin Gra, illustrated by Steliyana Doneva
- Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin, illustrated by Harry Bliss
Dogs
AN
- Following Atticus: Forty-Eight High Peaks, One Little Dog, and an Extraordinary Friendship by Tom Ryan
- Merle’s Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog by Ted Kerasote
- A Small, Furry Prayer: Dog Rescue and the Meaning of Life by Steven Kotler
PO
- Dog Songs by Mary Oliver
- God Got a Dog by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Marla Frazee
MG
- Love That Dog by Sharon Creech
PB
- Samsara Dog by Helen Manos, illustrated by Julie Vivas
Elephants & Rhinos
AF
- The White Bone by Barbara Dowdy
AN
- Love, Life, and Elephants: An African Love Story by Daphne Jenkins Sheldrick
- The Soul of the Rhino: A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists and the Indian Rhinoceros by Hemanta Mishra
MG
- What Elephants Know by Eric Dinerstein
- Tua and the Elephant by R. P. Harris, illustrated by Taeeun Yoo
- The Truth About Elephants: Seriously Funny Facts About Your Favorite Animals by Maxwell Eaton III
JN
- The Elephant Scientist by Caitlin O’Connell and Donna M. Jackson, illustrated by Timothy Rodwell
PB
- Monkey and Elephant by Carole Lexa Schaefer, illustrated by Galia Bernstein
- How to Be an Elephant: Growing Up in the African Wild by Katherine Roy
- Jubela by Cristina Kessler, illustrated by JoEllen McAllister Stammen
Evolution
AN
- The Tangled Tree: A Radical New History of Life by David Quammen
- The Species Seekers: Heroes, Fools, and the Mad Pursuit of Life on Earth by Richard Conniff
- Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History by Stephen Jay Gould
- The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World by Andrea Wulf
JN
- The Story of Life: A First Book about Evolution by Catherine Barr and Steve Williams illustrated by Amy Husband
- Amazing Evolution: The Journey of Life by Anna Claybourne, illustrated by Wesley Robins
PB
- Grandmother Fish: A Child’s First Book of Evolution by Jonathan Tweet, illustrated by Karen Lewis
- Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story by Lisa Westberg Peters, illustrated by Lauren Stringer
Great Apes
AN
- Walking with the Great Apes: Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, Birute Galdikas by Sy Montgomery
- Reflections of Eden: My Years with the Orangutans of Borneo by Birute M. F. Galdikas
- The Intimate Ape: Orangutans of the Secret Life of a Vanishing Species by Shawn Thompson
YA
- Gorilla Dawn by Gill Lewis, illustrated by Susan Meyer
- Endangered by Elliot Schrefer
- Orphaned by Elliot Schrefer
MG
- The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate, illustrated by Patricia Castelao
GN
- Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Birtute Galdikas by Jim Ottaviani and Maris Wicks
JN
- Looking for Miza: The True Story of the Mountain Gorilla Family Who Rescued Once of Their Own by Juliana Hatkoff, Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff, and Dr. Paula Kahumbu
PB
- The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps by Jeanette Winter
- Furious George Goes Bananas: A Primate Parody by Michael Rex
Himalaya
AN
- Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan by Jamie Zeppa
- Animal Intimacies: Interspecies Relatedness in India’s Central Himalayas by Radhika Govindrajan
- Tibet Wild: A Naturalist’s Journeys on the Roof of the World by George Schaller
- Seven Years in Tibet by Heinrich Harrer
AF
- The Folded Earth by Anuradha Roy
JN
- World Above the Clouds: A Story of a Himalayan Ecosystem by Ann Whitehead Nagda, illustrated by Paul Kratter
- The Chiru of High Tibet: A True Story by Jacqueline Briggs Martin, illustrated by Linda Wingerter
PB
- Crane Boy by Diana Cohn, illustrated by Youme Landowne
- Tiger of the Snows: Tenzing Norgay: The Boy Whose Dream Was Everest by Robert Burleigh, illustrated by Ed Young
- Tenzin’s Deer: A Tibetan Tale by Barbara Soros, illustrated by Danuta Mayer
- Dorje’s Stripes by Anshumani Ruddra, illustrated by Gwangjo and Jung-a Park
- All the Way to Lhasa: A Tale from Tibet by Barbara Helen Berger
- The Mountains of Tibet by Mordiaci Gerstein
Monkeys & Prosimians
AN
- A Primate’s Memoir: A Neuroscientist’s Unconventional Life Among the Baboons by Robert Sapolsky
- Almost Human: A Journey into the World of Baboons by Shirley Strum
- Faces in the Forest: The Endangered Muriqui Monkeys of Brazil by Karen B. Strier
- Lords and Lemurs: Mad Scientists, Kings with Spears, and the Survival of Diversity in Madagascar by Alison Jolly
MG
- Monkey Business: Stories from Around the World by Shirley Climo, illustrated by Erik Brooks
- Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls
JN
- No Monkeys, No Chocolate by Melissa Stewart and Allen Young, illustrated by Nicole Wong
- The Great Monkey Rescue: Saving the Golden Lion Tamarins by Sandra Markle
PB
- The Monkey Bridge by Rafe Martin, illustrated by Fahimeh Amiri
- Monkey Colors by Darrin Lunde, illustrated by Patricia J. Wynne
- When the Monkeys Came Back by Kristine Franklin, illustrated by Robert Roth
- Monkey: A Trickster Tale from India by Gerald McDermott
- Mad About Monkeys by Owen Davey
- Cloud Tea Monkeys by Mal Peet and Elspeth Graham, illustrated by Juan Wijngaard
- Slow Loris by Alexis Deacon
- Ny Aiay Ako by Alison Jolly and Hantanirina, illustrated by Deborah Ross
Nature Poetry
ADULTS
- Haiku: The Last Poetry of Richard Wright by Richard Wright
- Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry edited by Camille T. Dungy
- Devotions by Mary Oliver
- Classic Haiku: The Greatest Japanese Poetry from Basho, Buson, Issa, Shiki, and Their Followers by Tom Lowenstein
- Hill Daughter: New and Selected Poems by Louise McNeill
- Wild Form and Savage Grammar: Poetry, Ecology, Asia by Andrew Schelling
KIDS
- Hi, Koo! A Year of Seasons by Jon J. Muth
- National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry: 200 Poems with Photographs That Squeak, Soar, and Roar! by Patrick Lewis
- Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems by Joyce Sidman, illustrated by Beckie Prange
- Orangutanka: A Story in Poems by Margartia Engle, illustrated by Renee Kurilla
- The Tree That Time Built: A Celebration of Nature, Science, and Imagination by Mary Ann Hoberman and Linda Winston
Oceans
AN
- The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness by Sy Montgomery
YA
- Life of Pi by Yann Martel
MG
- White Dolphin by Gill Lewis
- Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
JN
- Neighborhood Sharks: Hunting with the Great Whites of California’s Farallon Islands by Katherine Roy
PB
- Heartbeat by Evan Turk
- Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist by Jess Keating, illustrated by Marta Álvarez Miguéns
- Sam the Sea Cow by Francine Jacobs, illustrated by Laura Kelly
- Swimming with Seals by Maggie De Vries and Janice Kun
Plants
AN
- Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer
- Lab Girl by Hope Jahren
- Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
- Orchid Fever: A Horticultural Tale of Love, Lust, and Lunacy by Eric Hansen
AF
- The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert
YA
- Walking is a Way of Knowing: In a Kadar Forest by Madhuri Ramesh and Manish Chandi, illustrated by Matthew Frame
MG
- Wishtree by Katherine Applegate
- Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
PB
- The Great Kapok Tree: A Tale of the Amazon Rainforest by Lynne Cherry
- Aani and the Tree Huggers by Jeannine Atkins, illustrated by Venantius J. Pinto
- Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson
- We Planted a Tree by Diane Muldrow, illustrated by Bob Staake
- Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya by Donna Jo Napoli, illustrated by Kadir Nelson
- Alison’s Zinnia by Anita Lobel
- Fantastic Flowers by Susan Stockdale
- The Legend of the Lady Slipper by Lisa Lunge-Larsen and Margi Preus, illustrated by Andrea Arroyo
- Tashi and the Tibetan Flower Cure by Naomi C. Rose
Seasons
AN
- True Nature: An Illustrated Journal of Four Seasons in Solitude by Barbara Bash
- The Forest Unseen: A Year’s Watch in Nature by David George Haskell
PO
- Sing a Song of Seasons: A Nature Poem for Each Day of the Year by Nosy Crow and Fiona Waters, illustrated by Frann Preston-Gannon
PB
- A Bear’s Year by Kathy Duval, illustrated by Gerry Turley
- Moonstick: The Seasons of the Sioux by Eve Bunting, illustrated by John Sandford
Snails
AN
- The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey
JN
- Snails are Just My Speed by Kevin McCloskey
PB
- Escargot by Dashka Slater, illustrated by Sydney Hanson
- Snail Crossing by Corey R. Tabo
Snakes & Other Reptiles
AN
- Secrets of Snakes: The Science Beyond the Myths by David Steen
- The Snake Charmer: A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge by Jamie James
JN
- Tracking Pythons: The Quest to Catch an Invasive Predator and Save an Ecosystem by Kate Messner
- Snakes by Gail Gibbons
PB
- Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor: The Woman Who Loved Reptiles by Patricia Valdez, illustrated by Felicita Sala
- Komodo! by Peter Sis
- Gator, Gator, Gator! by Daniel Bernstrom and Frann Preston-Gannon
Turtles
AN
- Dreaming in Turtle: A Journey Through the Passion, Profit, and Peril of Our Most Coveted Prehistoric Creatures by Peter Laufer
MG
- The Turtle of Oman by Naomi Shihab Nye
JN
- Interrupted Journey: Saving Endangered Sea Turtles by Kathryn Laskey, photographs by Christopher G. Knight
- A Place for Turtles by Melissa Stewart, illustrated by Higgins Bond
PB
- Box Turtle at Long Pond by William T. George, illustrated by Lindsay Barrett George
- Truman by Jean Reidy, illustrated by Lucy Ruth Cummins
Water
AN
- The Other Side of the River: Stories of Women, Water, and the World by Eila Carrico
YA
- The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossan
JN
- Water is Water: A Book About the Water Cycle by Miranda Paul, illustrated by Jason Chin
PB
- A River Ran Wild: An Environmental History by Lynne Cherry
- Monsoon Afternoon by Kashmira Sheth, illustrated by Yoshiko Jaeggi
- Out of the Woods: A True Story of an Unforgettable Event by Rebecca Bond
- A Cool Drink of Water by Barbara Kerley
- Muskrat Will Be Swimming by Cheryl Savageau, illustrated by Robert Hynes
- Water is Water by Miranda Paul and Jason Chin
Wolves & Coyotes
AN
- Shadow Mountain: A Memoir of Wolves, a Woman, and the Wild by Renee Askins
- The Daily Coyote: A Story of Love, Survival, and Trust in the Wilds of Wyoming by Shreve Stockton
- Coyote America: A Natural and Supernatural History by Dan Flores
- The Way of the Coyote: Shared Journeys in the Urban Wilds by Gavin van Horn
MG
- Run Wild by Gill Lewis
- Street Shadows by Claire Gilchrist
PB
- Coyote Moon by Maria Gianferrari, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline
Wildlife Conservation
AN
- Hope for Animals and Their World: How Endangered Species Are Being Rescued from the Brink by Jane Goodall
- Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
- Rewildling Our Hearts: Building Pathways of Compassion and Coexistence by Marc Bekoff
- The Condor’s Shadow: The Loss and Recovery of Wildlife in America by David S. Wilcove
- Wildlife Heroes: 40 Leading Conservationists and the Animals They Are Committed to Saving by Julie Scardina
YA
- Endangered by Eliot Schrefer
JN
- Going Wild: Helping Nature Thrive in Cities by Michelle Mulder
PB
- Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet by David McLimans
- Can We Save the Tiger? by Martin Jenkins, illustrated by Vicky White
- Red Alert! Endangered Animals Around the World by Catherine Barr, illustrated by Anne Wilson
Questions to Inspire Family Book Discussion:
- Who is the author of the book? What do you think it was like for them to write it?
- What did you like about the book?
- What questions did the book not answer? How can you learn more?
- What would you change about the book, if you could re-write it?
- Did the book encourage you to think about something in a new way?
- How does the book/theme relate to your own life? Have you ever observed any of the plants, animals, landscapes, or phenomena featured in the book?
- How did the book make you feel?
- Is there anything you would like to do differently after reading the book?
- What is one new thing you learned from reading the book?
- Did you like the book’s ending? Why or why not?
Family Book Club Activity Ideas:
- Make book marks with your favorite quotes.
- Read aloud your favorite parts from each book.
- Use social media to contact the author, ask a question, and see if they respond. If you liked their book, be sure to tell them so!
- Watch a movie related to the theme and compare it to the books you read.
- Create a timeline or map that represents your book and its setting.
- Recommend books to others in your life who you think may enjoy them.
- Check author websites for additional activities.
- Use the references or recommended reading list to choose your next book.
