Our Animal Neighbors: Compassion for Every Furry, Slimy, Prickly Creature on Earth

by Matthieu Ricard, Jason Gruhl, Becca Hall (Illustrator)

Overview

Winner of the Moonbeam Children's Animals/Pets Non-Fiction Gold Medal!

A story about the fundamental connection between animals and people and how we can treat all of Earth's creatures with compassion and empathy.

Furry polar bears, playful sea otters, slow sloths, prickly porcupines, and slimy snakes are just a few of the many animals we share our world with. And even though we might not look the same or have the same needs as our animal neighbors, we have more in common with them than we might think. Our Animal Neighbors introduces children to the importance of treating all animals with the care and compassion they deserve. We all want to experience love, safety, and respect and this book is the first step to instilling those values at an early age. This planet is our home, and we should all be free to live a prosperous life regardless of whether we have hands, hooves, scales, or fur.


“A serious message delivered with humor, simplicity, and charm makes this book an excellent purchase for families that value open-ended discussions. Also a good resource for classrooms and libraries that welcome diverse opinions and points of view.”—School Library Journal

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781611807233
Publisher:	Shambhala
Publication date:	09/01/2020
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	685,773
Product dimensions:	10.20(w) x 10.70(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

MATTHIEU RICARD is a Buddhist monk who had a promising career in cellular genetics before leaving France to study Buddhism in the Himalayas thirty-seven years ago. He is a best-selling author, translator, and photographer, and an active participant in current scientific research on the effects of meditation on the brain. He lives in Nepal and dedicates much of his time to humanitarian projects in the Himalayas through his nonprofit organization Karuna-Shechen.
JASON GRUHL is the former Executive Director and Founder of The Joshua School (a school for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Developmental Disabilities in Boulder and Denver, CO), and as an educational consultant, he impacts the lives of countless children and adults. Jason holds a master's degree in Counseling Psychology and a bachelor's degree in English and Psychology, is a Buddhist, and dedicates his life to self-discovery through meditation and reflection.
BECCA HALL is an illustrator based in the Lake District, England. Her work appears across the United Kingdom on stationery and giftware, and in children's books.

Editorial Reviews

05/18/2020

Ricard and Gruhl make a case for animal rights and ethical veganism by metaphorically framing Earth’s residents as neighbors equally deserving of respect and care. They begin by pointing out the “wildly different likes and needs” of these neighbors who “feel at home in very different places.” Their argument hits snags, though, when they pivot to unifying similarities: do even solo creatures require “family and friendship,” as the book suggests? A more persuasive claim centers on human actions: “when we look with our eyes and our hearts, we can act with love and compassion toward all beings.” Hall’s cartoonlike, sometimes heavy-handed illustrations make implied meanings plain, showing happily swimming dolphins alongside smiling humans, and later, huddling monkeys scarred by medical experiments, and trembling cows heading into a “Fast Food Factory.” Closes with a discussion of the benefits of a plant-based diet. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

A serious message delivered with humor, simplicity, and charm makes this book an excellent purchase for families that value open-ended discussions. Also a good resource for classrooms and libraries that welcome diverse opinions and points of view.”—School Library Journal

“Ricard and Gruhl make a case for animal rights and ethical veganism by metaphorically framing Earth’s residents as neighbors equally deserving of respect and care.”—Publishers Weekly 

From the Publisher

09/01/2020

PreS-Gr 3—The concept of neighborhood extends beyond the diverse group of cartoon characters depicted in the opening pages of this book. The text spotlights the unique skills of all living beings. For example, owls use night vision while bats use sonar. Pigs have a powerful sense of smell. Human intellect has led to remarkable inventions. Despite their different kinds of intelligence, however, a common bond exists between all creatures—not just ones with obvious similarities. Every living being has needs, desires, strengths, fears, and a will to survive. And humans are not the only species to seek companionship, love, and safety. The illustrations show animal moms cuddling their young and humans snuggling with their pets and with one another. Human characters are drawn with a variety of skin tones and cultural identifiers. This title makes a convincing case for compassion with a tone that is perfect for its audience. Nonetheless, there is an underlying animal rights agenda that proposes actions that may feel too radical for some readers. In one scene, foxes watch as a white woman evaluates her wardrobe. In another, a cheerful hamburger looks down on cattle that do not anticipate their future. These illustrations seem to emphasize the authors' position, which is detailed at the end in a plea for a plant-based diet. Adults should be prepared for conversations with young readers. VERDICT A serious message delivered with humor, simplicity, and charm makes this book an excellent purchase for families that value open-ended discussions. Also a good resource for classrooms and libraries that welcome diverse opinions and points of view.—Gloria Koster, formerly at West Sch., New Canaan, CT

School Library Journal

2020-06-30
A picture book about compassion for the animals that share the planet.

The story starts with a double-page spread showing a diversity of humans all jumbled together facing readers, relaying the idea that humans come in different shapes, sizes, and colors (and dispositions and beliefs) yet are all neighbors, planetarily speaking. The page turn then extends this idea to the diversity of animals and, not unpredictably, shows a double-page spread of a jumble of different animals facing readers. In the same back-and-forth vein, the story continues by pointing out that humans use “intelligence” to survive while animals have different, other skills to help them—an off-key anthropocentric viewpoint that assumes animals aren’t intelligent. This off-key note continues with a confusing illustration that attempts to highlight animals’ and humans’ “wildly different likes and needs,” wherein humans are shown using aids to accomplish what animals do naturally. But, in a pivot, it seems we don’t have such “wildly different likes and needs” after all, since the story concludes, “you have more in common with your neighbors than you think,” and lists those common needs: “food and water…clean air and shelter…family and friendship,” among others. The book’s intention is good-hearted, but the execution is messy, and that extends to many of the illustrations, which are flat in their colors and unnuanced in their line and interpretation. The backmatter unsubtly advocates for vegetarianism.

Simplistic and heavy-handed. (resources) (Informational picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews