Did you know that May is Be Kind to Animals Month? It’s a great time to take a moment to appreciate all the creatures, great and small, that we share our incredible planet with.

Naturally, a great way to build compassion for and understanding of the Earth’s fauna is to crack into a book! Big or small, on the land or in the sea, from the largest behemoths to the teeniest pollinator, there are so many amazing things to learn about animals from books just like these!

The Elephant and the Piano by Colette Hiller, illus. by Nabila Adani

The Little Bee by Nicola Killen

If You Went to the Bottom of the Ocean by Brooke McIntyre, illus. by Gordy Wright

Neil, the Amazing Sea Cucumber by Amelia Tonta, illus. by Lucinda Gifford

Horned Toad Has a Superpower by Jill Esbaum, illus. Bob Shea

Pretty Close, but Not the Same: A Side-by-Side Look at Confusable Critters by Meg Fleming, illus. by Steph Stilwell

Because of a Bee by Lola M. Schaefer, illus. by Frenci Sanna

Big thanks to Sourcebooks Explore, Beach Lane Books, SimonKIDS, Chronicle Kids, Viking BFYR, G. P. Putnam’s Sons, and Penguin Young Readers for copies of these books!