Books like Who Sank the Boat? — picked by fans

I love this book because of its humour in giving cows human characteristics.

Just the thought of cows typing is hilarious in itself. Children love animal characters that act like humans. It is hilarious while also giving relevance to the child’s world. The large illustrations of cows typing add to the humour and fun in the story.

The onomatopoeia words are fun to say aloud, such as "click clack moo." Children love joining in and repeating these words over and over again. Children are entertained by the fact that the cows are smart and trick the farmer. 

This book is a favourite of mine to read aloud to young children.

The writing is musical with a predictable rhythm that young children enjoy. The story has a repetitive chorus that children instinctively chant along to. As children repeat the chorus, they feel like they are reading, which gives them a sense of achievement.

The story is full of fun onomatopoeia words that children love saying, such as swishing, squelchy, and stomping. This language also allows children to act out the words using their whole bodies, which adds to the reading experience.

The story is full of anticipation and just the right amount of suspense for this age group. This book will keep children engaged from beginning to end.

This is one of my favourite books to read to a child at bedtime.

Its rhythm and rhyme have an almost lullaby effect with a soothing tone. So many children are fascinated by big trucks, bulldozers, and building sites, but this story is different as the busy, noisy site is going to sleep. The loud machines are quietening down, giving the child the message that it’s time to settle down, as the world is now going to sleep.

The illustrations painted under a night sky are another way the book projects its time to sleep. Each machine on the building site is packing up and going through a bedtime routine that reinforces to the child that the day is ended and it's time for bed. Even the most energetic child will be calmed by this comforting book.

I love this story through its use of tension and suspense.

Children are hooked on the fact that there is a hungry bear on the prowl. The story engages the child, causing them to listen intently. The reader can ask the listener to predict what will happen and what they might do in such a situation. Children also love joining in the bears' growling at the predictable times in the story.

The book has a wonderful surprise and a sense of relief at the ending.   

Do you love animals and seeing them within stories but sometimes just want something shorter than a full-length novel?

Then check out Animal Kingdom, a Havok anthology that includes 48 pieces of flash fiction (1000 words or less). Every piece features an animal and celebrates animal and human connections. Several pieces are fantasy, but (bonus) the collection also includes stories for fans of science fiction, thriller, mystery, and humor.

Pick up this book if you want a lot of different clean stories, fantasy and beyond, which feature many different types of animal companions (ranging from photogenic snakes, light-carrying moths, and more)! 

What's not to love about the bouncy, perfect rhyme and zany illustrations of a day at the zoo packed with action and humorous touches? But this board book has more subtle layers, too. While the first few spreads show the zookeeper getting animals ready for opening, the viewpoint shifts to the animal's thoughts on the humans:

My, what silly things they do,/ all these creatures at the zoo.

The following pages detail actions common to people and zoo animals like dancing feet, carrying babies, and shrieking. I've often thought that if we humans could keep in mind that we’re animals, too, we’d be better at sharing the planet with them. This simple and simply hilarious book does that in a way humans of all ages can appreciate.

Yawns are contagious! So is this book.

Turn bedtime into a fun game by having your child yawn at every flap lift and see how sleepy they get. The animals are simple and bold with expression. Kids lift the flap of the animal’s mouth and get to see inside the mouth.

I can see parents using this book to point out how animals have different types of teeth. I like how the flaps reveal not just an answer, but that it prompts an action by the child to yawn along as well.

If you’re gonna draw any creatures, humans included, it’s important to understand all the factors that influence their size and their shape. The temperature of their environment, the altitude, the precipitation— even the gravity of the planet itself. The book gives gives an in-depth understanding as to why animals look they way they do, and why some weird structures are not only practical, but crucial for a species to survive.

I was that kid who liked grabbing the encyclopedia and reading it for fun. My husband did the same thing.

This gorgeous “encyclopedia-like” anthology is filled with beautiful illustrations and funny writing. I love grabbing it and reading a page here and there to learn a new fact or to simply appreciate a creature I might never have read anything about!

Did you know that some parrotfish make a sleeping bag out of slime to spend the night in? Or that sloths are surprisingly good swimmers who cross fast-moving rivers doing the doggy paddle? Ben Hoare’s writing is simple, informative, and fun! I appreciate the graphic design and colorful images that “pop” off the page. 

There are lots of animal encyclopedias out there, but none compares to this Dorling Kindersly book. Each double-page spread focuses on a particular biome. The illustration takes up most of the page and depicts the inhabitants assembled in naturalistic poses. Along the borders of the page are labels and short paragraphs about each of the animals. Topics related to a particular biome are included: Surviving the Cold, The Burrowers, etc. The Life in the Mountains and The Ocean Depths sections show the different levels in which animals live. This is a book to be gazed at long and luxuriously, preferably on a lap.