20 stories and stories about animals that will make you kinder

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Warm stories about amazing creatures that inhabit the planet will appeal to readers of all ages.

1. "Billy Badlands, the victorious wolf", Ernest Seton-Thompson (from the collection "The Beast")

The hungry wolf cub, nicknamed Billy, had almost no chance of surviving his mother's death. But a she-wolf, who herself lost the puppies, found him, went out and raised him. Hunting together, they made the farmers and their livestock fearful. No matter what tricks people go, the she-wolf and Billy are always as if one step ahead.

Ernest Seton-Thompson is the most famous American author of animal stories. He was one of the founders of the scout movement, loved nature and could hardly endure city life.

With tenderness, trepidation and respect, the writer talks about the animals that coexist with man and often surpass him in ingenuity and cunning. The story "Billy Badlands, the winning wolf" was first published in Russian as part of the collection "The Beast".

2. “Dominoes. The Story of a Black-Brown Fox ", Ernest Seton-Thompson (from the collection" Animal Tales ")

In the book Tales of Animals, Domino's story is particularly noteworthy. The black fox stood out from the brothers and sisters with dexterity and cunning. From early childhood, he had an enemy - a puppy of a farmer who lived near the fox's hole. They grew up together and collided constantly, but Domino always managed to outwit the dog.

While hunting in the chicken coop, already an adult black-brown fox has become the main enemy of man. Therefore, the hunt for Domino began. To avoid death, he will have to show miracles of dexterity and ingenuity. Seton-Thompson does not even hide that his sympathies are on the side of the brave fox, and not at all on the side of people.

3. Call of the Wild, Jack London

A young playful dog named Beck grew up on a farm in warm California. But he was kidnapped and taken to Alaska, where he fell into the hands of gold diggers. In the harsh natural and weather conditions, there is no place for weasel. The dog is strapped to a heavy harness and forced to work. From a pet, Beck is practically a slave. He will have to adapt to his new life.

The story of this hero is somewhat similar to the life of London itself. He was also born in a sunny state, but moved north. It was there that he first encountered sled dogs and was inspired by their resilience and endurance.

4. "About the Elephant", Boris Zhitkov

Sailors who arrived in India at the beginning of the last century see an elephant for the first time. He amazes them not only with his size, but also with his wisdom and slightly arrogant behavior. The elephant shows travelers the way to the house of its owner and demonstrates how it can draw water from a well. People began to use the agility and strength of these animals to work in logging.

Boris Zhitkov was not only a writer, but also a traveler. In his stories, he transferred the experience of his trips to exotic countries. "About the Elephant" is a story not only about an extraordinary giant for Russia, but also about the traditions and life of mysterious India.

5. "About the monkey", Boris Zhitkov

A classmate offers a twelve-year-old boy to take home a strange animal. So a new tenant appears in an ordinary apartment - the macaque Yashka. Seemingly small and shy, Yashka quickly settles in and begins to manage. He jumps on furniture, demands sweet treats and attacks the dog, becoming the king of animals in the courtyard. The boy and his parents will now have to somehow get along and reckon with the furry family member.

6. "White Bim Black Ear", Gabriel Troepolsky

This is an incredibly touching and sad story about a white dog with a black ear. When his owner gets to the hospital, Bima is taken care of by a neighbor who is not up to the task.

Through the perception of the dog, Troepolsky actually talks about people. On the way of Beam, there are those who want to help him, but there are also those who are cruel to the dog. This story is primarily about kindness, love, devotion and how one good deed could prevent tragedy.

7. "Fomka the White Bear", Vera Chaplina

The inhabitant of the zoo, the bear cub Fomka attracted attention with his unusually meek disposition for such a formidable beast. He was modest, never went into conflict, got along well with the rest of the cubs, and a tiger cub became his best friend. Only with people the bear behaved relaxed and often made fun of the caretakers.

Vera Chaplina worked at the Moscow Zoo. It was then that she wanted to write about her charges. Even after leaving her previous position and taking up literature, Chaplin made animals the main characters in her works. The result of her work was the collection "Pets of the Zoo", in which she showed the life of the otter Naya, the elk calf, the cat Tsutsykarikha, the walrus Nyurki and many others.

8. "Smart dog Sonya", Andrey Usachev

The mongrel Sonya was nicknamed royal not only because of the surname of its owner Ivan Korolev, but also for its majestic appearance. The dog's curiosity constantly draws her into all sorts of interesting adventures. Either she gets sick from the mustard, which she tasted for the sake of interest, then she played too much at the loss and lost sight of the owner.

But Sonya is smart enough to draw conclusions from each situation and wind them around her dog's whiskers. There are wonderful cartoons based on Usachev's stories.

9. "White Poodle", Alexander Kuprin

Artaud the dog was a member of a traveling circus troupe. In addition to the poodle, there was an elderly organ-grinder and acrobat Seryozha. They traveled from city to city, but did not find hospitality and recognition. Once they came to them with an offer to buy the dog out, because one capricious boy liked it very much. Having received a refusal, the attacker steals Artaud at night, but Seryozha will not give up his friend just like that.

10. "Kashtanka", Anton Chekhov

A dog of unknown breed named Kashtanka was lost. She was picked up by a clown who gave her a new nickname and made her perform in the circus. Kashtanka did not like such a life, and the mongrel greatly missed the old master. He, too, did not lose hope of someday finding his faithful companion.

The idea for the story was proposed to Chekhov by the famous animal trainer Vladimir Durov. A similar situation once happened to him, but, by his own admission, he could not have told this story better than Anton Pavlovich.

11. "About Cats" by Charles Bukowski

The collection "On Cats" contains excerpts from the works of Bukowski, dedicated to those whom the author loved unconditionally - cats. The harsh and in some places cynical manner of presentation of the writer became soft as soon as it came to these animals. “They don't know how to lie. They are a force of nature,”Bukowski said about them.

For example, in the story "The Consequences of Verbose Refusal" the cat is far from the first place, but all the attention of the characters is focused on him. The tailed beast is treated as a full-fledged participant in the conversation, postponing the rest of the worries for later. The world freezes for a moment and focuses on the furry.

12. "Mouse Peak", Vitaly Bianchi

Even such a tiny creature of nature, like a mouse, can have a huge brave heart. The peak travels by raft, and danger lies in wait for it everywhere. He is fighting for life with the elements, as well as with predators who are just waiting for the right moment to devour a small rodent.

A screaming seagull is circling overhead, a toothy pike is tracking under the water, and a slippery snake is already trapping on the shore. Peak's story is not only fascinating, but also inspiring to feats.

13. "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi", Rudyard Kipling (from the collection "The Jungle Book")

A wild mongoose loses its parents due to flooding and is abandoned in an unfamiliar area. Here he finds a new home among people who fell in love with the animal and gave him the nickname Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. But they are in mortal danger, because the serpent family is plotting to kill them. The brave mongoose decides to save his masters.

The collection "The Jungle Book" includes not only "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" and the famous stories about Mowgli, who was raised by a pack of wolves. There are stories of elephants, their brave drivers, a herd of buffaloes and fur seals.

14. "About a hedgehog named Gosha", Eileen O'Connor (from the collection "About people, cats and small dogs")

This story resembles the paradox of Schrödinger's cat: a hedgehog seems to exist, but it seems to be not. The grandmother, dejected by the separation from her granddaughter Sonya, can only communicate with her by SMS. But such dialogues don't stick at all. The woman manages to interest the girl only by the news that the hedgehog Zhora has appeared in the house. Sonya promises to come to look at the thorny animal, and the granny now has to get it somewhere.

Eileen O'Connor is the creative pseudonym of the author of detective stories Elena Mikhalkova. The collection "On People, Cats and Small Dogs" originated on her pages in social networks. The stories quickly gained popularity. Therefore, the book includes the works of the author that have already managed to fall in love with the readers.

15. "Caravel and I", Olga Fadeeva

The city girl finds herself in a new wonderful world. But it is not at all fantastic and not invented. It's just that she had never been to the village before, and everything here seems unusual. Especially her attention is attracted by a cow with the sonorous name of Caravel, which was named so by her grandfather, a former sailor.

As if proving that the name suits her, Caravel behaves majestically and swims beautifully. And on her forehead she has a white heart-shaped spot. The book is illustrated by the author and completely immerses you in that carefree summer in which the heroine of the story finds herself.

16. Mrs. Pumphrey's Pig by James Harriott (from All Creatures, Large and Small)

The prim Englishwoman Mrs. Pumphrey lived in a house where perfect cleanliness and all the subtleties of etiquette were observed. Imagine the surprise of the village veterinarian when the lady got herself a pig. Confident that his colleague has confused something or did not hear on the phone, Dr. Harriot goes to the call. But Mrs Pumphrey does have a little pig, and she has a very rational explanation for this.

A veterinarian by training, James Harriott has always loved animals. Cases from practice he had to publish under a pseudonym so that readers would not consider them an advertisement for the clinic where he worked. The collection "About all creatures - large and small" includes about 70 kind and informative stories about animals.

17. "Adventures of a Monkey", Mikhail Zoshchenko

This is one of the few stories that tells about animals during and after the war. The zoological park was bombed. The surviving animals scattered in different directions. The most frightened of all was the monkey, which rushed into the city in search of food.

Hungry and alone, she knew little about what was happening around her. She was picked up by a kind boy and brought home. Now the savior needs to persuade the grandmother to leave the animal with him. But the adventures do not end there either: ahead of the monkey is an entertaining trip to the bathhouse.

18. "Underdop", Yuri Koval

A young arctic fox is called undershoot. The main character and a whole pack of his comrades live on a fur farm, waiting for imminent death. The employee's oversight led to the animals running away. But many were immediately caught and put back in their cages.

Only a brave Arctic fox named Napoleon ended up in a neighboring village. He found people who want to help him and even keep him. But a reward has been announced for catching the underdog. Ill-wishers in search of easy money are ready to give the Arctic fox to the fur farm. However, the hero himself is not going to put up with such a fate.

19. "The Eye of the Wolf" by Daniel Pennack

They hardly had a chance to meet. One is a polar wolf that lives where the snow does not melt, and the winds penetrate to the very bones. The second is a boy named Africa, who escaped from his native country, which was being torn apart by the war. Fate brought them together in Paris. The animal ended up in the zoo, the child came to see it.

Each of the heroes has their own difficult story. They are separated by a lattice, but united by the desire to understand each other. So, each quietly talking in his own language and looking into each other's eyes, the boy and the wolf understand that they are not so different.

20. "Inventor", Mikhail Prishvin (from the collection "Golden Meadow")

Wild ducks raised at home have offspring. But one of the mallards refused to hatch eggs, so a chicken had to be entrusted with taking care of them. The ducklings accepted the new mother as their own.

Every morning one chick mysteriously crawls out of the basket, although it still cannot fly. He can't get to the edge on his own. But he still found a way to escape, for which he was nicknamed the Inventor. The duckling amazes with wit and motivates. Even in a difficult situation, from which it is not immediately possible to get out, he turns out to be at his best.