My list of Xenofiction (animal protagonist/world) books and media I've either read, or been meaning to read! 

(Mostly books, but may mention film adaptations, webcomics, visual novels and narrative driven games as well)

I may update with reviews as I finish them.

Feel free to add your own or discuss here as well!

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WIP!

Top 3 

1. Varjak Paw by SF Said - 2 book series - Highly Recommend - Primary Species: Cat 🐈 

Currently my favorite recommendation, especially for any Warrior Cats fans who are fatigued with the series and are looking to branch out.

Action adventure about a house cat who learns to hunt and fight from his dream ancestor after he leaves his home to live as a stray. He forms friendships with a band of cats and even a few dogs. Conflict in the first book revolves around a mysterious disappearance of cats, while the second book is about the encroaching danger of a violent gang of cats.

The plot isn't the most unique thing in the world, but the ink illustration and visual design of some of the pages is so, so nice.  It's a short series, so not much time lost if it's not your thing. (The author mentioned there would be a third book in like 2006, but no news on that.) 

I actually started with the second book, The Outlaw Varjak Paw (Varjak Paw had been checked out and I didn't realize it was a series at the time). Personally I think the two stories are stand alone enough you don't necessarily need the context of the other book. Personally I liked The Outlaw more, but I enjoyed both very much. 

2. Watership Down by Richard Adams - Standalone - Highly Recommend - Primary Species: Rabbit 🐇 

A true classic of the genre. I have a feeling many are already familiar with it, it is the story of a warren of rabbits destroyed by urban development, and the survivors having to travel to find a new home. 

The folkloric angle is very well done and Fiver's prophetic dreams feel appropriately mysterious and scary. 

The only knock I have against it is the very male-leaning cast (Bigwig has a pretty cringe line about "needing more does") but despite that it's well worth a read.

If you have an interest in film/animation, do not skip watching the 1978 film adaptation. There are some scenes omitted, altered, or added but it is fairly faithful, and definitely faithful to the message. 

There are also  2018 and 1999 tv series adaptations. I have not seen the 1999 one. The 2018 changed the gender of a few side characters but is fairly faithful as well.

3. Guardians of Ga'Hoole by Katyrn Lasky - Multiple Arcs, 16 books,  - Highly Recommend (Due for a re-read) - Primary species: Owl 🦉 

Basically everything actually good about Warrior Cats but better.

In broad strokes this series is about a kingdom of owls who must defeat the 'Pure Ones', a rising group of supremacists. The protagonist starts as Soren, a barn owl who is kidnapped by a brainwashing cult/work camp, and then later Corrin, Soren's nephew with Evil Parents.

There is a lot of neat lore and interesting ways the owls supplement their battle tactics (metal claws, carrying embers). My memory is a bit fuzzy since it's been many years since I read them. I remember Twilight and Gylfie being my favorites of the main band and Ezlyrb, Otulissa, Dustytuft, and Lutta (latter two are very sad) being some of my other favorites.

The 2010 film adaptation Legends of the Guardians: Owls of Ga'Hoole condenses the story considerably, so I'd recommend reading the books first if you care about spoilers. But I do still recommend the movie because the animation is stellar.

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(The rest will be sorted by Primary species)

Mice, Rodents, 'Woodland Critters' 

Poppy by Avi - Part of the Tales of Dimwood  Series  - Recommend (Due for a re-read) - Primary Species: Mouse 🐭 -

Poppy was my favorite book as a child, and one of my earliest exposure to xenofiction. (Perhaps one of the first books that killed a character off so early on too haha)

It tells the story of a widowed mouse, struggling to provide for her family under the threat of a dangerous owl. 

The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett -  Standalone; (Set in the fantasy realm of Discworld but not considered part of that series) - Highly Recommended - Primary Species: Cat, Rats, Humans 🐭 🐈 

Originally picked this up because its a self contained story in the Discworld setting and they were making it into a movie. (I have yet to see the movie)  My favorite book I read in 2022 by a long shot, fits my interests the best, lots of humor and very cute. Maurice is a bastard  con artist of a cat, stringing the rats into working with him for his pied piper scthick, just very fun clash of different personalities and a very Call of Cathulu kind of vibe. It *is* about also about rats though so lots of gross causal mentions about them peeing and pooping everywhere (they use the term 'widdling'). The animal violence is about on par with like Watership Down or Warrior Cats violence but  generally skews more comedic.

Just as charming, funny, and whimsical as Terry Prachett's other books, reading this was a highlight of my summer.

I could see the interaction with human children being a turn off for some people but they didn't bother me. Feels a little more All Dogs Go to Heaven/ Don Bluth Movie type inclusion - Relevant to the plot but Maurice is the star here. 

Tale of Desperaux - Recommend - Primary Species: Mouse 🐭 

Cats

The Wildings by Nilanjana Roy - Two book series - Recommend - Primary Species: Cat 🐈 

A kitten born with an unusually strong telepathy power known as 'Sending' causes a ruckus as has little control over what she sends, and her projected thoughts are LOUD AND ANNOYING. The cats recruit her as their new 'Sender', and she is instrumental in taking down a dangerous foe- the leader of a gang of cannibalistic cats. 

The way the powers work, setting the story in India, and the communication with non-cat animals are what set it apart the most. If cross animal communications annoys you it might not be your thing but it's less one random exception to the rule and more of a language they establish and use appropriately. The different mannerisms of the species is a highlight, really entertaining.

Overall I say it's very well written,  the jumping around different perspectives may be a bit jarring at first but I think evened out as the book progresses. (Though my bias is that I wish we spent just a little more time in Beraal's head) It throws a lot of characters at you right off the bat, but then rounds back around to giving time with each of them.

Mara is very funny but sometimes I do think they tried too hard to have her come across as 'cute and bubbly' which I found less endearing than her vapid, bratty moments but I mileage may vary on that. 

I think the confrontation actually does wrap up in a really clever way that pulls in elements built up in other chapters seamlessly.

I'd say it's more mature and complex than the Tyrgrine Cat. Despite the powers and other animal languages The cats feel very much Like Cats, and that grounds it for me.  they do actually kill off certain characters. The way the Beraal casually describes having had a litter with x cat or having to cull kittens in the past is pretty unique, almost aromantic- there's no warrior cats monogamy going on here lol.

Sequel: The Hundred names of Darkness

Apparently I only imagined very hard that I already wrote a review of this. Either that or Discord doesn't want it to see the light of day lol. 

Overall, I think it was a fairly cohesive way to continue the story. Mara is older now, and more situated into her role as the Sender. She must take a big step- finally physically leaving her home. She begins meeting with the Senders of other cat colonies and negotiating with them.

Their territory is shrinking due to urban development, so finding a new place to live os the main plot, while Southpaw being injured and taken in by humans (going missing) is a secondary plot. 

The cast of supporting characters gets a bit zanier, and the humor is a little hit and miss for me. Hatch, a cheel who fears flying, Doginder, a dog who wants to be a guard dog, and Tomas Mor, a peacock who lives on the golf course. Hatch is probably the weakest of the three to me, one note, moody teen says 'whateva' to blow others off a lot. 

The title drop Thousand Names of Darkness is a story Beraal tella Mara with more of a folkloric angle and is a highlight. 

There is also a battle against an overpopulation of rats, and main villain is pretty comedic to me. 

I have a slight preference for the first book but some scenes I liked better in this one. 

The Tygrine Cat - Three Book Series (I have only read book 1 so far) - Soft Recommend - Primary Species: Cat 🐈 -

Action adventure where the Tygrine cat, Mati, is the only living heir to his clan. His mother sacrifices herself to save him from the assassin Mithos, but he starts to pick up on Mati's trail eventually... 

I enjoyed it quite a bit, a nice short popcorn read that didn't overstay it's welcome. (only like 250 pages) Nothing in it will really surprise you, very good vs evil - but it was funny and charming with some nice lore and spooky moments.   I'd peg it more as a solid  Children's Book than Warrior Cats/Watership Down, Nowhere near as dark or gratuitous, most of the violence has poetic or mystical quality to it- in my animator minds eye Don Bluth would have a field day with the imagery (It's not Kiddie Kiddie  though Mithos is in fact a killer and still had some great villainous bastard moments)

The plot takes a breakneck pace after the fluff and lore at the start (personally would have liked just a little more time exploring the Cressida Cat dynamics before Thing Happen but it definitely doesn't waste your time)

The gender ratio isn't terrible, none of the female characters really feel disposable, the majority of the Folkloric characters were mollies, and Mati's connection to his mother is a very important throughline (though I do kind of wish Ria and Trillion had more scenes) 

some details I liked
- catisms; we actually get slow blinks, caterwauling, tail chasing etc just silly little guys
- the cats' culture is not treated with the solemn gravitas of Warrior Cats in the narrative; they are allowed to be petty and superstitious and overly concerned with pomp and circumstance 10/10
- the cats view on house pets is that they are the ones who 'own' the humans lol
- homophobia??  there is a passing mention of a stigma against older toms who never took on a mate (respect this being said out loud) I love you gay uncle Sparrow
- the cats comparative ages are pretty clear the whole time like Mati is just solidly a Little Guy he's itty bitty shaking chihuahua and I love him 

-  Mati is a VERY cute protagonist lol he considers himself a 'master thief' and is a huge nerd some bullies were making fun of his fur color and he's like  "uhm actually I'm an agouti it's normal"
- took the same 'I like this specific cat breed so they're the Special one' as Varjak Paw which is just funny to me

-Its just funny in general like even Big bad scary assassin reaction to peeking into the the vet office and seeing a dog in a cone: "Only humans could concoct such peculiar torture"

Warrior Cats by Erin Hunter -  54+ books, ongoing - Cautious Recommendation - Primary Species: Cat 🐈 

A giant of  the genre, popular for a reason, but flawed in many ways as well. Wild cats who live in the forest and go through various soap opera levels of drama, battling, etc.  Its very nostalgic, and simplistic enough world building it leaves a lot of wiggle room for fans to run and do their own thing with it (Warrior Cats RP is extremely popular). The huge web of characters that accurate over the series have lead to a bad amount of (hopefully accidental) incest, questionable age-gaps, mischaracterization, underutilized characters. The series has also often been criticized for ableism, misogyny, and racism (specifically a mishandling of The Tribe, who are something of a Native American stand in). 

Disclaimer: I've personally only read the first four arcs, plus a few of the side books/mangas/fid guides. They're lower priority for me to continue with, but buzz about the most recent arcs has caught some of my interest.

Starting with the first series and/or manga adaptation of the first arc would be my recommendation to a new reader. I'd also suggest Mapleshade's Vengeance and Crookedstar's Promise for a taste of what the side/prequel stories are like.  Above all else though, check out the Warrior Cats fan animation scene on YouTube along side your reading! 

- Large Carnivores -

Seekers by Erin Hunter - 12 book series, two arcs and a manga - Cautious Recommendation - Primary Species: Bear 🐻 -

I read this back in middle/high school alongside Warrior Cats.  I remember enjoying it but I haven't revisited it since I finished it and can't speak how gracefully the Native American elements were handled. I don't remember anything egregious but I haven't put out feelers for what folks think.

Runt by Marion Dane Bauer - Standalone novel - Soft Recommend  - Primary Species: Wolf 🐺 

A story about the runt of the pack who is disowned by his father, and wants to earn his respect and a true pack name. You'll have more to sink your teeth in with Wolves of Beyond, but for a quick little read it's not bad.

Many years since I read this. One of my earliest Xenofiction books besides Poppy by Avi. 

Furry/Anthro - (Some things skirt the line but basically ones that have a more humanoid structure and aren't doing anything fun small/secret word or remains of an apocalypse stuff re: example to-scale mice  using a needle as a sword Tale of Desperaux, Small Saga VS is based in historical 1920's they're just furries for fun Lackadaisy)

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Reading List

Partial Exposure (Haven't Read full series or have seen other adaptations

Redwall 🐭 🐇 🦫 🦊 🐿️ 

Rats of NIMH 🐭 

Basil of Baker Street  🐭 

Animals of Farthing Woods 🐭 🦊 🐇 ?

The Wolves of Beyond 🐺 

Survivors 🐶 

Plague Dogs 🐶 

Ratha's Creature 🦁 

Geronimo Stiltskin 🐭 🧍

Happy Happy Clover (はぴはぴクローバー, Hapi Hapi Kurōbā) 🐇 🐭 🐿️ 

 Tales from Dimwood Forest (Poppy Series) 🐭 

No Exposure (Have not read beyond the blurb)

Mistmantle Series 🐿️ 

Silverwing 🦇 

Tailchaser's Song 🐈 

Wings of Fire 🐉 

Wildlands 🦁 

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Webcomics

Finished 

(Placeholder)

Ongoing

What Lurks Beneath 🐈 

Cat Island 🐈 

Golden Shrike 🦌 

Africa 🦁 

I Hope So 🦁 

Indefinite Hiatus / Dropped

Lackadaisy* 🐈 🧍 (Comic is on hiatus, animation is in production)

Pull Down Heaven 🐅 🐁 

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Honorable mention (Skirting the line a bit to be considered Xenofiction, but I enjoy enough to mention them)

What's Micheal? by Makoto Kobayashi 🐈 

Alterity Nuzlocke Comic by Mewitti (Indefinite Hiatus) 🐔 🦋 

The Last Unicorn 🦄 🪄 

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Film and TV

Pom Poko - Hello, please pl ease watch my favorite Ghibli movie, that is all thank you. 🦝 

Heathcliff and the Catillac Cats 🐈 

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimmaron - (I am curious about the books but they are out of print and expensive) 🐴 

Ringing Bell  🐏 \ 🐺 

Arashi no Yoru ni (あらしのよるに, lit. One Stormy Night) - I did actually stumble across one of the books in a used bookstore, but the film adaptation is probably your best bet. 🐏 \ 🐺 

Hamtaro 🐹 

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Visual Novel, Interactive Fiction, Games - (I may move these to the video game thread)

Stars in the Trash 🐈 \ 🐶 

Bug Fables 🪲 - PLEASE IF PPL HAVE ANY Bug People type worlds I Would LIKE TO Know About THEM 🙏 

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Warrior Cats Tangent

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IMO the manga is the superior version because it treats the characters far more respectfully, especially Ravenpaw and Brightheart. There are some classic scenes cut for time, but most of the changes streamline the story and make it easier to follow. I also appreciate how the artists took the effort to design all of the characters uniquely - at times the books have far too many similar characters who talk and act the exact same.

All of that being said, it's worth noting that the books are all written by different people, and Erin Hunter is a penname for them. Characters get forgotten, altered, or other odd inconsistances a single author may avoid. Sometimes these are amusing such as a character the community has claimed as trans, and one who has been killed off multiple times but keeps returning because they forget they've been killed off. Other times these are extremely jarring and alienating. 

I do believe it's also worth pointing out criticism leveled at the later parts of the series over the years. Specifically there's a lot of misogyny* and concerning content** which later gets altered or removed. I find it difficult to write off the entire series though... the authors of the original series are entirely different than the ones who carried the more recent arcs. 

If you want to do independent research before getting into the books I recommend watching Moonkitti's videos on it. The ones off the top of my heading being: I sort-of spoil Spottedleafs Heart**, Frecklewish Logic*, Bramblestar is Worse*

(Edit to add Gender in Warrior Cats by Sunnyfall is a very good video specifically about the misogyny.)

There's other things I could go off about, but I don't want to bog down this thread about it. The first like... three parts of the series and some of the novellas are great for what they are. I like other series better. Wings of Fire is my recomendation if you're looking for slightly more animalistic xenofiction. Humans are boring, whats the point of writing intelligent animals like that?

It is very easy to find copies from a thriftstore of the older books, so you can 'ethically' see if it's something you'd like. Libraries tend to be very up-to-date due to the popularity, and that's where I read the comic versions. I just feel like I always gotta put a big flag up about stuff like this.