On this page, we've put together a collection of animal books with a Halloween theme. Find the ideal Halloween gift for your animal-loving friend or relative!
Note: as Amazon Associates, we may receive an affiliate commission for purchases made via the Amazon links on this page.
Halloween Books On Spiders
These eight-legged and (usually) eight-eyed arachnids inspire a disproportionate amount of fear in some people, but in fact only a small number of spider species are capable of causing us harm (and even those that can rarely do).
For arachnophobes, the books below may help you get over your (mostly irrational) fear! For spider-lovers, they'll help you to learn even more about these fascinating (and highly beneficial) animals...
Spider Books For Kids
National Geographic Readers: Spiders
They say:
You don’t have to look far to see a spider’s web—in the corner of the window, on a fence, or in a bush—spiders make their homes everywhere. And there are so many kinds of spiders! Some red, some blue, yellow, and more…all fascinating. Amazing photography and easy-to-understand text make Spiders a hit in this National Geographic Kids series.
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Spider Books For Adults
Spiders of North America (Princeton Field Guides)
They say:
Of the more than 49,000 species of spider worldwide, some 4,000 are in North America. Spiders of North America explores more than 500 of the most common and interesting spiders found in this region of the world. This richly illustrated guide begins with an overview of spiders―what they are exactly, how they can be found, how they develop, and why they are important. The book features information on all the major spider guilds: sensing web weavers, sheet web weavers, orb web weavers, space web weavers, ambush hunters, ground active hunters, other active hunters, and spider hunters. Chapters contain accessible descriptions for identifying members of each spider family, including helpful tips for distinguishing members of similar families, and details at the genus and species levels. Stunning color photographs and informative distribution maps accompany the text.
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All You Need to Know About Spiders
They say:
Spiders have fascinating properties and their world is full of surprises. Everything you need to know about them is explained in this book in understandable language by experts for laymen. In addition, some of the most common spider species in the house and garden are briefly presented with tips for observation.
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Halloween Books On Bugs
Spiders are generally considered the "scariest" invertebrates, but some people find insects and other bugs just as creepy!
Fear of bugs (like most of our fears) is generally unfounded, and can be overcome with greater understanding. If you read the books below perhaps you'll learn to love bugs!
Bug Books For Kids
Bugs: A Stunning Pop-up Look at Insects, Spiders, and Other Creepy-Crawlies
They say:
Larger-than-life bugs spring from the pages, peek out from behind flaps, and hide under tabs, inviting young entomologists to marvel at the mind-boggling variety of arthropod life. What reader can resist a chance to look inside a cockroach’s body to see how it works or open a wasps’ nest to see what’s inside? Useful information (why does the world need bees?) and scientific trivia (which beetles are strongest and fastest?) pack every page, while exquisite art and dramatic pop-ups bring the world of bugs to teeming life.
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Everything You Need to Know About Bugs
They say:
Everything You Need to Know about Bugs is an interactive read that any child interested in insects will love! This interactive read is full of fun insect facts, an insect identification guide, and key information about recognizing bugs and creepy crawlies all around. Identify bugs you might see in the backyard or camping, and find out about bugs you've never heard about before — it's all in Everything You Need to Know about Bugs, your complete bug and insect resource. Bugs come in all shapes and sizes, and have incredible and varied abilities. Children will love discovering more about the fascinating, and often hidden, world of insects and bugs.
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Super Bug Encyclopedia: The Biggest, Fastest, Deadliest Creepy-Crawlers on the Planet (DK Super Nature Encyclopedias)
They say:
Come face to face with the most incredible insects on Earth, where you’ll experience the microscopic world of bugs in mind-blowing depth and detail.
Super Bug Encyclopedia showcases a huge variety of these tiny creatures at close range, making them millions of times bigger than their true size to give you the complete picture. From ants to wasps and centipedes to spiders, experience amazing anatomy and athleticism and find out who comes out on top for strength and speed. You’ll meet the hawkmoth with the longest tongue of any insect and discover the velvet worm that squirts sticky slime to snare prey. Stand clear as the African bombardier beetle blasts out a sizzling hot chemical attack and race alongside the glorious green tiger beetle that lives life in the fast lane.
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Bug Books For Adults
Smithsonian Handbooks: Insects
They say:
Written by noted entomologist George C. McGavin, this comprehensive handbook covers all 29 orders of insect as well as spiders and terrestrial arthropods. It’s packed with hundreds of annotated photographs and illustrations to help you discern the many types of insects and gives you a brief description of each insect family with main characteristics, including life cycles, the environment in which they thrive, and a photographic guide to assist you in categorizing the insect group. It’s an indispensable handbook for beginners and enthusiasts alike.
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Halloween Books On Bats
Bats are the only mammals capable of true flight. Due to their nocturnal behavior and often bizarre appearance, bats feature in the myths and folklore of many cultures. One of the most enduring horror figures is the vampire, a mythical creature after which the real-life blood-drinking vampire bats were named.
Bat Books For Kids
National Geographic Readers: Bats
They say:
They live in spooky caves, in forests, even in the dark reaches of ordinary attics and bridges. They flock by the hundreds, and they sleep while hanging upside down! In this beautifully photographed Level 2 Reader, kids learn about one of the most interesting creatures around—and discover the bat’s unique place in the wild and in the world. The high-interest topic, expertly written text, and bonus learning activity lay the groundwork for a successful and rewarding reading experience.
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Bat Books For Adults
Bats: An Illustrated Guide to All Species
They say:
Bats: An Illustrated Guide to All Species explores bats and their fundamental role in our ecosystems through lavish full-color photographs and lively narrative. From the Giant Golden Crowned Flying Fox, a megabat with a wingspan of more than five feet, to the aptly named Bumblebee Bat, the world's smallest mammal, the number and diversity of bat species have proven to be both rich and underestimated. Nocturnal, fast-flying, and secretive, bats are difficult to observe and catalog. This richly illustrated handbook presents bats' evolution, biology, behavior, and ecology. It offers in-depth profiles of four hundred megabats and microbats and detailed summaries of all the species identified to date. Complete with an introduction exploring bats' natural history and their unique adaptations to life on the wing, Bats includes close-up images of these animals' delicate and intricate forms and faces, each shaped by evolution to meet the demands of an extraordinarily specialized life.
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The Secret Lives Of Bats: My Adventures with the World's Most Misunderstood Mammals
They say:
Few people realize how sophisticated and intelligent bats are. Merlin Tuttle knows, and he has stopped at nothing to find and protect them on every continent they inhabit. Sharing highlights from a lifetime of adventure and discovery, Tuttle takes us to the frontiers of bat research to show that frog-eating bats can identify frogs by their calls, that some bats have social sophistication similar to that of higher primates, and that bats have remarkable memories. Bats also provide enormous benefits by eating crop pests, pollinating plants, and carrying seeds needed for reforestation. They save farmers billions of dollars annually and are essential to a healthy planet. Tuttle’s account forever changes the way we see these poorly understood yet fascinating creatures.
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Halloween Books On Wolves
Wolves, for centuries, have been embedded in human folklore and myths as creatures to be feared. Their haunting howls echoing through the wilderness, their glowing eyes in the moonlight, and their pack hunting strategies make them formidable predators. Historically, they have been perceived as threats to livestock and, on rare occasions, to humans, fueling stories of wolf attacks and werewolf legends. This combination of real and imagined threats, magnified by tales and media portrayals, has shaped the wolf's reputation as a symbol of the wild and unknown, thereby casting it in a fearsome light in the eyes of many.
Wolf Books For Kids
National Geographic Readers: Wolves
They say:
They run in packs, stalk their prey, and howl at the moon. And no matter where you are—they're always lurking somewhere nearby. Wolves, the predatory puppy dogs of the wild, are feared and loved by people everywhere. But are they misunderstood? In this fascinating level 2 reader, you'll learn that there's much more to being a wolf than most people could ever believe. Did you know that each pack has a pecking order? That wolves can "talk" to each other using body language? Or that they're actually not out to attack humans, they usually leave people well enough alone? Full of incredible photographs and interesting information, Wolves will appeal to all kids.
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Wolf Books For Adults
The Rise of Wolf 8: Witnessing the Triumph of Yellowstone's Underdog (The Alpha Wolves of Yellowstone, 1)
They say:
Yellowstone National Park was once home to an abundance of wild wolves—but park rangers killed the last of their kind in the 1920s. Decades later, the rangers brought them back, with the first wolves arriving from Canada in 1995. This is the incredible true story of one of those wolves.
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The Hidden Life of Wolves
They say:
For conservationists and lovers of animals, nature, and especially dogs, this National Geographic book shares the surprising understanding of wild wolves gained over six years the authors spent living intimately with them. Delve into Jim and Jamie Dutcher’s amazing wolf photography documenting a pack of wolves at the edge of Idaho's Sawtooth Wilderness, illuminating their complex social hierarchy.
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Halloween Books On Snakes
Snakes have long been associated with fear and trepidation in various cultures and societies. Their slithering motion and the potential to deliver a venomous bite have made them subjects of both fascination and dread. This natural aversion has been amplified by cultural narratives, religious texts, and myths that depict snakes as symbols of deceit or harbingers of danger, further cementing their reputation as creatures to be feared.
Snake Books For Kids
National Geographic Readers: Snakes!
They say:
They’re SSSSLITHERY! SLIPPERY! They creep us out! But get to know them and you’ll find snakes private, quiet types who just want a cool, shady place to call home. From the tip of their forked tongues, to skin that sheds, to the rattles on certain tails, these creatures have secrets all kids will love. Cool photos and fun facts slip us inside their surprising world.
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Everything You Need to Know About Snakes
They say:
Embark on a fun, fact-filled dive into the world of snakes with Everything You Need to Know About Snakes. Children will love to learn all the basics of reptile anatomy in this beautiful and informative book on our serpent friends.
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Snake Books For Adults
Snake: The Essential Visual Guide
They say:
Find out about snakes from all over the world in this best-selling visual guide, with information about snake evolution, habitats, reproductive behavior, feeding, defense, and much more.
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Halloween Books On Owls
Owls, with their nocturnal behavior, large piercing eyes, and haunting calls, have long been shrouded in mystery and intrigue. In many cultures, they are seen as omens or symbols of death, possibly because they silently stalk their prey under the cover of darkness. Their ability to rotate their heads almost completely around gives them an otherworldly appearance, and their solitary nature adds to their enigmatic aura. While some see owls as wise and protective, others associate them with the supernatural, linking them to witchcraft, sorcery, or as messengers from the beyond.
Discover more about the fascinating world of owls with the books below.
Owl Books For Kids
National Geographic Readers: Owls
They say:
In this level 1 reader, young readers will explore the feathery world of adorable owls. Follow these curious-looking creatures through their wooded habitats, and learn how owls raise their young, hunt, and protect themselves. Beautiful photos and carefully leveled text make this book perfect for reading aloud or for independent reading.
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Owl Books For Adults
Owls of the World: A Photographic Guide
They say:
Owls of the World, second edition, is the ultimate photographic resource dedicated to the identification of these charismatic birds of prey. It is packed with spectacular photography of 268 species of owls from all over the world, including extinct species. Many of the images are of highly elusive species very rarely caught on camera.
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The Enigma of the Owl: An Illustrated Natural History
They say:
Perhaps no other creature has so compelling a gaze as the owl. Its unblinking stare mesmerizes; its nocturnal lifestyle suggests secrets and mystery. This lavishly illustrated book celebrates owls from every corner of the world and offers abundant details on fifty-three of the most striking and interesting species, from the tiny Elf Owl of southwestern American deserts to the formidable Blakiston’s Fish Owl, the largest of all owls.
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