That’s why our roundup of books about tigers includes several that draw attention to the plight of these magnificent big cats and the humans who risk their lives to protect them.

This story is a lot darker than I had expected going in, with very, very heavy themes of racism and prejudice throughout and even scenes of executions where it goes into quite a lot of detail. However, Tyger also has some very heartwarming moments too, Adam feels like a real boy with his own fears and worries and also feels very hopeful, in this world where everyone is terrible to anyone from another land, he still dreams of becoming an artist and selling his work, even though his parents have forbidden him from drawing. I very much enjoyed Tyger, Adam and Tyger have a great bond throughout the story and it has a very satisfying pay off at the end of the novel. There also seemed to be a message throughout that our enemies are not our neighbours, but the people pulling the strings, and I thought that was quite poignant with what is going on in the real world today as well. Sprinkled in among the hunt for the man eating tiger, is a rich history of the land, the people who call it home, and the psyche of the tigers who live there.

The books featured in this review fall into three basic categories: non-fiction, fiction, and children’s. If you’re looking for a book that will teach you more about the perilous plight of tigers as endangered species, you’ll want to select one of our non-fiction selections such as Living with Tigers or Life in the Valley of Death: The Fight to Save Tigers in a Land of Guns, Gold, and Greed. If you’re interested in a lighter, more entertaining read, go for a fiction book such as Life of Pi or A Tiger for Malgudi. And if you’re buying a book for a child, they’re sure to love The Tiger Who Came to Tea. Format This is a book that can broaden your perspective of not only tigers, but also human proclivities and the paradoxes of evolving Russian life. Life in the Valley of Death: The Fight to Save Tigers in a Land of Guns, Gold, and Greed byAlan Rabinowitz One thing I couldn’t get my head around is the mob - I didn’t really find a full explanation of how it started or why it’s there. It feels like it just comes out of the blue. I would’ve loved to see a spark of rebellion or a development of the mob. Some in the village felt sure he had invited his own death by robbing the tiger of its kill. 'It became a bit of a joke,' said one local resident, 'that he brought that meat to his own funeral.' Regardless of their other feelings about tigers, the residents of Sobolonye had great respect for the tiger's intelligence and hunting prowess, and the idea that these powers might be directed against them—at random—was terrifying. This tiger’s presence had cast a pall over the village”

Vaillant's book is in part true life animal story, part love poem to the dangerous cat in the world. On one level, Vaillant presents the natural history of the tiger. On the next level, Vaillant discusses the history of tiger resuce and Russia's far East. On the last level, Vaillant tells the story of a tiger's search for vengeance. This book should be on every library's wall, every bookshops recommended and every childs eventual reading list. The book supposedly took 9 years in the making, and I'm glad, as you can see each stroke of the key and pen as a decisive action by author and illustrator. Surely a classic to come. One day, Adam stumbles upon a magnificent tiger - the Tyger of the story - as he flees a potential robber. His relationship with this tyger grows as he discovers that he has special powers that can not only help him but others to escape from tyranny. He shares these talents with a girl called Zadie and they work together to try to protect Tyger from the powers that are out to destroy her.

As he re-creates these extraordinary events, John Vaillant gives us an unforgettable portrait of this spectacularly beautiful and mysterious region. We meet the native tribes who for centuries have worshipped and lived alongside tigers, even sharing their kills with them. We witness the arrival of Russian settlers in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, soldiers and hunters who greatly diminished the tiger populations. And we come to know their descendants, who, crushed by poverty, have turned to poaching and further upset the natural balance of the region. This is an atmospheric story set in an alternative near-future London. The city is a dangerous place for many, dominated by strict social rules, a system of racial superiority and un-abolished slavery that developed from colonialism. In this London, Adam and Zadie are both children who have been made to feel like outsiders. The story centres on their discovery of a mythical creature – a Tyger who is hiding after being hunted and wounded. Adam helps the injured Tyger and new friendship blossoms. Soon, the Tyger teaches Adam a renewed philosophical outlook on life and helps him to tap into his hidden gifts. The children set about to protect and save the Tyger, and as fear and oppression rage in the city of London, the children's courage to save the Tyger makes wider ripples than they could ever imagine. Vaillant looks at people’s innate reaction to tigers, reporting on a study which concludes that our awareness of predator-prey relationships is an in-born gift from our ancestors. There is a fascinating section on why predators are naturally selected for intelligence. A dumb tiger will starve to death if it does not first become a cat-sicle in the 40-below temperatures of winter in the Amur region.