Changing the world one book at a time: More vegan fiction

My great loves include books. Specifically, feminist literary utopias (Marge Piercy's Woman on the Edge of Time and Charlotte Perkins Gilmans' Herland for example); comic books with strong female protagonists (Runaways, Promethea, Death, Black Orchid) and vegan fiction — fiction with vegetarian or vegan protagonists and environmental and animal rights themes.

I read lots of nonfiction, too, but I feel strongly that the world needs fiction (and fiction readers) — authors to fire our imaginations by showing us the world as it could be (hence the love of utopias) and books to increase our empathy and help us see (what sometimes we will not see otherwise) and understand our world in new ways.

A few years ago, I did a series of posts on 20+ Powerful Works of Vegan Fiction; some of my favorites. Then, for awhile I reviewed some additions to this list at EcoLitBooks (Ashland Creek Press awesomely publishes Vegetarian and Vegan Fiction).

Here's a quick list of eight more vegan fictions —including books for children, teens and adults — and works that would appeal to readers who love mystery, fantasy, horror, political thrillers, and comic books.

It's exciting to see so many more books for young readers and readers of all ages with vegan protagonists addressing vegan and animal rights-oriented themes.

Persimmon Takes on Humanity by Christopher Locke

Published: 2015, Fathoming Press

This cover by L.A. Watson is super cute.

Summary: A gang of forest animals led by a compassionate raccoon, the heroine Persimmon, embark on a crusade to rescue suffering animals. Persimmon's crew (with varying success) tackles the plight of calves being turned into veal, minks trapped and tortured on a fur farm, and elephants chained, beaten and made to perform in a circus.
Why read this: It's adorable (while also describing some horrible realities). The book perfectly captures humanity's complex and confused relationship with animals — we find them adorable and fascinating and they fill us with joy. At the same time, we treat them in horrific ways and turn a blind eye to their suffering and abuse.
Recommended for: Young readers (with the caveat that it does contain some brutal descriptions) and readers of all ages. Enjoyable characters and story give the reader access to harsh truths — it's so cute you can't turn away.
Pairs well with: The Awareness by Gene Stone (see my review at EcoLitBooks.com)
Personal note: I picked this up and met the author at Portland VegFest, a great time!
About the author: Christopher Locke has a background in the television industry. This is his first novel. www.Christopher-Locke.com
Notable:

• Watch the author's talk about Animal Rights Fiction: Changing Hearts & Minds Through Powerful Storytelling at San Francisco Vegetarian Society's 16th annual World Veg Festival event. 
• This is the first book in a forthcoming series, The Enlightenment Adventures.

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nihm by Robert C. O'Brien

Published: 1971, Atheneum
Summary: A heroic mother mouse goes on a quest to save her sick child and discovers a surprising secret.
Why read this: It's classic award-winning children's book with a strong female, mother protagonist that makes people consider their relationships with animals. A must read for young vegan readers in the vein of Charlotte's Web and Watership Down.
Recommended for: Young readers, it's found in the juvenile fiction section, but it holds up for an adult reread as well.
Quote:

"It would be the first time in all the world that intelligent beings, besides men, had ever tried to start a real civilization of their own."

Pairs well with: For an adult version of this story read, Doctor Rat by William Kotzwinkle (reviewed below).
About the author: Robert Leslie Carroll Conly (January 11, 1918 – March 5, 1973) also wrote for National Geographic Magazine.
Notable:

• The book was inspired by John C. Calhoun's experiments with a mouse utopia at National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in the early 1960s in Maryland. 
• An animated film based on the book was released in 1982,  The Secret of NIMH.  
• The sequels Racso and the Rats of NIMH (1986) and R-T, Margaret, and the Rats of NIMH (1990) were written by the author's daughter Jane Conly. 
• In March 2013, a study was done that made mice learn faster by injecting them with human stem cells: Human Cells Make Mice Smarter, via Scientific American Mind.

Vivian Sharpe: Vegan Superhero by Marla Rose

Published: 2012, Wide Awake Books
Summary: A pre-teen girl gains a vegan friend and the kind of superpower an adult would love — keen intuition to know when one is doing the right thing and the drive to act on it.
Why read this: To awaken the activist pre-teen.
Recommended for: Pre-teen girls with activist, do the right thing, leanings.
Personal note: I picked my copy up at Vegan Haven, such a great store!
About the author: Marla Rose writes The Vegan Street Blog. This is her first novel.
Notable:

• More Nancy Drew than cape-crusader, Vivian Sharpe has a spirit guide which gives her keen intuition and will (disappointing if you're expecting comic book fantasy).
• Book has too many distracting typos and some sag — a stronger editing hand is indicated. 
• Vivian Sharpe's clashes with authority figures at such a young age in realistic scenarios felt foreign, but the right young person might find the story reassuring and inspirational.

Vegan Teenage Zombie Huntress by G.G Silverman

Published: Sept. 2014
Summary: See the title. It ends with prom.
Why read this: It's fun and there's zombies and a strong, vegan, female protagonist.
Recommended for: Teenage vegan girls and as a getaway book.
Quote: 

"What is seen can't be unseen, my dad had said the day I became vegan. I'd never be the same again."

Personal connection: I read this on the plane to Iceland. Fun times.
Pairs well with: You could give this to readers of Scott Westerfeld's Uglies series or Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games books and The Vegan Revolution with Zombies (see my review at EcoLitBooks.com), because zombies!
About the author: A Seattle-based horror author, ggsilverman.com. She has a story collection, Saints & Monsters, forthcoming.  See also her short story, The Last Dance.
Notable: I loved the ending.

Off the Reservation by Glen Merzer

Published: 2014, Vivid Thoughts Press
Summary: A well-intentioned vegan politician runs for president.
Why read this: Wish-fulfillment. It's an election year.
Recommended for: wonks, politicos and dreamers
Quote: 

"But I am going to knock myself out trying to provide Americans with good education, good jobs, and good food. And I will knock myself out fighting for the health of the planet. In every battle, I will have reason and logic on my side, and I will fight with my all against the forces of hatred and intolerance and fear." 

About the author: Glen Merzer has co-authored several works of non-fiction including No More Bull! with Howard Lyman and The Happy Cow Cookbook. This is his first novel.
Notable: 

• On point political speeches, ends with recipes — not so novel-ish.
• Cory Booker, U.S. Senator from New Jersey, is vegan (and a possible vice presidential candidate?): one of NBC News' Seven Rising Political Stars to Watch in 2016. Washington Post's Kathleen Parker calls him, "a front-loaded, earth-moving machine of passion and compassion." See Clinton and Trump's black-and-white politics.
• The Humane Party, which is committed to rights for all animals, has a vegan presidential candidate, Clifton Roberts.

The Animal Man Omnibus by Grant Morrison 

Published: 2013, Vertigo (collects issues #1-26 and a story from Secret Origins #39)
Summary: Buddy Baker is "a devoted family man and animal rights activist." He gets his power to channel animals' unique abilities from the morphogenetic field, of course!
Why read this: Comics with a conscience!
Recommended for: Comic book readers, especially readers of other Vertigo titles and vegan readers.
Quote:

"Every time you eat a burger, you're helping to kill the world."

Pairs well with: Grant Morrison's We3, a heart-breaking story of a mechanized, weaponized rabbit, cat and golden retriever who escape from a military lab; The Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughn, the heart-breaking story of lions who escape from a zoo in wartime based on true events; Concrete by Paul Chadwick and Swamp Thing by Brian K. Vaughn.
Personal connection: I love, love, love comic books!
About the author: "A Scottish comic book writer, playwright, and occultist known for his nonlinear narratives and countercultural leanings," says Wikipedia, www.grant-morrison.com
Notable:

• Issue 15 The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
• More recent issues of Animal Man not by Morrison? Um, not so much.

A Killer Retreat (A Downward Dog Mystery) by Tracy Weber

Published: 2015, Midnight Ink
Summary: A vegetarian yoga instructor with anger management issues solves a mystery at a vegan resort.
Why read this: A fun mystery by a Northwest author with Northwest settings.
Recommended for: mystery lovers, dog lovers and yoginis
Quotes: 

"Dad used to say, 'Every contact leaves a trace.' He meant that I should always be kind, because my actions had an impact, often more than I realized."

About the author: Tracy Weber is a yoga instructor and the owner of Whole Life Yoga in Seattle, tracyweberauthor.com. She's a member of the Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, The Pacific Northwest Writers Association, and the Dog Writers Association of America.
Personal note: I read this on the plane to Iceland. Fun times.
Notable:

• I did not like the ending, but that won't put me off from trying another Downward Dog Mystery. 
• This is book #2 of the Downward Dog Mystery series: #1 Murder Strikes a Pose and #3 Karma's a Killer.

Doctor Rat by William Kotzwinkle

Published: 1976, Marlowe & Company
Summary: An artfully written horror novel. The author boldly, and deftly inhabits the minds of a variety of animal characters including a rat, dog, tortoise, elephant, rhino and sloth.
Why read this: There's hope in empathy and art. This book shines a light on the world of animal experimentation. "Doctor Rat looks at difficult, political things in a way only the greats manage." — "You Should Read This," Cat Rambo
Recommended for: Writers. Everyone.
Quote:

"That the purpose of our lives is to celebrate the grandeur of the cosmos."

Pairs well with: The Awareness by Gene Stone, The Plague Dogs by Richard Adams and Exodus 2022 by Kenneth G. Bennett
About the author: An award-winning writer of fiction and children's fiction, www.kotzwinkle.com
Notable:

• It won the World Fantasy Award in 1977. 
• See Ten worst laboratories that do animal testing including John Hopkins and Columbia University mentioned in this book and American Anti-Vivisection Society to see how animals including dogs, cats, rabbits, chimpanzees and mice and rats are used in labs. 
• See also, Nonewanimallab.com and UW animal lab represents archaic, abusive practice.