How to Be a Vet and Other Animal Jobs; Dr Jess French, illustrated by Sol Linero

Do you know of a child who can think of nothing better than spending a whole day helping and looking after animals? If the answer is yes, then How to be a Vet and Other Animal Jobs is the perfect book for them.

Do you love animals and dream of a job where you can spend every day with them? Do you care for cats and dote on dogs? Are you kind to koalas and mad about monkeys? Do you get excited by elephants and giddy about goats? If you think animals are awesome then maybe you have what it takes to be a vet, an animal trainer, a wildlife ranger, a zoo designer, a snake milker or an animal welfare inspector. Join animal-lover Dr Jess French and discover all about the amazing animal jobs that you could do, the history of veterinary and a whole lot more…

Just like people, animals get sick. And when they get sick they need kind, caring and clever people to help them get better again. How to be a Vet and Other Animal Jobs is a fantastic, child-friendly look at all of the amazing work that children, adults, volunteers and highly trained animal-lovers called vets can do and do do to ensure that pets, captive animals and wild animals can live their absolute best lives.

Calling on all her experience as a vet, author and TV presenter, Dr Jess French provides a friendly, fascinating and fact-filled look at the rich and rewarding job of looking after and working with animals. Fully illustrated in colour by Sol Linero, dedicated animal-lovers are in for an absolute treat as Dr French shares the secrets as to how vets manage to keep animals healthy and happy, all the things that vets do (and there’s a lot), the wide variety of animals that they treat, all the different places that they work and a brief history of veterinary medicine.

Animals large and small, domestic and wild, common and not so common all need looking after. With so many different career paths available you could be caring for animals all around the world and in all sorts of locations from film sets to wildlife reserves to the depths of the oceans. Or if you prefer your home comforts then there’s plenty of animals to look after in your own community too.

Dr French’s love and passion for animals bursts from every page as she takes curious minds from the veterinary surgery to farms and fields, from the laboratories and operating theatres to zoos and wildlife parks. Who knew being a vet could be so varied? As a word of caution, a small part of the subject matter might be a little distressing - slaughterhouses and post-mortem examinations are briefly touched upon - but all is handled sensitively and matter-of-factly. For instance, French writes that a post-mortem is, ‘A sad job for a vet, but it is a good way to learn more about that type of animal and why it died.’

It is such a fun, engaging and educational read. Attractive, colourful and easy to navigate double page spreads are guided by leading questions with bite-sized chunks of information giving readers the low-down. Sure to inspire any child with a passion for animals and is a must read for those who one day hope to have a job working with them.

Recommended for 6+.