Animals Are “Just Like Us” — A Review of Alona Siderskaya’s New Book. Dr Chapman Chen
- Chapman Chen
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
In Just Like Us, European vegan author, artist, and advocate for animals Alona Siderskaya (2026) (n.1) invites children to discover a simple but profound truth: animals are not objects but fellow beings with feelings, families, friendships, fears, and joys. The absence of the author's name creates an impression of humility, allowing the focus to remain on the animals and their stories. The book revolves around a young girl named Emma, who asks her mother, "Why are we vegan?" (p. 1). The remainder of the book unfolds through her mother's responses. Via gentle language and charming illustrations, the book encourages young readers to recognise the many ways in which animals resemble ourselves.
1. The Artwork
The illustrations of Just Like Us possess a gentle watercolour charm reminiscent of traditional children's picture books. Soft colours, expressive animal faces, and carefully composed scenes invite young readers into a world where animals are seen not as commodities but as friends and fellow travellers. Although the images were created with the assistance of AI and subsequently refined by the author, they display a remarkable consistency of style and emotional tone. The artwork succeeds in translating scientific observations about animal cognition and emotion into images that children can immediately understand and feel.
2. Supported by Scientific Studies
The strength of the book lies in its ability to present modern scientific insights about animal sentience in a form accessible to children. Research increasingly shows that all vertebrates and most non-vertebrates are sentient (“The New York Declaration on Animal Consciousness,” Apr 19, 2024) (n.2), cows form friendships (Green et al. 2019) (n.3), sheep recognise faces (Kendrick 2018) (n.4), pigs are intelligence and they dream (Meghan 2022) (n.5), fish play with bubbles (Kleiber et al. 2022) (n.6), and mother hens communicate with their chicks before they hatch (Tuculescu & Griswold 1981) (n.7). Siderskaya's message—that animals are "just like us" in many morally relevant respects—is therefore supported not only by compassion but also by contemporary science.
3. Theological Basis
For readers of faith, Just Like Us resonates with the biblical vision that both humans and animals are creatures of God and therefore sisters and brothers. God is love (1 John 4:8); God loves the world (John 3:16), including ALL His creation (Psalm 140, 145:9); Christ is compassion (Matthew 9:13; 12:7). By nurturing empathy toward animals at an early age, the book helps cultivate the virtues of kindness, mercy, and respect for life.
For example, the book depicts a weeping lamb being grabbed by a butcher’s hands and asks, “Sheep deserve love, don’t they?” (p. 11). Correspondingly, in Isaiah 53:7, the prophet foretells the Messiah's suffering: “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.”
Moreover, p. 14 depicts Emma embracing a calf while p. 15 shows a weeping calf locked up in an iron stage. This is echoed by "He who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a man..." (Isaiah 66:3).
Another example. P. 7 shows “a mother hen…talking to her babies before they even hatch!” Correspondingly, God protects us as a mother hen protects her chicks (Ps 91:1-4); and Jesus rhetorically asks, “How often I've longed to gather your children, gather your children like a hen” (Luke 13:34; Matt 23:37).
Also, p. 23 shows Emma and her mother caringly bandaging a lamb’s injured leg. This reminds us of Jesus' Beatitude, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matt 5:7).
4. A Safe Place for All
Towards the end of the book (p. 23), the author hopes children will help create “a safe place for everyone.” This is in line with biblical promise of ultimate peace and harmony found in the Book of Isaiah 11:6-9: “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb…They will not harm or destroy on all my holy mountain.”
Pic credit: Alona Siderskaya’s FB.
Notes
1. “Just Like Us” is available at Amazon.co.uk
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