Fall 2025

Used or Abused?

Advocating for Animal Rights

From the Series Spotlight on Social Justice

  • Interest Level: Grade 6 - Grade 12
  • Reading Level: Grade 7

For thousands of years, animals have played vital roles in human lives, yet many have also faced mistreatment and exploitation. Animal rights activists champion that all animals deserve to live free from human-caused cruelty and suffering. They emphasize treating animals with respect, allowing them to thrive in their natural environments, and reject practices that exploit them for food, entertainment, or experimentation.

Used or Abused? delves into how animals have been subjected to mistreatment for human gain, while also shedding light on national and international laws that aim to protect them. And it highlights the efforts of organizations fighting against animal abuse in areas such as medical and cosmetic testing, factory farming, trophy hunting, poaching, pet breeding, and sports.

Format Your Price Add
979-8-7656-4413-3
$26.99
979-8-7656-8493-1
$14.99
979-8-7656-8303-3
$40.99
Available at all major wholesalers and distributors. Save 25% off list price on library bound hardcovers and all eBook and eBook with Audio editions when you buy direct! Digital purchases will be accessed on Lerner Digital Bookshelf. An account will be created for you after purchase.
Interest Level Grade 6 - Grade 12
Reading Level Grade 7
Genre Social Studies, Young Adult
Category 5 Kinds of Nonfiction, 5KN: Traditional Nonfiction, Animals
Copyright 2026
Publisher Lerner Publishing Group
Brand Informed Editions
Imprint Twenty-First Century Books ™
Language English
Number of Pages 64
Publication Date 2025-08-01
Text Type Informational/Explanatory
BISACS YAN003010, YAN058000
Dewey 179/.309
Dimensions 6 x 9
Features Author/Illustrator biography, Bibliography/further reading, Glossary, Index, Photo captions, Primary source quotations/images, Reviewed, Sidebars, Source notes, Starred Reviews, and Table of contents

Author: Alexis Burling

Reviews

School Library Journal

“A thought-provoking survey of current social justice issues, this series provides students with background information on civil rights issues. . . . Recommended for collections seeking engaging resources to support classroom discussion and student research on social justice topics.”—School Library Journal

Booklist

“Offers a rich opportunity for critical thinking about a variety of contemporary and historical matters. . . Nuanced debates throughout the series suggest that assumptions that have been made about disenfranchised groups, governments, human bodies, and reliance upon animals need to be reexamined. Each book suggests a range of actions engaged readers can take: education, advocacy, activism, and collaboration.”—starred, Booklist