ODDER by Katherine Applegate

 

Odder by Katherine Applegate

 

274 pages

 

Animal Fiction (inspired by true story), Sea Otters, Wildlife Conservation, Novel in Verse
Note: could be classified as realistic although through the lens of a sea otter

 

 

 

 

Description
Odder spends her days off the coast of central California, practicing her underwater acrobatics and spinning the quirky stories for which she's known. She's a fearless daredevil, curious to a fault. But when Odder comes face-to-face with a hungry great white shark, her life takes a dramatic turn, one that will challenge everything she believes about herself--and about the humans who hope to save her.

Inspired by the true story of a Monterey Bay Aquarium program that pairs orphaned otter pups with surrogate mothers, this poignant and humorous tale told in free verse examines bravery and healing through the eyes of one of nature's most beloved and charming animals.

 

My Comments
Educational and thoroughly engaging. An important book that shows the important rescue efforts of scientists to protect the endangered sea otter. Give this one to anyone, any age, but especially to animal lovers. This book could inspire students to grow up to be marine biologists or to go into other fields that help protect wildlife and the environment. A lovely and vitally important book. A favorite!

THE WILD ROBOT by Peter Brown

Science Fiction; Wildlife, Survival

Description
"In THE WILD ROBOT, when a cargo ship goes down in a storm, a crate with a robot washes up on an island. Curious otters activate it, and ROZZUM unit 7134 comes to life and introduces herself: "You may call me Roz." Though the island isn't a welcoming habitat for a robot, Roz has been programmed to be curious, so she observes the animals to see how they survive and mimics them. At first, the animals think she's a monster and try to mobilize against her, but Roz wins them over by helping them. She also adopts an orphan gosling and builds a shelter to save her animal friends from a cruel winter. Will she be reclaimed by reconnaissance robots looking for her? " -Commonsense Media https://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/the-wild-robot

My Comments
Good hook in beginning with suspense. Interesting to read how Roz solves the problems of survival.  Good introductory choice for kids who like robots and science fiction.

See sequel: Escape...!

THE RACE TO SAVE THE LORD GOD BIRD by Phillip Hoose

Nonfiction, Endangered Species, Birds

212 pages

Book Description

From Follett

Includes bibliographical references (pages 185-199) and index. Tells the story of the ivory-billed woodpecker's extinction in the United States, describing the encounters between this species and humans, and discussing what these encounters have taught us about preserving endangered creatures.

From the Publisher

The tragedy of extinction is explained through the dramatic story of a legendary bird, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, and of those who tried to possess it, paint it, shoot it, sell it, and, in a last-ditch effort, save it. A powerful saga that sweeps through two hundred years of history, it introduces artists like John James Audubon, bird collectors like William Brewster, and finally a new breed of scientist in Cornell's Arthur A. "Doc" Allen and his young ornithology student, James Tanner, whose quest to save the Ivory-bill culminates in one of the first great conservation showdowns in U.S. history, an early round in what is now a worldwide effort to save species. As hope for the Ivory-bill fades in the United States, the bird is last spotted in Cuba in 1987, and Cuban scientists join in the race to save it.

All this, plus Mr. Hoose's wonderful story-telling skills, comes together to give us what David Allen Sibley, author ofThe Sibley Guide to Birds calls "the most thorough and readable account to date of the personalities, fashions, economics, and politics that combined to bring about the demise of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker."

The Race to Save the Lord God Bird is the winner of the 2005 Boston Globe - Horn Book Award for Nonfiction and the 2005 Bank Street - Flora Stieglitz Award.

My Comments

This is a heart-wrenching, but hopeful story. A dark side of human history is told here, portraying the environmental destruction humans wreak in order to "collect" wildlife or to manufacture goods. This is a powerful book for all ages. Visit the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/ for the postscript to this story. There is some hope that this magnificent bird may still be around.