Owen & Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship (1 book) (40 pgs.)

Bibliographic Information:

Hatkoff, I. Owen & Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship. New York: Scholastic.

Grade Level Appropriateness:

2nd – 5th

Author Credibility:

The authors consulted with faculty at the Bronx Zoo in New York and at Columbia University while writing this book.

Summary of Book:

It told the story of how a baby hippo and a 130-year-old giant tortoise became friends. Owen was the baby hippo, and Mzee was the tortoise. They were put together in Haller Park when Owen was rescued after a storm. Mzee wasn’t a friendly animal so their friendship came as a surprise to everyone because it is very unlikely that a mammal and a reptile form a close bond.

Illustrations:

This book was illustrated with photographs taken by Peter Greste, Samuel Hopkins, and Charles Campbell-Clause.

Features:

The book opens with a letter from the authors telling how the book came to be. The end of the book has several features. There is a section titled More About. It tells of the countries that were mentioned in the book. It gives general background information about hippos and tortoises. The book also tells about the tsunami that left Owen stranded and about Haller Park.

How I would use this book in my classroom:

I would use this book in science and in character building since it talks about how their friendship was unlikely.

Response:

I thought this was a very interesting book. It went more in depth than I had originally thought it would which I liked. It used a lot of vocabulary that is appropriate for younger grades.

Related Text:

Owen & Mzee: Language of Friendship by Isabella Hatkoff

Friendship:
Wings of Change by Franklin Hill