Colo's Story: The Life of One Grand Gorilla
by Nancy Roe Pimm
forward by Jack Hanna
School Street Media, 2011
review copy purchased for my classroom
Isn't there always one student in your class who wants to be a zoologist when they grow up? If you're lucky enough to live in a city with a fabulous zoo, like the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, that child can fuel his passion with visits to the zoo, zoo camps, and best of all, the possibility of volunteer work when he gets older.
In between trips to the zoo, there are now three books in the Columbus Zoo Books For Young Readers series (see my review of Frenemies for Life and Beco's Big Year). In the newest book of this trio, local author Nancy Roe Pimm has written a fabulous biography of the Columbus Zoo's gorilla matriarch Colo. But it's more than just a biography of one special animal, it is a history of the impact of one gorilla on the growth of the Columbus Zoo into a world-class zoo, research facility and conservation partner. In fact, Colo and her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren have influenced zoos, gorilla research and gorilla conservation world-wide. Pretty impressive, when you consider her birth -- the first zoo-born gorilla in the world:
"When Warren Dean Thomas found a newborn gorilla barely alive on the floor of her mother's habitat at the Columbus Zoo more than five decades ago, no one really understood the profound influence this tiny baby would have."
Why I love this series:
1. It's about animals at our local zoo.
2. They are written by local authors.
3. They are filled with fabulous photos.
Frenemies for Lifeby John E. Becker, Ph.D.
School Street Media (for the Columbus Zoological Park Assn.), 2010
The Columbus Zoo is famous for its cheetah conservation program. Anatolian Shepherd Dogs have begun to be used in cheetah conservation, and this book explains how these natural enemies have become so important to each other. The dogs are bred and trained to protect herds of livestock (goats or sheep). When a cheetah approaches, the dog scares it away. No livestock are killed and the livestock owners do not feel the need to kill any cheetahs. The Columbus Zoo has raised two Anatolian shepherd pups and two cheetah kittens together to use to educate the public about this unique cheetah conservation effort.
This is a great little book with one- or two-page chapters and fabulous photography. It's the kind of nonfiction book a 3rd-5th grader could read cover to cover. We are always on the look-out for nonfiction our students can READ and not just BROWSE.
Beco's Big Yearby Linda Stanek
School Street Media (for the Columbus Zoological Park Assn.), 2010
If you live in Central Ohio and didn't know that there was a new baby elephant at the Zoo last year, you must have been living in a cave!
This book by local author Linda Stanek documents Beco the baby elephant's first year. I just dare you to read this book without saying, "Awww..."! The book is organized like a diary or journal, by date, and the entries are short and illustrated with lots of pictures. There are information boxes throughout that give general elephant information to go along with the milestones of Beco's first year.
I love BECO'S BIG YEAR! Can't wait to get hold of this one!