-posted by Ruth
Astro: The Stellar Sea Lion by Jeanne Walker Harvey, illustrated by Shennen Bersoni
Stellar Sea Lions are a threatened species that live in the northern Pacific. This true story of one rescued orphan stellar sea lion is beautifully written with simply unbelievably gorgeous illustrations. They are so life-like, I originally thought they were photographs, or possible mixed media of photos and colored pencils. Readers who want to understand an animal by knowing the true-life stories will be drawn into this picture book about Astro, cared for and raised at The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, California.
When Astro was big enough to be released back into the wild, he just refused to stay there–he just kept finding his way “home.” No matter how far out into the ocean he was released, he would swim miles of open sea to return to the Center. Because it was clear that Astro would not be able to adapt to living in the wild, a home was found for him at the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut.
The last four pages of the book provides an educational section with great technical information of Stellar Sea Lions (including maps and a life cycle). For online resources and support for the book (in English and in Spanish), you can click here.
