Tuesday, July 9, 2024

The Secret Elephant by Ellan Rankin - ESSENTIAL

The Secret Elephant: Inspired by a True Story of Friendship by Ellan Rankin
. PICTURE BOOK. Random House, 2024. $19. 9780593703267

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - ESSENTIAL

APPEALS TO: MANY

Sheila is a baby asian elephant living in the Belfast Zoo during World War II. As the bombs begin dropping, she becomes very scared and frightened. Her handler Denise wants to make Sheila feel safe, so she decides to do something very sneaky- she takes Sheila home with her. Soon, the two develop a routine of leaving the zoo each night. Unfortunately, Sheila knocks down a fence and alerts the neighbors that she is staying there. She has to go back to the zoo.

My daughter and I really enjoyed this book. It was a very sweet story showing empathy and compassion for animals. It also included some newspaper stories with real facts about this famous event in history.

Reviewer:A. Criswell, English Language Arts teacher 

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