Only wish it could have been longer, but as it's a true story that's not possible!

Spoiler

Pop Sugar Challenge: A book with an animal in the title. My aunt got me this one, I have had a long time love for penguins and this book surely attracted like minded people who just can't help but understand that no one can be uncheered by a penguin. Great little gem about how the odd and little things in life can ripple out happiness and positive outlook to so many! HOWEVER.... I felt like Juan Salvadors ending was crussshiinnnggg... think marley and me people. I was not prepared for that ending in the slightest!! just BOOOOM and not a refreshing good ugly cry just like a WHaaaaAAATTT nooooo. no no no no no.

I didn’t care for the author’s writing style, too much waxing poetic. But the penguin was the star of the book and his story was very remarkable.

January 2021 book club book for 15th anniversary meeting of my real world (via video since March 2020) book club. It’s a good book for book club.

It’s beautifully written, entertaining, charming, humorous at times, and a great armchair travel book.

It’s lighter than most of my book club books but it’s not fluff. It is an engaging story and a lovely meditation on friendships, relationships in general, mentoring, nature, how humans impact the ecosystem, and on adventure and seeking out & experiencing the new.

I’ve always been fond of penguins, especially since I saw the movie March of the Penguins in a movie theater. Here it was fun to get to know a penguin who did experience human intervention and to see a real relationship develop.

I rooted for the penguin and for Diego and for the author, and for others too.

I enjoyed the mix of information about the areas/nature, the author, the people he encountered, and especially the penguin. I appreciated the scientific information that is included, especially that added toward the end of the book that helps explain exactly why the penguin behaved as it did.

The penguin illustrations by the author were pleasing and added to the narrative. I do wish that there had been photos and I wonder if the bit more than two minutes of video footage can be found anywhere is I’d love to view it.

It’s a delightful book I can heartily recommend to readers who might enjoy reading about penguin and humans relationship, has interest in South America its history and/or it’s present, interest in wildlife especially penguins, interest in an unconventional school story, culture exchange, really most readers. Even people who are not normally non-fiction readers might enjoy it as it’s great storytelling.

4-1/2 stars

Thank you, [a:Tom Michell|8136996|Tom Michell|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png], for plucking a small penguin from an oily beach and taking him on your travels. Juan Salvador is still touching lives all around the world, of people he never even met.