Growing Up Gorilla

I’m thrilled to introduce you to my new book,  Growing Up Gorilla, which is coming out September, 3, 2019 from Millbrook Press.

This is a true animal story about a 19-year old mother gorilla named Nadiri who gave birth to her first baby at Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle in 2015. Within minutes of the birth, instead of picking her up, Nadiri walked away from her newborn. Was Nadiri rejecting her or did she just not know what to do?

The zoo staff was determined to help Nadiri bond with her baby. “If we have any hope of Nadiri becoming a mother, this baby needs to be part of her everyday life,” said zookeeper Judy Sievert.

The dedicated staff worked tirelessly to care for the baby and find innovative ways for her and her mother to build a relationship. The efforts were ultimately successful and baby Yolabecame an important part of Nadiri’s family group.

The book includes full-color photos and sidebars about gorilla behavior in zoos and in the wild. And a conservation message in the back matter describes the efforts being made around the world to help gorillas and their habitat survive. 

Praise for Growing Up Gorilla: How a Zoo Baby Brought Her Family Together from Kirkus Reviews

“Readers learn about gorillas in general and also how staff at Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo managed two rare coups: getting a mother gorilla to bond with her rejected baby and incorporating baby Yola into the zoo’s existing gorilla family. . . . Will provoke ‘content grunts’ in nature lovers.”—You can read the review here.

Special thanks to the amazing team of students at Pacific Lutheran University who created the following Growing Up Gorilla Book Trailer for me as part of a Book Publishing Business class: