Owen and Mzee: The True Language of Friendship

by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff, and Dr. Paula Kahumbu
Photographs by Peter Greste
Lexile:  920
Genre:  Memoir

This is the true story of two unlikely friends:  Owen, a hippopotamus, and Mzee, a giant tortoise. When Owen loses his mother in a tsunami in December of 2004, he is found on the beach by rescuers who take him to Haller Park for rehabilitation.  That is where he meets Mzee who becomes Owen't new mother.  No one is sure why the two bond the way they do, but is clear to everyone who visits, that this friendship is keeping both of them thriving.

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