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Buy MAMA: a TRUE story, in which a BABY HIPPO loses his MAMA during a TSUNAMI, but finds a new home, and a new MAMA by Jeanette Winter available and for sale on Brightsurf
| View Larger Image | MAMA: a TRUE story, in which a BABY HIPPO loses his MAMA during a TSUNAMI, but finds a new home, and a new MAMA
by Jeanette Winter
| | List Price: | $16.00 | | Price: | $10.88 | | You Save: | $5.12 (32%) |  | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours | | | | | Sales Rank: | 58403 | | Studio: | Harcourt Children's Books | | | Binding: | Hardcover | | Reading Level: | Ages 4-8 | | Number Of Pages: | 32 | | Publication Date: | April 01, 2006 | | Publisher: | Harcourt Children's Books |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
Set during the devastating tsunami of 2004, MAMA is the touching true story of a baby hippo that was separated from his mother when the wave hit. After struggling alone for several days, the baby was rescued by Kenyan wildlife officers and brought to live in an animal refuge. There, all by himself, he adopted a new "mother"--that just happened to be a 130-year-old giant male tortoise. And they've been inseparable ever since.
Although MAMA takes place against the backdrop of a terrible human tragedy, at the heart of this story is a moving and original tale of adoption--and of finding love and companionship in the least likely of circumstances.
Includes an author's note.
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CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.0 based on 10 reviews)
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Psychologically inappropriate for the age level it targets! 
I love the store of Owen & Mzee, but it's for an 7-8+ year old child--and then a better choice in my opinion is Owen & Mzee: Language Of Friendship by Isabella Hatkoff (or check out her other great titles in the series).
Unfortunately, this picture book is written for a VERY young child. The subject matter is just inappropriate for a child that age. Yes, we all LOVE this beautiful story, but a child at that age can't appreciate the loveliness of the "new mama" relationship. All the child can understand is that the mama died. Who in the world would expose this concept to young children who already suffer from separation anxiety (and even if your child doesn't seem to suffer outright, why would you introduce the fear of you being permanently gone)!?
For a child who tragically faces the loss of a mother, this might be nice--but I wouldn't even give it until a while after the death, because I don't think the message should be given that a mom can just be replaced. (And I wouldn't buy it if a father has died, in case it induces increased fear that the mom may be next!) Again, bad idea for kids this age. (However, for young-at-heart adults who love the story, they just might enjoy this very simple telling, and the illustrations are very lush and sweet.) I recommend requesting this from the library before purchasing, and again, I STRONGLY suggest you NEVER read this title to a young child!
July 06, 2008 | |
Paving the way for children to express their emotions. 
My daughter received this as a gift, at the time she was only 2 so I didn't venture to even open it. As time went on she showed an interest and wanted me to "read" it to her. While the pictures are detailed enough, I tried to be sure that the emotions I conveyed were accurate. On the page where it shows the baby alone, my daughter became sad. I questioned whether it was appropriate, but as time went on and I continued to read it I noticed she became happy at the end. She has now taken to reading it to me; I'm amazed that she is not only able to see, but also express her emotions regarding what the pictures are depicting. Our children are wise beyond what we give them credit, I'm glad there are books like this that help ease the questions of what is inevitable in life- death.
April 27, 2008 | |
Very powerful book
I got this book from the library. I read the book to my 3 years and 6 years old daughters. Both were fascinated by the story so much that I was totally amazed! A book with only two words spoke so much. Then they started creating many stories of lost and found animals.They asked me about Tsunami and I got Tsunami DVD to explain it to them.
My elder daughter created a new story where the father of the baby is swept to New York city, where as mother tightly holds the baby. One fine day, they plan to take a trip to New York and whole family reunites.
And my little daughter fell in love with turtles saying it loved the baby hippo........
This book continues to be a model play story for my daughters..... It really gave me the first hand experience of power of books for young imaginative mind.....
Also this book can be read by the three years old.
November 29, 2007 | |
a grandmother
The book is striking. It is a real find for a book to be a visual delight, creating wonderful images for dramatic events and powerful feelings. My granddaughter, 4 years, loved the story and the images of the spirit of the little hippo's mother. I am very picky about books for my grandchildren and this one is lovely.
November 26, 2007 | |
Maybe I'm hormonal...
...but every time I read this book I get teary eyed. Of course I use the word "read" loosely as there are only two words in the whole book: mama & baby.
I found this book after reading Owen and Mzee (Isabella Hatkoff) which was a short non-fiction book with photographs detailing the remarkable story of a baby hippo that lost his mom in the 2004 tsunami; he is later rescued and sent to a zoo where he is "adopted" by a giant 130 year old tortoise.
This picture book attempts to condense that incredible story in a handful of pages that are illustrated with simple and homely images using only the word "mama" to move the story line along. (There is also an author's note at the end which explains more about the true story.)
It's a pretty bold concept but I think it works. I'm still not a very big fan of the illustrations and the story is troubling but as a book it really does resonate for me and honestly I wouldn't change a thing about it. It's perfectly imperfect.
There are lots of reviewers that will argue it's a scary book thematically, but I think it's also very touching. I probably wouldn't recommend it to everyone but it's certainly one of the most moving picture books I've happened across.
I think this book may also find a welcoming home on the bookshelves of children who have themselves been misplaced from their parents and adopted by surrogates...or anyone who has tragically lost something and found it again in the unlikeliest of places.
Essentially it's a story of trauma and loss and hope and love. It's a story about life.
May 20, 2007 | |
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