  | Moto and me : my year as a wildcat's foster mom Author: Eszterhas, Suzi | |
| Price: $22.56 | ||
Summary:
Chronicles Suzi's tender care of Moto, including how she feeds, bathes, and plays with him, and helps him develop hunting skills. Her goal is to help him learn how to survive on his own in the wild. After 6 months, he is ready to leave--a difficult good-bye, but exactly what Suzi had worked for. Stunning photography illustrates this touching and rare wildlife rescue story of an orphaned baby small, spotted wildcat.
| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: LG Reading Level: 5.30 Points: 1.0 Quiz: 188186 | Reading Counts Information: Interest Level: 3-5 Reading Level: 5.60 Points: 4.0 Quiz: 70684 | |
Reviews:
School Library Journal (00/04/17)
Booklist (04/15/17)
Full Text Reviews:
School Library Journal - 04/01/2017 Gr 1–3—Wildlife photographer Eszterhas recounts her experience fostering an orphaned serval kitten named Moto, the Swahili word for fire, at the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. Eszterhas gently explains how Moto came to be separated from his mother and siblings (pesky tourists!) before chronicling her yearlong relationship with the creature. Anecdotes about feeding, grooming, and eventually teaching Moto how to hunt and survive in the wild are accompanied by stunning photos. Moto's curious and playful nature shines as he matures from an impossibly cute tiny kitten to a full-grown serval, climbing trees and stalking prey. The intimacy of the images is well suited to the personal story and will attract readers. Eszterhas emphasizes the great responsibility of returning Moto to the wild and the importance of his developing independence. The text also briefly describes the purpose of the Maasai Mara National Reserve, with an accompanying map of its location in Kenya, while the endnotes provide supplemental information about servals. VERDICT A tender and heartwarming account that's certain to delight children, especially animal lovers.—Kelly Topita, Anne Arundel County Public Library, MD - Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
Booklist - 04/15/2017 Wildlife photographer Eszterhas, creator of the Wildlife Rescue series (Sea Otter Rescue, 2016), offers up an account of the time she spent fostering a baby serval. Eszterhas first met the young wildcat when she was living in the Masai Mara wildlife reserve in Kenya. Lost during a grass fire and too young to survive on his own, the kitten was brought to a ranger station and later to animal-experienced Eszterhas, until he could return to the wild. Eszterhas, who named the kitten Moto after the Swahili word for fire, documents both life as photographer in a bush camp and the care she gave Moto, from brushing his fur with a toothbrush to teaching him to hunt. Moto eventually returns to the wild, and Eszterhas makes it clear that this is a happy ending. Her many photos of Moto, both as a fluffy-faced baby and an active, handsome adult, are the clear scene-stealers, but plenty of interesting facts on servals are included. More than one reader will consider following in Eszterhas’ footsteps. - Copyright 2017 Booklist.
