Don't Feed the Boy by Irene Latham

Don't Feed the Boy

Irene Latham

Square Fish · Print & ebook · June 24, 2014

A Middle Grade pick for readers exploring Don't Feed the Boy.

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Who it’s for
A young zoo insider finds friendship and freedom amid the routines of zoo life.
Themes
Zoo life and animal care, Friendship, Belonging and freedom
Pacing
Mixed

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About this book

No kid knows more about zoo life than Whit. That's because he sleeps, eats, and even attends home-school at the Meadowbrook Zoo. It's one of the perks of having a mother who's the zoo director and a father who's the head elephant keeper. Now that he's eleven, Whit feels trapped by the rules and routine of zoo life. With so many exotic animals, it's easy to get overlooked.

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But when Whit notices a mysterious girl who visits every day to draw the birds, suddenly the zoo becomes much more interesting. Who is the Bird Girl? And why does she come by herself to the zoo? Determined to gain her trust, Whit takes the Bird Girl on his own personal tour of the zoo. He shows her his favorite animals and what happens with them behind the scenes. For Whit, having a friend his own age that he can talk to is an exciting new experience. For Stella the Bird Girl, the zoo and Whit are a necessary escape from her chaotic home life. Together they take risks in order to determine where it is they each belong. But when Stella asks Whit for an important and potentially dangerous favor, Whit discovers how complicated friendship—and freedom—can be, in Irene Latham's Don't Feed the Boy.

Zoo Life, Complicated

A young zoo insider finds friendship and freedom amid the routines of zoo life.

Come here for

  • An eleven-year-old’s view of zoo life
  • Friendship shaped by trust and belonging

Expect

  • Favorite animals and behind-the-scenes zoo life
  • Questions of friendship, risk, and freedom

Where it sits

Friendship83%
Zoo Stories74%
Family Stories33%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Zoo Stories
  • Abuse & Healing
  • Friendship
Authors
Irene Latham
Publisher
Square Fish
Published
June 24, 2014
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
Zoo life and animal care · Friendship · Belonging and freedom
Reading lane
Zoo Stories