Owen & Mzee: The Language of Friendship (by Craig Hatkoff, Isabella Hatkoff, Paula Kahumbu)

For over a year and a half, Owen the baby hippo and Mzee the Aldabra tortoise have lived together in Haller Park in Kenya.  They are inseparable. Even though Mzee had been a loner, and is 130 years old, he took care of the baby hippo, taught him to graze, and so on, which is very unusual for an animal that does not even raise its own young. Now they seen to have developed several ways of communicating with each other, from nips and pokes to actual vocalizations that seem to carry meaning. It leaves the reader to ponder what the future holds for Owen, in particular. But this book is about more than just a special relationship between two unusual animals. It is also an inspirational story about the people who are committed to restoring endangered, and fragile, ecosystems in Kenya, which is why it won the Christopher Award.

Photographs by photo-journalist Peter Greste give a very realistic and sensitve look into the world of Owen and Mzee. Especially fascinating is the series of photos depicting the various ways the two animals communicate with each other.