Andre the Famous Harbor Seal

January 1, 2004
K-Gr 3-In 1961, Harry Goodridge, harbormaster of Rockport, ME, adopted a seal pup. In describing their relationship, Hodgkins takes readers through Andr 's summers spent entertaining crowds with his tricks; winters in the sea or at nearby aquariums; a life-threatening injury sustained in a fight with another seal; the unveiling of the life-sized statue of Andr that still stands in the harbor; and, in 1986, his death on a deserted beach and Goodridge's solitary journey to bring him home and bury him. The unvarnished approach to the telling makes the final moments of the account unexpectedly touching. Frenkel's light-filled, realistic color illustrations call to mind a more innocent time. An additional purchase.-Kathleen Kelly MacMillan, Maryland School for the Deaf, Columbia

Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.