My Manatee Mom

Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha Illustrated by Michael-Ché Swisher

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Andrea Zimmerman David Clemesha Illustrated by Michael-Ché Swisher

Millbrook Press Minneapolis

Dedicated to all those working to protect manatees Text copyright © 2006 by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha Illustrations copyright © 2006 by Michael-Ché Swisher All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise-without the prior written permission of Millbrook Press, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review. Millbrook Press A division of Lerner Publishing Group 241 First Avenue North Minneapolis, Minnesota U.S.A. 55401 Website address: www.lernerbooks.com Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Zimmerman, Andrea Griffing. My manatee Mom / Andrea Zimmerman, David Clemesha; illustrated by Michael-Ché Swisher. p. cm.—(Silly Millies) Summary: A young manatee explains the similarities and differences between manatees and humans. eISBN: 0-8225-6360-6 [1. Manatees—Fiction. 2. Mother and child—Fiction.] I. Clemesha, David. II. Swisher, Michael-Ché, ill. III. Title. IV. Series. PZ7.Z618Myf 2006 [E]—dc22 2003017738 Manufactured in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 - DP - 11 10 09 08 07 06

I am a manatee.

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This is my mom.

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Do you have a mom too?

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My mom hugs and snuggles me.

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Does your mom hug you?

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My mom weighs a thousand pounds.

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Does your mom weigh a thousand pounds, too?

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My mom and I eat green leaves together.

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Do you and your mom eat together, too?

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Before I was born, I grew in my mom’s tummy.

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Did you grow in your mom’s tummy, too?

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My mom fed me milk when I was a baby.

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Did your mom feed milk to you?

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My mom and I sometimes take naps in the warm sunshine.

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Do you and your mom take naps, too?

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My mom has nice whiskers.

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Does your mom have nice whiskers, too?

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My mom watches out to keep me safe.

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Does your mom watch out for you?

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Sometimes my mom carries me on her back.

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Does your mom ever carry you?

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My mom has a nice chubby tail.

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Does your mom have a nice chubby tail, too?

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I love my mom.

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I’m sure you love your mom, too!

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I think your mom sounds like my mom.

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Don’t you?

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More About Manatees The manatees in this book are Florida manatees. Manatees are very endangered. Manatees are not fish. They are mammals, like people. The live in warm, quiet waters near the coast. Manatees are very gentle and never fight. They swim slowly in the water, moving their tails up and down like a paddle. Manatees come up to the surface for air every couple of minutes. They spend many hours a day

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eating plants that grow in the water. Mother and child manatees stay together for up to two years. They use sounds and “talk” to each other. Manatees are curious and like to play follow the leader. Many boats hit and kill manatees or badly cut their backs. Building by people is taking away the places manatees need to live. Some people are working to protect and help save the manatees.

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About the Authors Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha are married and live in Southern California with their three sons. They love writing and illustrating books together. Among their most recent ones are Fire! Fire! Hurry! Hurry! and Digger Man, which is a Book-ofthe-Month selection and an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award winner. Andrea has a degree in Fine Arts for Children. She is also a licensed dentist. She enjoys being a mom, going to museums, gardening, and traveling. She also likes going for walks and talking to her dogs. David grew up in England and moved to the United States at age 16. He always loved playing tennis, drawing, and reading. He earned a degree in English and became an elementary school teacher. He loves studying, being with his family, and going to museums. You can find out more about both of them at their website: www.andreaanddavid.com.

T ips for Discussion • Describe ways human moms and manatee moms are alike. Some of the similarities and differences are obvious, but others will take some thought. Do human moms and kids eat greens together? Or, do you think manatee moms teach their offspring how to do things? What sort of things might they teach? • Find out more about manatees. • Learn about what it means to be an endangered species.

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