Customer Reviews

MAMA: a TRUE story, in which a BABY HIPPO loses his MAMA during a TSUNAMI, but finds a new home, and a new MAMA

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

As a children's book librarian, I've been following Jeanette Winter's books for many years, and I have always been struck by how child-friendly they are. They are books written and illustrated for children, not for adults, and this is what makes them such welcome additions to any children's book library. With MAMA, we have the ultimate example of this. In life, even in a child's life, difficult things happen. Tsunamis happen. Hurricanes happen. Divorce happens. Rather than being told such things aren't real, children need to deal them, to process them, and in a way that provides comfort. And so it is that Winter, as a children's book author, fearlessly, and with the utmost of grace, tackles a difficult thing that really did happen, ultimately providing much hope and joy. Bravo, Ms. Winter!

This is perhaps the most beautiful and perfect picture book I have ever read. Using just two words throughout the entire text, brilliant author/illustrator Jeanette Winter conveys the most basic of all human emotions: the bond between a mother and child. This most universal of subjects is something every child will understand -- and not just understand, but feel. And with the beautiful, equally minimal illustrations depicting the big, blue ocean, this book is certain to put every child, and every parent, in a trance -- from beginning to end. And the ending is ultimately a very happy, life-affirming, love-affirming one -- that will leave most readers with a big smile tempered with tears, like the sunshine that follows, say, a tsunami.

I love the store of Owen & Mzee, but it's for an 7-8+ year old child--and then a better choice in my opinion is Owen & Mzee: Language Of Friendship by Isabella Hatkoff (or check out her other great titles in the series).

Unfortunately, this picture book is written for a VERY young child. The subject matter is just inappropriate for a child that age. Yes, we all LOVE this beautiful story, but a child at that age can't appreciate the loveliness of the "new mama" relationship. All the child can understand is that the mama died. Who in the world would expose this concept to young children who already suffer from separation anxiety (and even if your child doesn't seem to suffer outright, why would you introduce the fear of you being permanently gone)!?

For a child who tragically faces the loss of a mother, this might be nice--but I wouldn't even give it until a while after the death, because I don't think the message should be given that a mom can just be replaced. (And I wouldn't buy it if a father has died, in case it induces increased fear that the mom may be next!) Again, bad idea for kids this age. (However, for young-at-heart adults who love the story, they just might enjoy this very simple telling, and the illustrations are very lush and sweet.) I recommend requesting this from the library before purchasing, and again, I STRONGLY suggest you NEVER read this title to a young child!

I brought over a stack of children's books when I was visiting friends recently. The five year old picked this one out of twenty to have read to him. He then chose it again and again to read to himself.

I know part of the appeal for him is that it is so easy for a beginning reader to read, and yet it tells a powerful story. The only text is "mama" "baby" "mama?" "baby?" "mama!" "baby" Representing in the first pictures the baby hippo and his mama playing together, then their terror and bewilderment as the huge wave tears them away from each other and they are both alone and lost, and finally the little hippo's relief at finding a new mama (the big land turtle) and the turtle's acceptance of the little hippo as his new baby.

However, this little boy's father is dying of cancer. The child knows his daddy is sick, but has not been told his daddy is dying. Another child may be terrified by the pages where the child and parent are torn away from each other and then the child flounders alone and lost in the huge empty ocean. I think this little boy found comfort that people came to help the little hippo get to safety, and the hippo ended up with a new (if unlikely) mama to take care of him. The last page shows the baby hippo sleeping snuggled against the side of the big turtle, and his original mama is now stars in the sky, cuddled around her baby and his adoptive mama, still smiling down at him in love. I think my friends' son is taking the message from the book that if daddy goes away, someone else will take care of him, and daddy will be glad and will still love him from afar.

I would advise people to say something like "This book is about a little hippo who has something scary happen to him, but people help him, and he is okay," before reading this book to a child who may be frightened by it.

Mama by Jeanette Winter is another sweet story, told basically through illustrations only, except for the words "mama and baby". On the last page of the book is a brief synopsis of what really occurred when a baby hippo became separated from his mother when the great waves hit following the tsunami. After struggling alone for several days, the baby hippo was rescued by Kenyan wildlife officers and brought to live in an animal refuge. There, the baby hippo adopted a new "mama", a 130-year-old giant male tortoise. And they've been inseparable ever since.

The author's illustrations demonstrate the fear and loneliness experienced by the hippo as he searched for his mama. Simplistic, yes, however, it is a very effective way to tell this story to young children.....RECOMMENDED

The book is striking. It is a real find for a book to be a visual delight, creating wonderful images for dramatic events and powerful feelings. My granddaughter, 4 years, loved the story and the images of the spirit of the little hippo's mother. I am very picky about books for my grandchildren and this one is lovely.

My daughter received this as a gift, at the time she was only 2 so I didn't venture to even open it. As time went on she showed an interest and wanted me to "read" it to her. While the pictures are detailed enough, I tried to be sure that the emotions I conveyed were accurate. On the page where it shows the baby alone, my daughter became sad. I questioned whether it was appropriate, but as time went on and I continued to read it I noticed she became happy at the end. She has now taken to reading it to me; I'm amazed that she is not only able to see, but also express her emotions regarding what the pictures are depicting. Our children are wise beyond what we give them credit, I'm glad there are books like this that help ease the questions of what is inevitable in life- death.

I got this book from the library. I read the book to my 3 years and 6 years old daughters. Both were fascinated by the story so much that I was totally amazed! A book with only two words spoke so much. Then they started creating many stories of lost and found animals.They asked me about Tsunami and I got Tsunami DVD to explain it to them.
My elder daughter created a new story where the father of the baby is swept to New York city, where as mother tightly holds the baby. One fine day, they plan to take a trip to New York and whole family reunites.
And my little daughter fell in love with turtles saying it loved the baby hippo........
This book continues to be a model play story for my daughters..... It really gave me the first hand experience of power of books for young imaginative mind.....

Also this book can be read by the three years old.

...but every time I read this book I get teary eyed. Of course I use the word "read" loosely as there are only two words in the whole book: mama & baby.

I found this book after reading Owen and Mzee (Isabella Hatkoff) which was a short non-fiction book with photographs detailing the remarkable story of a baby hippo that lost his mom in the 2004 tsunami; he is later rescued and sent to a zoo where he is "adopted" by a giant 130 year old tortoise.

This picture book attempts to condense that incredible story in a handful of pages that are illustrated with simple and homely images using only the word "mama" to move the story line along. (There is also an author's note at the end which explains more about the true story.)

It's a pretty bold concept but I think it works. I'm still not a very big fan of the illustrations and the story is troubling but as a book it really does resonate for me and honestly I wouldn't change a thing about it. It's perfectly imperfect.

There are lots of reviewers that will argue it's a scary book thematically, but I think it's also very touching. I probably wouldn't recommend it to everyone but it's certainly one of the most moving picture books I've happened across.

I think this book may also find a welcoming home on the bookshelves of children who have themselves been misplaced from their parents and adopted by surrogates...or anyone who has tragically lost something and found it again in the unlikeliest of places.

Essentially it's a story of trauma and loss and hope and love. It's a story about life.

MAMA: a TRUE story, in which a BABY HIPPO loses his MAMA during a TSUNAMI, but finds a new home, and a new MAMA
During the tsunami that struck the Indian Ocean in 2004 near Indonesia, a group of hippos that were swimming in Kenya's Sabaki River were swept out to sea. Most of the hippos returned to safety, but one baby hippo was separated from his mother and washed up on shore after spending the night in the ocean. The baby hippo, less than a year old, was rescued by Kenyan wildlife officials and local fishermen and brought to a wildlife park. The baby hippo, now named Owen, immediately adopted a 130-year-old male tortoise named Mzee ("old man" in Swahili) as his new parent.

Mama tells the story of Owen the baby hippo through a series of charming illustrations that use only the words "mama" and "baby" to tell the tale. Even pre-reading children will be able to follow Owen's story, and having them explain what they think is happening in the pictures is a great first start towards building reading comprehension skills.

Mama is a wonderful testament to the power of adoptive families, and a celebration of the fact that they can occur even in the animal kingdom. Because it can be understood as a picture book even by very young children, this book is a good resource for introducing the idea of adoption to children who may not have heard their own adoption story yet. This positive message is further affirmed by the final panel, which shows the spirit of the mama hippo looking down happily upon Owen and Mzee.

One drawback of the book's presentation is that it does not make it apparent that Mzee is a male tortoise, especially since Owen calls him "mama", so the idea of animal fatherhood is somewhat obscured. Parents who want to make this point clear to their children should read the Author's Note at the end of the book, and any child will be fascinated to know that this is a true-life story.