Encantado: Pink Dolphin of the Amazon - Hardcover

Montgomery, Sy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0618131035 ISBN 13: 9780618131037

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers, 2002

Synopsis

Welcome to a forest filled with water. In the wet season, the swollen Amazon becomes a looking glass into another world, where pink dolphins swim like something from a dream. In Peru they are called bufeo colorado—the ruddy dolphin. Their color ranges from white to gray to a vivid pink. These astonishing mammals, actually river-dwelling whales, easily navigate their way through the complex, hazardous world of the Amazon rain forest. Encantado invites readers on the adventure of a lifetime as we travel into one of the world’s most lush and beautiful jungles in search of these magical creatures. Our guides include scientists and researchers as well as the local people, who have lived with the encantados—the enchanted ones—literally at their doorsteps for centuries. Our main guides are the dolphins themselves. They lead us into myth. They take us back in time to a prehistoric era. They alone can show us the depth of the Amazon’s beauty, diversity, and magic—and help us to keep our planet rich and whole.

About this title

About the Author:

Researching films, articles, and 22 books, SY MONTGOMERY has hiked the Altai Mountains of Mongolia looking for snow leopards, tracked tree kangaroos in Papua New Guinea, and more. A National Book Award finalist, she has also been honored with a Sibert Medal, two Science Book and Film prizes from the National Association for the Advancement of Science, three honorary degrees, and many other awards. She lives in Hancock, New Hampshire. Visit her online at symontgomery.com and on Twitter @SyTheAuthor.     

From School Library Journal:

Grade 3-7-A stimulating text and vibrant, full-color photographs entice readers on this trip down the Amazon to meet these freshwater rain-forest creatures. Written in second person and in a light, conversational tone, the narrative evokes a magical environment as readers accompany the author and a guide on a voyage to investigate these little-known animals. Different physically and behaviorally from the more common bottle-nosed variety, pink dolphins are hard to observe as they swim low and never leap out of the water. As the adventure proceeds, readers encounter all kinds of plant and animal life, meet a couple of scientists, and learn how observation leads to understanding. They see how children in this part of the world live, hear a folktale about an encantado, travel back through time to discover the animal's ancient origins, and glimpse the future of the Amazon as the forests are destroyed. Spanish and Portuguese words and phrases are occasionally integrated into the text. Hand-drawn colorful maps and a time line illustrate habitat and history, and there are a wealth of features at the back, including an annotated list for further reading, information on making a similar trip, statistics, odd facts, and unsolved mysteries. The author's sense of wonder at this spectacular environment and this unusual animal is infectious and makes for a nonfiction title that inspires as it informs.
Susan Oliver, Tampa-Hillsborough Public Library System, FL
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0618131035
• ISBN 13: 9780618131037
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 72