2021 Finalist: Middle Grades Science Book

Growing Up Gorilla: How a Zoo Baby Brought Her Family Together, by Clare Hodgson Meeker. Lerner Publishing Group, 2019.

This heartwarming true story chronicles what happened after a mother gorilla gave birth for the first time and then walked away from her newborn baby at Seattle’s Woodland Park. The dedicated staff worked tirelessly to find innovative ways for mother and baby to build a relationship. The efforts were ultimately successful, as baby Yola bonded with her mother and the rest of the family group.