I've always had a soft spot for tales of a soft spot for stories of animals who are rehabilitated and released back to the wild so it's no surprise that I loved Springer's tale.

A fascinating story, with beautiful illustrations, that breaks down a complicated real-life event into a picture book children can enjoy.

Such a touching story! I am an absolute sucker for these stories, true animal rescues, and this one a baby orca. It nice to know some baby animals can be reunited with their families when lost. I like that orca are being monitored by photograph and that Springer was ided so quickly. I had no idea this was being done. Also, it was really pretty cool to learn that whale pods have their own dialects! Who knew?! I liked the illustrations, too. really nice. grade school kids are going to love this story.

I've never been super into whales like some. They're cool and all but they never really fascinated me. Nor am I typically entranced by the orphaned baby animal story. This one really captured me though. Not so much specifically because of Springer. To my mind the interest is in the process. How they identified first Sprinter's pod and then her individually. Who'd have know that whales have specific dialects? And then all of the challenges of returning her to her pod: health complications; assuring that she didn't get too comfortable with people; the physical transport; and the difficulty of finding a while that would take her in. Its a quick, easy to follow read that packs a lot of facts into a short number of pages.

This was the quick telling of the rescue that was done to save Springer of the A Pod of northern residential orcas after she had traveled away from her home upon the possible passing of her mother.

What makes this book a gem is the fact that it now showcases how human technology and science has improved so much that instead of seeing an actual baby animal then trying to shove it with the nearest member of its species we can actually in some cases track its actual family down. Furthermore it explores the differences that animal communities have just like human communities.

The writing although simple and easy to understand doesn't seem to flow quite as well so it can be a bit stiff for. In my opinion I feel this was since the book was struggling to figure out whether it wanted to provide the information as an informal children's book format or as an educational children's book format.

All in all it was a decent book explaining the leaps and bounds of progress and peoples' opinion when it comes to the environment as well as some orca facts. As for an audience I know there may be some who may like it but I wouldn't be able to put my finger on who in my close group would be a fan of it.

***I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review***

This is going to be so useful in my classroom! I'm already picturing pairing it with news clips and articles relating to the rescue. I'm an avid orca fan, so this was right up my alley. Super excited to introduce it to my class!

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

The Spirit of Springer is a delightful story that retells the true events of the rescue and successful release of killer whale calf, Springer. The soft illustrations bring the events of the story to life. It’s a detailed and compelling story.

The writing does a fantastic job of placing the reader directly in the story, and setting the scene. The book is told from the perspective of the humans that interacted with Springer, from the ferry worker who spotter her alone to the scientists who worked to reunite her with her family. While this was a project that drew many people together, this book focuses on the work of Dr David Huff, a veterinarian at the Vancouver Aquarium and Dr Lance Barrett-Lennard, a marine mammal scientist.

The book explains both the media attention Springer received, the concern of the public and the details of her rescue, rehabilitation and release. Built into the story are explanations of scientific terminology, like dialect.

Dates break the story into sections and give this book grounding as a true story. It is a long story and there are many details about the efforts that went into Springer’s rescue and rehabilitation, as the scientists worked to improve her medical condition and prepare her to return to her family. The return wasn’t all smooth either, and the book explains the heartstopping moments as Springer worked to reconnect with her pod.

The last few pages of the book provide real photos of Spinger, more details about her story, a map of her journey, extra details about members of Springer’s pod and the markings that scientists use to determine orcas’ identities. There are details about why orcas are at risk, steps we humans can take to protect these amazing creatures and resources to find more information. There is even a link to live Orca cameras, which are just amazing to watch.

The Spirit of Springer is a beautiful book, perfect for capturing the attention of orca lovers and young readers alike.

The publishers provided an advanced readers copy of this book for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.

A really beautiful story that tells the real life tale of Springer making it home written in a way that children can understand. A great story for kids interested in whales that shows the importance of why whales need to stay wild and with their pods. And a helpful section in the back that let's people know what they can do to help. I also loved the update of Springer with her own calves.

Sophie’s first book this month was a short one with a long title. The Spirit of Springer: The Real-Life Rescue of an Orphaned Orca by Amanda Abler is a beautifully illustrated telling of a true story with a truly happy ending.

In 2002, an abandoned killer whale calf was spotted in Puget Sound just off the coast of Seattle. The calf was identified as Springer, a member of the A4 pod of Nothern Resident orcas who swim off the coast of British Columbia—several hundred miles north of where this calf was found after the apparent death of her mother. A group of scientists from the USA and Canada banded together to work out how to safely capture, rehabilitate, and release Springer so she could be reunited with her family.

The book tracks the work put in by these scientists from explaining how they identified Springer, why the decision was made to move her, and the difficult processes needed to do so. All throughout the book are gorgeous full-page illustrations by Levi Hastings that really bring Springer’s story to life and, at the end of the story, there are pages detailing the route used, a guide to Springer’s family tree, and information about Springer’s life after her voyage.

Sophie absolutely loved this gorgeous book. The happy ending is just what she needed during these dark, winter months, and she thinks that this will delight anyone with an interest in marine life and the scientists who work with orcas.

I loved this book. In my local news I don't remember seeing this story, so I was totally fascinated by it. The young baby orca Springer is lost then a group of researchers take care of her and wait for her to be healthy enough to be reunited with her pod.
Also, the illustrations are so cute and so appealing to the story, I'm totally gonna recommend this book to all my friends.

WOW! This story got me right in the feels!

This is an amazing true story of an orphaned Killer Whale and human compassion. I live in Canada, and I had not heard this story before. The number of organizations, federal departments, and people that had to come together to bring this Orca home is impressive.

I love that this story has a happy ending, I don't think I could have handled it if it was a sad ending. I also loved the information this book provides about identifying Orca's, and how to improve Orca populations.

#TheSpiritofSpringer #NetGalley

Beautifully illustrated and compelling, this storybook was a real winner for me. I particularly loved the emotion that derived from the story.

The Spirit of Springer is a picture book that tells about the real-life rescue of an orphaned baby whale.

The story tells of all the brave men and women that worked together to locate Springer's pod, rehabilitated Springer back to the hearth, and eventually release him back to wild with his family.

The complications for the return of Springer to his family were larger, but everyone knew it was the right thing to do. Together, everyone worked to solve problems and get Springer back to where he belongs.

The Spirit of Springer is a nonfiction book with a narrative format. Students will love hearing about this true story and then seeing the actual pictures located in the back of the book. I could also see a lot of students doing additional research online to learn even more about Springer and his unique rescue.

***I received a copy through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.***

This is a book that I, as a 25 year old, can see myself reading again and again. Not only is it beautifully illustrated, but it is also a lovely true story and so educational. Being a conservationist, I think my favorite thing about this book is the section on what the reader can do to help protect orcas! Absolutely loved this read!

A very strong book, and one which has a simple, child-friendly vocab and style yet still manages to get a lot of urgency into the text when needed. The title orca is a couple of hundred miles away from where she should be, with the clan of her relatives that speak her dialogue. Instead she's bored, ill-looking, and trying to find surrogate mothers and human company whenever she can, none of which is good. So it's finally decided to rescue her, check her over, and ferry her up the coast to where she ought to be. The fact the story exists kind of shows you there was a happy ending, but details since the time of the real events (2002, no less) will also gladden the young reader. This is a book that's also really strong visually, using lots of varied page designs and camera angles. It might not be a book that's read hundreds of times over, but this is well worth a look. A strong four stars.

I remember when Springer was rescued. It was big news at the time, but kids today probably won't have heard the story. Now, with this picture book, they can learn about Springer and her predicament, and the lengths that people went to in order to reunite the orphaned orca with her family.

The story is told simply, from the time Springer is spotted as a baby to fourteen years later when she returns with a surprise. The rescue operation is related in detail, highlighting all the work and cooperation that went into making sure the little whale made it back to her family. Lovely watercolour illustrations complement the text perfectly. There are a number of pages at the end that provide further information about Springer (including what's happened to her family since) and about orcas in this area of the world. It could be a great book for use in a classroom setting.

Overall, this is an enjoyable non-fiction title about a little orca who captured the imagination of the Pacific Northwest back in 2002. It you remember the story, you'll probably enjoy the book. If you've never heard the story, now's your chance to find out what it was all about.