The Penguin Lessons

Product Information

The penguin illustrations by the author were pleasing and added to the narrative. I do wish that there had been photos and I wonder if the bit more than two minutes of video footage can be found anywhere is I’d love to view it. Biću iskrena - malo mi je falilo da od knjige odustanem na nekih 60%. Završila sam je čisto da vidim kako će priča S PINGVINOM ići dalje, a poglavlja i priču o njegovim putovanjima i nekim sporednim stvarima sam preskakala, no shame in that.

I was hoping against hope that the penguin would survive because as of that instant he had a name, and with his name came the beginning of a bond which would last a life-time' The author, Tom Michell, was an assistant master at the above named, rather exclusive boarding school in 1975 - 1976. It’s located in Quilmes, outside Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was 23. He never planned on caring for a penguin. He planned on teaching and seeing South America - its people, its wildlife, its landmarks, its night sky constellations, its flora, its fauna. In fact, he does both! And in this book he articulately depicts his emotional and intellectual experiences. He must have been a marvelous teacher. He cared for those kids and he cared for Juan Salvador. He briefly fills in the history of the time. Rampant inflation and the beginning of the Dirty War. In March 1976 Isabel Péron was ousted by a right-wing coup d'état. A military junta was installed headed by General Jorge Rafael Videla. The narrator for the story is the author, Tom Michell, and this is part recount, part story, part travelogue and entirely entrancing. It is a brilliant, fun read, as the author shares his experiences and imagined conversations with Juan Salvado( r ). I’ll let you imagine some of the amazing, often hilarious, antics as a little penguin joins a boarding school then suggest that you go read the book yourself to find out just what happens.It’s hard to resist this charming account of a young British man who went to Argentina in the 1970s and accidentally adopted a penguin. Michell is creditably thoughtful and empathetic in his assessments of the country and the environment, despite being a self-confessed irresponsible white boy. He evokes Juan Salvado, the penguin he saved from an oil spill, with great affection and vividness. The reader cannot help loving such a charismatic and fascinating creature. Michell admits that he and everyone else who was fond of Juan Salvador anthropomorphised him no end (for instance, assuming he was male). This behaviour is entirely understandable, though. Michell worked in a boarding school and his pupils were of course enchanted with the penguin living among them. Michell analyses their interactions in a light-hearted style:

Tom Michell is going down to teach college in Argentina. While visiting Uruguay, he comes across and rescues a Magellan penguin from an oil spill that he ends up adopting (or is it the other way around?) and names Juan Salvador. This book is a memoir depicting Michell's relationship with this adorable Megellan penguin and how he warms the hearts of Michell's students, the housekeeper where Michell lives, and others, such as a boy named Diego that is learning how to swim and he even encourages a young man to ask a woman out on a date. This was an absolute delight and it's especially good on audiobook, narrated by the actor Bill Nighy.Michell names the penguin Juan Salvador (“John Saved”), but Juan Salvador, as it turns out, is the one who saves Michell. So touching that I didn't want it to end. I really loved this book' Michael Bond, creator of Paddington I loved this book, and you will, too! It’s as charming, heartwarming, and surprising as a penguin on a roof terrace. What’s more, The Penguin Lessons teaches an important truth: that a single act of compassion can be repaid a thousand-fold.” —Sy Montgomery, author of The Good Good Pig and the National Book Award finalist The Soul of an Octopus From all the time you spent with Juan Salvador, do you have one standing moment that you will always remember?