Book Recommendations

The Penguin Lessons

By Tom Michell

Biography & Autobiography, Personal Memoirs, Educators, Humor, Topic, Travel, General, Environmentalists & Naturalists, Pets, Birds, Essays & Travelogues | 240 pages
2 recommendations

SOON TO BE A MAJOR FILM, THIS IS THE TRUE STORY OF THE UNLIKELY FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN A FLIGHTLTESS BIRD AND A TEACHER OUT OF HIS DEPTH . . .

'I can't remember the last time I read a book that made me smile so continuously' 5***** Reader Review
'How could a penguin transform so many lives? Read it and see. You'll not regret it' 5***** Reader Review
'Delightful, uplifting, enjoyable, fun and beautifully written' 5***** Reader Review
_______

Tom Michell is in his roaring twenties: single, free-spirited and seeking adventure. He has a plane ticket to South America, a teaching position in a prestigious Argentine boarding school, and endless summer holidays.

What he doesn't need is a pet. What he really doesn't need is a pet penguin.

But while on holiday in Uruguay he spots a penguin struggling in an oil slick and knows he has to help. And then the penguin refuses to leave his side . . .

Clearly Tom has no choice but to smuggle it across the border, through customs, and back to school. He names him Juan Salvador.

Whether it's as the rugby team's mascot, the housekeeper's confidant, the host at Tom's parties or the most flamboyant swimming coach in world history, Juan Salvador transforms the lives of all he meets - including Tom, who discovers a compadre like no other . . .
_______

AS HEARD ON BBC RADIO 2

'A much-beloved tale about a much-beloved bird . . . Heart-warmingly eccentric' Guardian

'So touching that I didn't want it to end. I really loved this book' Michael Bond, creator of Paddington

'Charming' Daily Mail

'One of the most touching tales we've read all year' Heat

Latest recommendations
Anna Kirkin
13th Nov 2024
"This book has stayed with me, in my imagination, for many years since first reading it. It is a compelling mix of themes - a young man working away from home, animal rescue, breaking the rules - but centred on love and compassion."
Sarah Hall
7th Sep 2024
"This is a really uplifting biography about a penguin, named Juan Salvador, rescued by the author following an oil spill in Uruguay. The author takes the penguin back to his apartment in a prestigious boarding school for boys in Argentina, where he becomes part of the daily life of the school. The author recounts tales of day to day life with a penguin and the lessons he has learnt from it, all against a backdrop of Argentina’s decline under Juan Peron’s third stint as President.

Well worth a read - it is a lovely uplifting read, beautifully illustrated with pencil sketches of the penguin."