The Penguin Lady

By: Carol A. Cole
Illustrated by: Sherry Rogers
Publisher: Sylvan Dell Publishing
Publication Date: February 2012
ISBN: 978-1607185369
Reviewed by: Deb Fowler
Review Date: February 8, 2012

Penelope Parker was fond of penguins. Well, maybe she was crazy about them. She had bright, sparkling eyes and was dressed in black and white flowered overalls. Why even her house at 3316 Penguin Place was a black and white haven for little penguins. Penelope was so much like a penguin she “even waddled when she walked.” Her brother sent her a snoopy penguin from the Galapagos Islands for her birthday. The penguin peered into her mirror and practically emptied her toothpaste tube all over it when he stepped on it. Out! Out! Off to the garage he went.

Her family, who knew she loved penguins, decided to give her more. Two Rockhopper penguins from Argentina decided to join Penelope’s family at the dinner table. My, didn’t those potatoes look good! Off to the garage they went. After three Chinstrap penguins from Antarctica arrived the “local newspaper heard about them and sent a reporter to write a story about Penelope and the Penguins.” Soon it began to be a regular old penguin parade at 3316 Penguin Place. What in the world was Penelope possibly going to do with all those penguins?

This is a charming, informative tale about Penelope and the world of penguins who came to her door. Set in picture book format, it is easy to read and very appealing. The confident reader can easily tackle the text while the emergent reader will probably need a bit of assistance with words such as orphaned or Antarctica. The young reader will be able to learn about and differentiate between different types of penguins simply by comparing them in the context of the story and reading short sentences about them. For example, we learn that Emperor Penguins from Antarctica eat squid. In the back of the book is more comparative information about penguins, a true and false section, and a hands on activity comparing the height of penguins. There are free downloadable teaching activities on the publisher's website.

Quill says: This marvelously creative book will help young readers learn about different types of penguins around the world when they arrive on Penelope Parker's doorstep.