SHARKS UNHOOKED

Meet a shark whisperer!

The book opens with a scene of a shark being hooked by fishermen. “What will ease her pain?” asks an unseen narrator. Perhaps who is the better question, for this is the story of a woman who did just that. Cristina Zenato grew up in what was then Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) but summered by the sea in Italy, where she was born. She loved snorkeling and dreamed of one day protecting the ocean she adored. As an adult, she moved to the Bahamas, where she honed her diving skills and got her first thrilling glimpse of sharks. Wearing a protective suit, Cristina began attracting large sharks with treats. Eventually one swam into her lap as she sat on the seafloor. Another, with a fishing hook in its fin, came to her for help. Soon she had amassed a large collection of hooks she’d removed. She used them in her campaign—powerful visual reminders of the dangers sharks face. Through Newman’s sparkling, alliterative verse, a portrait of Cristina emerges—a dreamy wonderer who felt out of place growing up yet found a sense of belonging beneath the waves. Hall’s delightful cartoon illustrations avoid anthropomorphism as they depict a more vulnerable side of sharks. Above all, readers will emerge with a strong grasp of sharks’ crucial role in ecosystems.

A conservation tale that’s sure to hook readers.