Zoo at School

HONORABLE MENTION IN THE KOPS-FETHERING AWARDS 2020, MIDDLE GRADE FICTION

What would happen if a chimpanzee showed up in your high school gym? Or a lion in the cafeteria? Or maybe a rhino in the janitor’s closet?

‘Zoo at School’ is an adventure from the opening page to the end. Anna and her friends volunteer at a small animal sanctuary called ‘Chic-a-Ta Zoo.’ The teens get to know the exotic animals and their unique personalities, including gentle Sampson, the lion, momma Bertha, the elephant, and Harry Houdini, the escape artist Chimp.

But not everyone loves the zoo. A deliberate act of sabotage leaves the cages open, and the animals loose. They all end up at the local high school, causing mayhem. The town declares the animals dangerous, and they will be euthanized. But the teens devise a plan to save them. They must herd them north to ‘Freedom Ranch, ’ a large animal sanctuary where they can live out their lives in peace.

But the town council president is bent on revenge and hires a posse to chase after them and kill the animals. Will the animals make it to safety? Or will they be shot along the way?