I found out the best news today. My favorite chubby baby, Fiona the hippo, will be getting her own book–which means you should be adding it on all your gift lists.
If you haven’t fallen in love with Fiona yet, you should now. She was born at Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden prematurely–and since, all of her videos have gone viral (which can be found searching the hashtag #TeamFiona). Her survival is one of inspiration, especially in a year that has been tumultuous at best for many. Zoo director Thane Maynard, as a result, wants share and immortalize this story with young readers.
The book will be called “Saving Fiona: Science, Social Media, and the Story of a Baby Hippo” with an audience “targeted toward elementary school-aged readers.” It will be published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers on Jan. 22, 2019―days before little Fiona’s second birthday.
Even better, a portion of the proceeds from the book will help fund the zoo.
Let’s take a little time out of our day to fawn over Fiona:
Fiona just peeking up to say Hi! She seems to always know when a camera is pointed at her. #TeamFiona pic.twitter.com/IkILgbpECy
— Cincinnati Zoo (@CincinnatiZoo) July 29, 2017
It’s official! Fiona is the world’s sassiest hippo ever! Here she is inside pestering her mom Bibi while she eats. 💯💕👑😎 pic.twitter.com/6dRXzvDDHL
— Cincinnati Zoo (@CincinnatiZoo) August 1, 2017
Hooray! Fiona’s neck rolls are getting bigger! Today the scale read 421lbs for this chunky chunky hippo. #TeamFiona pic.twitter.com/jlxaNNPs7e
— Cincinnati Zoo (@CincinnatiZoo) August 7, 2017
Fiona tipped the scales at 317 lbs. this morning!! She has caught up weight-wise to a full term baby hippo that is the same age. pic.twitter.com/O2w8L1FI1G
— Cincinnati Zoo (@CincinnatiZoo) June 20, 2017