This is a middle grade book based on a girl who lives at the zoo. Why she lives at the zoo you ask? She was whisked there due to a tornado when she was a toddler. She was cared for by an elephant. No one came forward to claim Lexington so she has grown up at the zoo. Her Best friend also lives at the zoo an dis the product of a mixed marriage and a Thai mother. Her best friend’s mother homeschools her. Lex meets a friendly ghost, who insists she is a misplaced spirit, who encourages her to look for a hidden treasure. A story of love, friendship, legacy, and belonging, that once again makes the important point that one's family is not always by lineage.

I would like to add the cover of the book drew me to wanted to read this book. I am a super judging book cover person (insert eye roll here) haha.

I was provided a copy of this book from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

12 year-old Lex has been at the zoo for 7 years, hanging out with her friend Fisher and Nyah, the elephant who saved her life the night they met. Lex can't remember what happened prior to that fateful night. After a telepathic message from Nyah gets Lex involved in a mystery involving a "misplaced spirit" (ghost), treasure, and a riddle that may lead her to her "true identity." Will Lex find the courage to go on this adventure?

The Elephant's Girl is both heartwarming and inspirational. The zoo story is engaging and interesting and the icing on the cake is the addition of magical realism to the plot. The side characters, particularly the adults, are multidimensional. They are supportive and involved in Lex's life and her journey. The book touches on themes of identity, family, friendship, and community. It is a well-rounded, enjoyable addition to any middle grade shelf.

Do I really need to say more than this—a child, orphaned by a tornado, raised by an elephant (err, humans, too)—to get you running to your bookstore or library? This sparkling middle-grade debut offers a magical relationship between an orphan and the elephant who saves her, along with a peek into the back-stage workings of a zoo. There is adventure, intrigue, love and danger...and ghosts. What more could I want?

As an aside, I especially appreciate the author's note in her bio that she will not review a book that she will not highly recommend—I heartily agree. There is enough hate online already; whether I like it or not, anyone who is able to get a book published these days has gone through a long process that deserves respect. If I don't particularly like a book, most likely, it just wasn't for me. I would much rather be a cheerleader than a yelper :) ok, stepping off my soapbox.

Read this book. It's terrific.

Review published on Goodreads, 16 March 2021:

This is a compelling middle grade book that features a fun, unique setting; a friendly ghost; a treasure-hunt of a mystery; and a lot of valuable lessons about family, friendship, and finding your voice and courage. Lex is a sympathetic heroine who's compassionate, loyal, and determined. The plot goes in a few different directions, although it's always pretty clear where the story is going to go. Still, THE ELEPHANT'S GIRL is a quick, exciting read that has enough intriguing elements to keep the tale moving along at a satisfying clip. Magical realism is not my favorite genre, so I didn't love that Lex talked to the wind, but I did enjoy the ghost's appearances as well as Lex's unique way of communicating with her favorite elephant. All in all, I liked this uplifting, warm-hearted book. There's a lot to love here.

An elephant never forgets...but Lexington Willow can't remember her past. When she was a toddler, a tornado swept her away from everyone and everything she knew and landed her near an enclosure in a Nebraska zoo, where an elephant named Nyah protected her from the storm. With no trace of her family, Lex grew up at the zoo with her foster father, Roger; her best friend, Fisher; and the wind whispering in her ear.

Now that she's twelve, Lex is finally old enough to help with the elephants. But during their first training session, Nyah sends her a telepathic image of the woods outside the zoo. Despite the wind's protests, Lex decides to investigate Nyah's message and gets wrapped up in an adventure involving ghosts, lost treasure, and a puzzle that might be the key to finding her family. Can Lex summon the courage to hunt for who she really is--and why the tornado brought her here all those years ago?

This incredibly sweet tale is perfect for middle grade readers, and definitely lives up to the hype of it's 4.2/5 Goodreads rating.

Forgot to ever post about this one. It was lovely and I talked it up to all of the Bluebonnet (I'm in TX) readers. Oh and the teachers that love Kate DiCamillo. We're all anxious to hear more from this author.

Lex doesn't know her real name or her birthday. She doesn't know who her parents are or what happened to them. All she knows is that she appeared in the zoo, next to one of the elephants all alone after a tornado that damaged a large part of the town. The story of her discovery involves the elephants, the train engineer, and a ghost. Lex loves the elephants. She has a special connection with the elephants. She was able to hear their thoughts. Lex could also hear the wind talk to her. One day Niya, the elephant told her to go to the field outside the zoo. When she gets there, she meets the ghost who led Roger to her after the tornado. She tells Lex that she has hidden something that needs to be returned. Can Lex help the ghost?

A sweet middle grade read, but I just cannot digest magical realism. I think it gives kids a skewed perspective of the way the world really is.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for my copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I thought this was a sweet book in many ways. I loved Lexington and the people around her who cared for her after she landed in a zoo from a tornado when she was a toddler. I loved the connection between Lex and the elephants, Naya in particular, and how that took an interesting turn as the story went on. I was not prepared for the magical realism aspect of this story, but thought it was done in a way that kept my interest. I loved the themes of belonging, family and friendship that are woven all throughout this book.

This is a middle grade book. The main character of this book is a girl called Lexington Willow that lives at Nebraska zoo since she was a toddler a tornado swept her to the zoo. This story has magical realism (ghost and the girl talks to the wind and the wind talks to her). This is a heartwarming story that is about a girl finding where she came from, and who she is now. I loved this story, and I could not put this book down all day. I think even if it is a middle grade adults will love this story to. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher or author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the opportunity to review this book. I admit in my joy at joining NetGalley I may have been overzealous in my requesting numbers. As this book has already been published, I am choosing to work on the current upcoming publish date books in my que. As I complete those I will work on my backlogged request and will provide a review at that time. I again send my sincere thanks and apologies.

What an adorable story. Reminds me very much of Jerry Spinelli's The Warden's Daughter. I think my middle school students would love this book! Also reminds me very much of The One and Only Ivan. For anyone who is a fan of either of these titles, I would highly recommend this one.

The Elephant’s Girl, which is a middle grade book, is a story about a young girl.. Lexington Willow.. Lexington, was found after a tornado, with no family at the zoo. An elephant named Nyah,kept her safe during the tornado and Roger became her foster father. The Nebraska Zoo is a magical place where the animals become like family and the keepers become family too. But Lex feels that she needs to learn more about her life before the zoo. She tries to find clues at the zoo with her best friend Fisher. They can’t help but get in trouble during these searches. The two make a good team and they get very close to the truth. While all this is going on, Nyah sends mysterious messages about the old zoo, lost, and clues to solve the puzzle that Lex can’t put together on her own. My son and I read this and it was very well written. We thought this was a terrific story about finding your way in life. About working on finding who you are and how you are friends with people. Great lessons for this target audience. The illustrations are beautiful. Overall this was a four star read for me. This is a great book for middle graders. I have shared my reviews on my Instagram page and reviewed online.

Lexington is a strong willed girl with a very curious spirit. Not knowing where she came from pushes her curiosity to the limits. Fischer proves to be a great friend and aiding adventurer.
The Elephant’s Girl is a great book about family, friendship and gives awesome insight into the ability of elephants.

I really enjoyed this book! It started a little slowly but gained a lot of momentum in the middle. I most enjoyed the characters. Lex was a great main character. The author does a phenomenal job of detailing Lex and the result is a vibrant main character who I rooted for the whole book. I loved Lex's friendship with Fischer and think this is a great relationship for readers to see. I also loved the relationship between Roger and Lex. It was deep and caring and added a nice touch of family into the book.

I will definitely purchase this for my 2 elementary school libraries.

"The Elephant's Girl" combines elements of family relationships, nature, and magical realism to create a story about an adolescent girl's search for her family roots. Lexington has grown up living at a zoo with her guardian who works there as the train engineer. She arrived at the zoo following a tornado, and has never been able to find her parents. With the help of her friends (human and nonhuman), Lexington finds clues to her heritage. Elephants and how they communicate with other living things play an important role in this book.

The characters are realistic and likeable. The plot moves along quickly and contains enough excitement, magic, and mystery, as well as animal love, to satisfy middle grade students. As an adult, I loved this book and learned a lot about elephants and zoos.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Thanks for the Arc for an honest review but this book I don’t know what it is about it but it took me a while to get through but I got through it and it was okay I do like the authors writing style and I like the way the main character connected to the elephants!

The book was unrealistic, but kids won't care. It's not supposed to be Magical Realism, if that's a category, I don't believe, but I feel like the term fits. It was fine.

A beautiful read that I really enjoyed! I don't often read this genre or this kind of story but I really liked this one!