Two years ago I read My Zoo Family (1953) by Helen Martini aloud to my kids (after it had sat on my bookshelf for years… I think I bought it at a thrift store). They loved it and I definitely recommend it, but also here are two picture books about Martini (1912-1994), the first woman zookeeper at the Bronx Zoo.

Mother to Tigers by George Ella Lyon, illustrated by Peter Catalanotto (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2003)

Helen and her husband Frank wanted children but weren’t able to have a baby. Then one day Frank brought home an abandoned lion cub from his job at the Bronx Zoo. Helen cared for little MacArthur until he was two months old. Next she nursed three tiny tiger cubs back to health and cared for them until they had to go back to the zoo. But she couldn’t bear to part with them, so she created a nursery in an old store room at the zoo and eventually she was officially hired. The author tells the story well and the illustrator uses torn paper panels and realistic colour and black and white pictures. A biographical note is included and the author mentions that she first read My Zoo Family when she was ten years old. Recommended for ages 5 to 10.

Cubs in the Tub: The True Story of the Bronx Zoo’s First Woman Zookeeper by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Julie Downing (Neal Porter Books, 2020)

This picture book tells the same story as the first one but with a little more detail. Personally I adore the illustrations (in fact I came across this book because I loved Julie Downing’s Hello, Sun and Hello, Moon so much.) The author’s note tells more about Martini and also how women created opportunities for themselves in the 20th century. There’s also a link to a short YouTube video of Helen Martini with a baby gorilla in 1951, a selected bibliography, a photograph, and source notes. Recommended for ages 5 to 10.