How to Babysit a Leopard: and Other True Stories from Our Travels Across Six Continents - Hardcover

Ted Lewin is the author and/or illustrator of many books for young readers, including Stable and At Gleason's Gym, both published by Roaring Brook Press, as well as the Caldecott Honor book Peppe the Lamplighter.
Betsy Lewin is a prominent author and illustrator of many children's books, including Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type (illustrator), for which she received a Caldecott Honor.
Ted and Betsy have created nearly two hundred books, many of which are about their travels around the world, such as Gorilla Walk and Elephant Quest. How to Babysit a Leopard is their first collaboration for Roaring Brook Press. Travelling to the wild places of the world is their passion.

“A husband-and-wife team, seasoned travelers, artists, and children's-book creators, offer readers a selection of highlights from 40 years of careful observation of the natural and human worlds in places near and far. Since the publication of Gorilla Walk in 1999, the Lewins have produced numerous titles reflecting specific adventures, but this is the first joint compilation of their travel experiences. Working continent by continent and beginning with their first safari to the Serengeti, they recount their adventures as if they were conversing with readers; sometimes one talks, sometimes the other. Some anecdotes are humorous and others sobering, especially as they note the effects of 30 years of civil war in Uganda or contrast the experience of a sloth bear in the wild with that of a captive dancing on the street near Delhi. There are scary encounters with lions, elephants, snakes, leeches, and a sharp-billed macaw-not to mention soldiers. There are curious foods-mopani worms and mushrooms the size of pizzas. They travel by horse cart and reindeer sledge and atop an elephant. They admire French bullfighters and Mongolian wrestlers and horses everywhere. They marvel, too, at spectacles close to home: a cattle roundup in Nevada, horseshoe crabs massed on the Delaware shore. These brief glimpses will whet the appetites of wannabe wanderers of all ages.” ―Kirkus

“This thrilling collection of travel adventures from this celebrated husband-and-wife, author-illustrator team will appeal to a variety of readers, from aspiring biologists and globe-trotters to those who prefer traipsing the face of the planet from a comfortable chair. Featuring short, conversational pieces, and spectacular photos and vibrant artwork laid out like a journal, this enticing title describes the duo's experiences all over the world. This is a deceptively slim volume, brimming with details of fascinating creatures, locales, and people. The narrative is quite gripping in places, such as in a scene depicting the authors' attempt to outrun a charging lion that was chasing their truck. The book also paints quietly compelling portraits of individuals, such as an old leper woman in Botswana, squatting in the corner of a roofless home of twisted sticks. There is humor, too: in one chapter, an Irish farmer watches the Lewins struggle to pull a wagon out of mud, a task that would have been more easily performed by a horse. The couple's joie de vivre is infectious, and the intimate, familiar tone running through this work underscores the idea that while this planet hosts an incredible variety of humans, animals, and destinations, it's a small world after all. VERDICT A captivating tribute to this glorious orb we call home.” ―School Library Journal