Did you know that an octopus has: 3 hearts, blue blood, 8 arms, & 2000 suction cups?
Did you know that an octopus can: walk on land, change color, & open a jar?
What else can an octopus do?
Embedded Files
🌊The Escape Artist🐙
When Inky the octopus slipped out of his tank, his audacious escape made headlines around the world...
A rock. A pot. Some sand. A light. And those same four walls, day in and day out. Inky the octopus has only ever known his tank at the aquarium. Understimulated and craving answers, he watches the people walk by and wonders where they go -- until one fateful day when the lock on his tank is left unlatched. Inky escapes, and he miraculously makes his way into a drainpipe and out to the ocean.
Inky's story is all true -- there really was an octopus who escaped the National Aquarium in New Zealand and returned to the sea and became a viral sensation. Award-winning author and biologist Thor Hanson shares Inky's story and highlights the innate intelligence of octopuses. Galia Bernstein's vibrant, tentacle-filled artwork captures Inky's curiosity, intelligence, and resourcefulness.
Inky the Octopus
Read Aloud
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Meet the Creators
Thor Hanson is a conservation biologist and the award-winning author of acclaimed books about nature for adults and children. He writes nonfiction that blends science, storytelling, and humor to explore how animals, plants, and ecosystems work. Thor's research and conservation projects have taken him around the world, from Tanzania to Uganda to Costa Rica. He lives with his family on an island in Washington State.
Galia Bernstein loves animals and has been studying and drawing them since she was two years old. She is the bestselling author of three picture books, which have been published in fifteen languages, and the illustrator of many more. She is known for her vibrant, expressive artwork in children's books. Galia lives in New York with a very small dog and a large cat.
Glimpse into the Book
Discussion Questions
Where did Inky live at the beginning of the book?
Why was Inky curious about the world outside his tank?
What mistake allowed Inky to escape?
What path did Inky take to reach the ocean?
Where did Inky end up at the end of the story?
Why wasn't Inky satisfied living in the aquarium, even though he was safe?
Why was Inky's escape so impressive?
Do you think Inky made the right choice to leave the aquarium? Why or why not?
Would you rather be safe or free? Explain.
Why do you think humans were amazed by Inky's escape?
How do you think the aquarium workers felt after Inky escaped?
Have you ever wanted to explore somewhere new like Inky? What happened?
If you were Inky, would you leave the tank? Why or why not?
What does Inky's escape show us about octopus intelligence?
Did this true story change the way you think about animals in aquariums?
Book Activities
Draw a map of Inky's escape route from the tank to the ocean.
Related Resources
More books written or illustrated
by Galia Bernstein:
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