Inky the Octopus by Erin Guendelsberger, illus. by David Leonard, is on the 2019-2020 Florida Sunshine State Jr. list

​We are thrilled to share that Inky the Octopus by Erin Guendelsberger, illus. by David Leonard, is on the 2019-2020 Florida Sunshine State Jr. list.

​The Sunshine State Jr. List (SSYRA Jr) is sponsored by the Florida Association for Media in Education. The mission of the program is to “develop student interest in reading for pleasure by exposing them to a wide range of appropriate literature. Sunshine State Jr. books are selected for their wide appeal, literary value, varied genres, curriculum connections, and/or multicultural representation.”

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About the book

Inky is bored with aquarium life—he wants to start a new adventure in the ocean! But just how can an octopus in a tank get to the open seas…?   

Inky is not just a character from a tall tale – he’s the real-life escape artist from the National Aquarium of New Zealand. One morning in April of 2016, the aquarium’s keepers discovered that Inky was missing. His tank-mate Blotchy stayed behind, but the keepers traced Inky’s tracks to Hawke’s Bay. This story chronicles the adventure that the real-life Inky might have taken on his escape to freedom in the open ocean!

About the author and illustrator

Erin Guendelsberger writes stories and poems. Her work has appeared in picture books and magazines. She studied writing at Hamline University and Bowling Green State University. She now pursues adventure in Ohio with her husband, daughters, dog, and cats.

David Leonard began illustrating in the first grade. His goal is to capture a moment in time with gestures, emotions, and paint strokes while reflecting on his own fun, humorous, and whimsical personality. When David is not illustrating, he enjoys feeding his snails and flying with his loving, forgiving, understanding, and supportive wife and their art-directing twin daughters.