Tepee The Manatee: A New eBook For "The Curious, The Young, And All Those Who Are Young At Heart"
“I wanted to give people a glimpse of a life cycle that might be all but gone before they have a chance to read this book to the next generation,” said Helen Digges Spivey. “It could happen if we don’t realize and change what we are doing to the manatee population.”
A thought-provoking story on manatees is now available as an ebook. The book is titled Tepee the Manatee by Helen Digges Spivey, who is a manatee activist and also Co-Chair of Save the Manatee Club’s (SMC) Board of Directors. Tepee is currently a best seller in the children’s book category at Smashwords.com.
Tepee the Manatee is about the underwater adventures of a charming little manatee calf who is nicknamed for the triangle-shaped scar on his back. Accompanied by his “mummy,” who is teaching him how to survive in the wild, Tepee meets up with other characters along the way, such as otters named Oscar and Olivia, and an older manatee named Ernie, who teaches him how to smile. As Tepee explores Florida’s beautiful underwater environment, he also encounters change to his habitat brought on by human activity and learns firsthand why he is an “in-danger” (as he puts it) species. Tepee the Manatee is complemented by photos of real manatees that have been contributed to the book by Patrick Rose, Save the Manatee Club Executive Director, and by Tracy Colson and Matt Clemons, who are both eco-tour operators and manatee activists (Clemons is also an SMC Board Member).
Author and activist Helen Digges Spivey at Three Sisters Springs in Crystal River, Florida.
Helen Digges Spivey recently moved from Crystal River, where much of the book is set, to nearby Yankeetown, Florida. Crystal River has a large year-round manatee population and is one of the most important areas for manatees in the state. Nicknamed “The Manatee Lady,” Helen has devoted decades of hard work to protect the endangered mammals, first as a concerned citizen, then as a member of the Crystal River City Council, and also as an elected member of the Florida House of Representatives. Helen has received numerous awards for her manatee conservation activities, and she was recently instrumental in helping to protect Three Sisters Springs, an important manatee wintering area that is now part of the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge. Helen views Tepee the Manatee as an extension of her life’s work. “I wanted to give people a glimpse of a life cycle that might be all but gone before they have a chance to read this book to the next generation,” said Digges Spivey. “It could happen if we don’t realize and change what we are doing to the manatee population.”
Tepee the Manatee is available for $5.99 at Save the Manatee Club's Smashwords page.* Smashwords is an ebook publishing and distribution platform, and Helen is generously donating 50% of the proceeds from the sale of Tepee to Save the Manatee Club for manatee conservation efforts. Ebooks on Smashwords can be read online, or they can be downloaded to other reading devices such as the iPhone, iPod Touch, Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader or Barnes & Noble Nook, or other ereading devices. Although Tepee is currently a best seller in the Children’s Book category, Helen believes that it has wide appeal for all ages. “It is for the curious, the young, and all those who are young at heart,” she says.
*Note: You will need to create a Smashwords account to purchase the ebook. As a Smashwords member you will get a digital library for Tepee and other ebooks as well as the many formats for your reading devices. Once you create a library, if you want to change ereaders from your iPad to your Kindle, for example, you won't have to purchase a different format. They are all in your own member library, and you can just go and download it.
Buy Tepee The Manatee eBook! Tepee the Manatee is available for just $5.99. Just click on this Smashwords link or the Tepee book image at left to go to Save the Manatee Club's Smashwords page to purchase and download the ebook. You can read Tepee on your computer, iPhone, iPad, Kindle, or other ereading devices. (Note: You will need to create a Smashwords account to purchase the ebook.)
Tepee and Mummy Video: Covered with algae from where they recently ventured, the mother and calf rest quietly at the beautiful Three Sisters Springs. Tepee still bobbling about a bit to come up for air, looks as if wearing an algae coat for warmth and staying close to mummy. The temperature of the spring water is well suited for manatees and they don't need coats. It will shed off soon.
