Shedd Aquarium's beloved penguins to be immortalized in new children's book

The Shedd Aquarium's beloved penguins will be immortalized in a new children's book coming in early March. "Edward and Annie: A Penguin Adventure" highlights rockhopper penguins Edward and Annie, whose field trips around the aquarium, along with superstar Wellington, went viral in the spring of 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic emerged.

The darling duo soared to superstar status in the spring of 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Shedd Aquarium was closed to outside guests. Because there were no humans roaming, Edward and Annie were allowed to freely explore around the exhibits and visit other aquatic animals across the building. Their adorable field trips, which are a regular part of the birds’ welfare plan at Shedd, were documented on video and soon after, went viral online, soliciting responses from all seven continents. This new children’s book beautifully captures their adventures, reminding readers that adventures are best enjoyed with a friend.

Beyond connecting nearly two million guests to the aquatic animal world each year, Shedd Aquarium is committed to scientific research, rescue and rehabilitation and aquatic conservation. The aquarium helped rehabilitate and release endangered African penguins in South Africa from 2014 until early 2020. Back at home, Shedd works alongside accredited aquariums and zoos to build genetically diverse and sustainable populations of Southern rockhopper and Magellanic penguins in human care.

The book is now available for pre-sale, $17.95, and a portion of Shedd’s proceeds from the book will support both the continued care of the penguins at Shedd and penguin conservation efforts in the wild.