What do you think?
Rate this book
Tippy and Jellybean: the True Story of a Brave Koala Who Saved Her Baby From a Bushfire
Based on a heartwarming true story.
Tippy and her baby Jellybean live in a beautiful eucalyptus forest.
One day, they wake up and sniff the air. It's smokey, hot and windy.
Kangaroos and wallabies are bounding.
Lizards and snakes are slithering.
Wombats are heading to their burrows.
The cockatoos take off in an enormous flock.
Tippy can't hop. Or run. Or fly.
Instead she shelters her baby in the only way she can…
This is the uplifting story of a mother koala who saved her baby from a bushfire, and the dedicated vets who look after them until they are healed and ready to go home.
Tippy and her baby Jellybean live in a beautiful eucalyptus forest.
One day, they wake up and sniff the air. It's smokey, hot and windy.
Kangaroos and wallabies are bounding.
Lizards and snakes are slithering.
Wombats are heading to their burrows.
The cockatoos take off in an enormous flock.
Tippy can't hop. Or run. Or fly.
Instead she shelters her baby in the only way she can…
This is the uplifting story of a mother koala who saved her baby from a bushfire, and the dedicated vets who look after them until they are healed and ready to go home.
24 pages, Hardcover
Published June 16, 2020
26 people want to read
About the author
Sophie Cunningham
37 books54 followersSophie Cunningham is the author of six books including City of Trees: Essays on Life, Death and the Need for a Forest (Text, 2020). She is also the editor of the collection Fire, Flood, Plague: Australian writers respond to 2020 (Vintage, 2020).
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 20, 2020
It’s heartbreaking what happened to Australian wildlife in the recent bushfires, but this is a lovely story with a happy ending. Adorable!
July 9, 2020
‘Tippy and her baby Jellybean live in a beautiful eucalyptus forest.
One day, they wake up and sniff the air. It’s smokey, hot and windy.
Kangaroos and wallabies are bounding.
Lizards and snakes are slithering.
Wombats are heading to their burrows.
The cockatoos take off in an enormous flock.
Tippy can’t hop. Or run. Or fly.
Instead she shelters her baby in the only way she can…
This is the uplifting story of a mother koala who saved her baby from a bushfire, and the dedicated vets who look after them until they are healed and ready to go home.’
This book was beautiful.
I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book. I knew this was going to be an emotional read and I had high hopes for this book. Thankfully it not only lived up to my expectations it well and truly surpassed them.
Sophie Cunningham did a fantastic job with the story being told in this book. It was equal parts heartbreaking and heartwarming. The story was captivating and will easily be understood and not to overwhelming for young readers.
Anil Tortop’s illustrations perfectly complimented Sophie Cunningham’s wonderful story. The illustrations were beautiful and vivid and added an extra layer to this story. I can easily see young readers being enthralled by the fabulous illustrations on display in this book.
The fact that this story is based on real Koala’s made this book extra poignant. I truly believe this would be the perfect book to help explain the events of this last Bush Fire season to young readers while also giving them an entertain and eye catching reading experience.
Tippy and Jellybean by Sophie Cunningham and Anil Tortop is a must have for all young readers and all Australian readers regardless of age.
Proceeds from this book will raise money for the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund.
Geramie Kate Barker
gemsbooknook.wordpress.com
One day, they wake up and sniff the air. It’s smokey, hot and windy.
Kangaroos and wallabies are bounding.
Lizards and snakes are slithering.
Wombats are heading to their burrows.
The cockatoos take off in an enormous flock.
Tippy can’t hop. Or run. Or fly.
Instead she shelters her baby in the only way she can…
This is the uplifting story of a mother koala who saved her baby from a bushfire, and the dedicated vets who look after them until they are healed and ready to go home.’
This book was beautiful.
I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about this book. I knew this was going to be an emotional read and I had high hopes for this book. Thankfully it not only lived up to my expectations it well and truly surpassed them.
Sophie Cunningham did a fantastic job with the story being told in this book. It was equal parts heartbreaking and heartwarming. The story was captivating and will easily be understood and not to overwhelming for young readers.
Anil Tortop’s illustrations perfectly complimented Sophie Cunningham’s wonderful story. The illustrations were beautiful and vivid and added an extra layer to this story. I can easily see young readers being enthralled by the fabulous illustrations on display in this book.
The fact that this story is based on real Koala’s made this book extra poignant. I truly believe this would be the perfect book to help explain the events of this last Bush Fire season to young readers while also giving them an entertain and eye catching reading experience.
Tippy and Jellybean by Sophie Cunningham and Anil Tortop is a must have for all young readers and all Australian readers regardless of age.
Proceeds from this book will raise money for the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund.
Geramie Kate Barker
gemsbooknook.wordpress.com
June 20, 2020
Story 📖
All around the world prior to COVID-19, everyone was aware of the Australian bushfire crisis and the impact that it had on communities, people and the wildlife.
This is the story of a mum Tippy and her baby, Jellybean. The story tells how Tippy and Jellybean were caught in the bushfire at East Gippsland in Victoria and how they were badly injured in the fire.
They were taken to emergency care at an animal sanctuary and a nurse called Kami helped restore both of them to help with love, care and tenderness.
They also made sure that Tippy and Jellybean stayed together at all times as the bond between them was so strong.
Summary 📖
This book is so powerful as the animals are often the forgotten victims in natural disasters. Anyone that saw the pictures of the koalas that had been injured could not help but be moved by the devastation.
Suggestion 📖
I would recommend this one is added to all early childhood libraries. The proceeds from the book help support the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund. The author and illustrator did such a wonderful job of bringing this story to life.
This book is recommended for young readers age 3-7 years old and it is a powerful way to discuss the impact of natural disasters on the local wildlife and environment with young children.
📖
All around the world prior to COVID-19, everyone was aware of the Australian bushfire crisis and the impact that it had on communities, people and the wildlife.
This is the story of a mum Tippy and her baby, Jellybean. The story tells how Tippy and Jellybean were caught in the bushfire at East Gippsland in Victoria and how they were badly injured in the fire.
They were taken to emergency care at an animal sanctuary and a nurse called Kami helped restore both of them to help with love, care and tenderness.
They also made sure that Tippy and Jellybean stayed together at all times as the bond between them was so strong.
Summary 📖
This book is so powerful as the animals are often the forgotten victims in natural disasters. Anyone that saw the pictures of the koalas that had been injured could not help but be moved by the devastation.
Suggestion 📖
I would recommend this one is added to all early childhood libraries. The proceeds from the book help support the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund. The author and illustrator did such a wonderful job of bringing this story to life.
This book is recommended for young readers age 3-7 years old and it is a powerful way to discuss the impact of natural disasters on the local wildlife and environment with young children.
📖
May 5, 2022
the genre of this book is nonfiction. the age group this book is made for is 3-6 years old.
this book is about a true story. it is about a koala named tippy that protects her son jellybean the koala from a brush fire and when they get found they go to a rehabilitation center where they get better. then they go home after a while and now jellybean is big and as brave as his mum. i gave this book 5 stars because it told a great story about a brave mother protecting her child. it has great illustration and real-life pictures of tippy and jellybean. it also has great colors.
this book is about a true story. it is about a koala named tippy that protects her son jellybean the koala from a brush fire and when they get found they go to a rehabilitation center where they get better. then they go home after a while and now jellybean is big and as brave as his mum. i gave this book 5 stars because it told a great story about a brave mother protecting her child. it has great illustration and real-life pictures of tippy and jellybean. it also has great colors.
June 30, 2020
This is a gorgeous picture book!
Based on a true story of a koala and her joey during the bushfires in East Gippsland at the end of 2019 (and $1 from the sale of each book goes to the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund).
The illustrations are lovely and the story demonstrates a positive relationship between humans and koalas. This book is much loved by the young vet in our home!
Based on a true story of a koala and her joey during the bushfires in East Gippsland at the end of 2019 (and $1 from the sale of each book goes to the Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund).
The illustrations are lovely and the story demonstrates a positive relationship between humans and koalas. This book is much loved by the young vet in our home!
February 8, 2026
The students in my class really enjoyed this story. They found it very interesting and learnt a little bit more about bushfire and the people who rescue animals. It was great how real photos were included at the end of the book because it meant the kids really understood that this real and this story is relevant.
December 24, 2020
Fantastic 'based on a true story' book. Jack picked this one out of the library to bring home, I think he'd been read it at school. I'm glad he did. It's very sad, very hopeful, very educational, very beautiful.
9/10
9/10
April 29, 2021
My granddaughters aged 4 & 2 absolutely adore this book. They love the illustrations and especially the story. They were quite anxious at the huge fire scene page. Such a great book for any age from 2 to 12
July 22, 2020
A beautiful book about two koala's during the recent bushfires and the people who saved them. The gorgeous illustrations just add to this wonderful book.
November 26, 2020
Lovely story and illustrations made more enjoyable as it is based on truth.
November 15, 2021
A great story about a koala and baby koala who survive a bush fire.
February 28, 2021
This picture book is based on the koala rescue projects from the 2019 Australian bushfires. Besides being about koalas, which are just plain cute, this title can also help children develop empathy for animals and start them thinking about what event affect our wild animals and how we help them.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews