How to Save an Owl

Wildlife Rescue

by Kate Messner

From the bestselling author of the Ranger in Time series, Kate Messner, comes a chapter book series about a family dedicated to rescuing animals.

Siblings Ivy and Ezra couldn't be more different, but they have one thing in a love of animals. Their family volunteers for the local wildlife hospital as "critter couriers", helping transport injured and orphaned animals so they can get medical help.

When Ezra starts off his baseball season in a batting slump, he fears that he's not as good a player as the others on his new team. Then, while playing with his friend, Ezra finds two baby screech owls that seem to have fallen from a nest.

Ezra and his family transports the owl chicks to the wildlife hospital, but because their tree was damaged in a recent storm, they're unable to return to their original nest. Feeling anxious about his own place on his baseball team, Ezra worries that the baby owls will feel scared and alone. Determined to help the owlets however they can, Ezra and Ivy decide to build a human-made nest for the baby animals.

Can Ezra find his batting groove again and help the owls return to the wild?

Genres: Chapter Books, Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Childrens, Animals, Nature

123 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 2, 2025

About the author

KATE MESSNER is the New York Times bestselling author of more than eighty books for young readers. Her titles include award-winning picture books like Over and Under the Snow,The Whale’s Tale and the Otter’s Side of the Story, and Axolotl-Ella; novels like All the Answers, The Trouble with Heroes, and Keep the Ghost Light On; graphic novels like Camp Monster; and the Ranger in Time and Wildlife Rescue chapter books. Kate also writes the popular History Smashers graphic nonfiction series and leads the multi-author team behind The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class series.

Kate's titles have been honored with the American Booksellers Association Indies Choice Award, the E.B. White Read Aloud Award, the NAIBA Book of the Year Award, SCBWI's Golden Kite and Crystal Kite Awards and many state book awards. She's a frequent speaker at conferences, schools, and libraries around the world.

When she's not traveling, Kate lives on Lake Champlain with her family and spends her free time hiking, kayaking, and listening to way too many Broadway cast recordings.

Reviews

[Erin]

Second book in the series. Fun read, didn't captivate my 5 and 2 year old that they would ask to hear it, but they sat, listened and followed the story plot. Will read the third.

[Pam]

I appreciate how Messner seamlessly weaves informative text with her storylines in this series. Ezra and Ivy find two baby owls who have fallen from their nest. A huge storm took down their tree and the parents have flown off. Readers see what happens at a wildlife hospital as they work to save, not only the owls, but all the other displaced animals as well. Balanced against this storyline is Ezra's anxiety about joining a baseball team at the next level up. He is scared to play with the middle school team members as a fifth grader. Most of his friends are still on the team he had to leave behind. Messner offers a gentle look at coping with change and finding ways to move forward.

[Brandi Rae Fong]

Cute early chapter book with plenty of animal facts seamlessly included. I haven't read the first in the series, so I'd say these can be read out of order without kids missing anything.

(Also, is there anything Kate Messner can't write? Her and Christina Soontornvat...so solid across so many formats/genres/ages).

[Tweller83]

This is such a sweet elementary age book about wildlife rescue, animals, and a little bit about Ezra & Ivy's life. I love this series and think that the target audience would love them too. Of course, it is Kate Messner so I'm not sure I would expect anything else. She is a fantastic writer and I've loved everything I've read by her. Highly recommend.

[Ashley Healey]

Purple Finch Nominee 26-27.
Super cute beginning readers' series combining simple, but common growing up struggles (feeling inferior on a sports team) and wildlife activism. Would make a great read aloud for grades 1 or 2 during an animal unit, especially with the "take action" steps at the end of the book---would be a great way for kids to get involved with their community!

[Jessica]

Two baby owls live in a tree with their parents. But a storm brings down their tree. The kids and their mom take the two outlets to the rescue to be rehabilitated so they can get back in the wild before their parents leave the area. A very nice story.

[Vicky]

Great bk abt Ezra finding 2 baby owls that have fallen from a tree. He takes them to a wildlife hospital,and he and his sis have an idea to help the parents find them.

[nahes.]

3.8/5🌟

[Melanie Swider Wenz]

Great series that also incorporates some NF facts within the story as well as additional NF info in the back of the book.

[Cheri]

2026 Purple Finch Award Nominee

[Catharine]

Sweet and simple. Besides the focus on rescuing baby owlets, one character manages feeling unready to move up to the older baseball team.