Shortly after marrying in 1934, Ruth Harkness’s husband left on an expedition to China to find a panda, a species so rare and in such a remote area that no one in the Western world had ever seen one. Ruth wanted to go along but she was told it was no place for a woman, especially one with no survival skills or knowledge of the wilderness. But after her husband died on the expedition, Ruth decided to complete his mission, despite discouragement on many fronts. She traveled deep into China (with the help of a guide, a cook, and a crew of sixteen men to carry her baggage), where she found and captured a baby panda she named Su Lin. Returning to San Francisco with the panda, Ruth made front-page news and was lauded as a “woman explorer.” Alicia Potter recounts the fascinating story of how pandas were introduced to the West thanks to one woman’s determination in a picture-book history richly illustrated by Melissa Sweet with a blend of full-page illustrations and scrapbook-style detail art. An essential author’s note discusses the ethics of Mrs Harkness’s actions in light of changing attitudes about conservation and zoos since that time. (Ages 5–9)

In 1934, Ruth Harkness had never seen a panda bear.  Not many people in the world had.

But soon the young Mrs. Harkness would inherit an expedition from her explorer husband: the hunt for a panda.  She knew that bringing back a panda would be hard. Impossible, even.  But she intended to try.

So she went to China, where she found a guide, built traps, gathered supplies, and had explorers' clothes made—unheard of for a woman in those days.  Then she set out up the Yangtze River and into the wilderness.  What she discovered would awe America: an adorable baby panda she named Su Lin, which means "a little bit of something very cute."

With breathtaking illustrations from Caldecott Honor artist Melissa Sweet, this little-known true story shares the tale of an adventurous woman who was bold and brave—and the unforgettable journey that helped shape American attitudes toward wildlife.