Book excerpt: Okapi loves his striped legs until a naughty chimpanzee teases him for stealing "zebra pants". Suddenly his special stripes don't feel special. They feel terrible! OKAPI loves spending carefree days frolicking in the African Rainforest alongside his best friend AFRICAN GREY PARROT. One day, he meets a CHIMPANZEE who laughs at his striped legs and teases that he's stolen a zebra's pants. OKAPI has never met a ZEBRA and pretends he doesn't care, but the seed is planted, and he soon finds himself questioning the very stripes he used to love. What choice does he have but to set out in search of this strange zebra animal and see for himself if he has in fact accidentally taken its pants. On the surface, "Okapi Loves His Zebra Pants" is about an Okapi dealing with hurt feelings from being teased, but look deeper, and it's a story about resilience, self-acceptance, community, and finding joy in our similarities as well as our differences. Kids love the fact-filled spread at the end of the story where they can learn about okapis, chimpanzees and African grey parrots, ways to help endangered animals, and even how to draw them! Endangered & Misunderstood is an ongoing series of children's picture books that takes a different approach to the serious subject of lesser-known endangered animals, with an emphasis on laughter, adventure, and themes everyone can relate to. Buy and review "Okapi Loves His Zebra Pants" to help the endangered okapi. All proceeds go towards the protection and conservation of okapis.