A rustling sound came from outside the window. Annie peeked out and laughed. “Hey, there,” she said. Jack looked out, too. A giraffe was eating leaves off the tree. It had a sweet, goofy face. Jack peered at the world beyond the giraffe. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He saw a huge grassy plain, a wide river, and tons of birds and animals—more than he had ever imagined in one place. Giraffes and zebras were on the side of the river where Jack and Annie were. Thomson’s gazelles and the big horned animals were on the other side. “Where are the lions?” said Jack. “I don’t know,” said Annie. “Do you think it’s always this crowded?” “Let’s find out,” said Jack. He picked up the book on Africa and looked at the picture of the animals. He read aloud: Every year, in late spring, thousands of zebras and gazelles and millions of wildebeests (WILL-duh-beests) migrate from the dry plains of Tanzania to Kenya. “What’s ‘migrate’ mean?” said Annie. Jack pushed his glasses into place.
