Tom Michell is in his roaring twenties: single, free-spirited and seeking adventure. He has a plane ticket to South America, a teaching position in a prestigious Argentine boarding school, and endless summer holidays. What he doesn't need is a pet. What he really doesn't need is a pet penguin. But while on holiday in Uruguay he spots a penguin struggling in an oil slick and knows he has to help. And then the penguin refuses to leave his side . . . Clearly Tom has no choice but to smuggle it across the border, through customs, and back to school. He names him Juan Salvador. Whether it's as the rugby team's mascot, the housekeeper's confidant, the host at Tom's parties or the most flamboyant swimming coach in world history, Juan Salvador transforms the lives of all he meets - including Tom, who discovers a compadre like no other . . .