Reviews

The Elephant Whisperer: My Life with the Herd in the African Wild by Lawrence Anthony, Graham Spence

lauracooleyjohnson's review against another edition

5.0

If you know me, you’ll know I read very little non-fiction. I just don’t enjoy it as a rule. But this true story was heartwarming, informative, and very well written. I downloaded it for our trip to Kenya years ago and never got motivated to read it (non-fiction and all that!) But picking it up years later brought me right back. Elephants are frankly amaze-balls. So the story of all the elephant interactions was enchanting. But I also enjoyed the non-elephant parts of the story. The behind the scenes description of establishing a gaming preserve with the collaboration of local tribes is very interesting. When we visited, we found the interdependence between nature, wildlife, local community, and eco-tourism pretty fascinating. So those elements resonated for me. I’m not sure it was described all that well in the book - but it makes sense if your are familiar with how that all works. Anyway, I highly recommend this book! Enjoy!!

beccasteinbach's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

4.0

ibokensvarld's review against another edition

5.0

Första boken 2023 blev en underbar bok med så mycket empati och kämparglöd för elefanter, och savannens alla djur! Boken är skriven med klokhet och värme. Som djurvän kommer boken värma ditt hjärta. Genom tjuvjakt på Thula thulas ägor, kultur och seder inom den sydafrikanske befolkningen, information om djuren på savannen - allt från ormar och spindlar till antiloper, bufflar och krokodiler, och så klart elefanterna. Gråter sällan vid läsning men boken är sorglig på sina ställen vilket kan göra dig gråtmild. Lawrence Anthony har skrivit en fin biografi om Thula Thula och elefanterna, rekommenderar boken varmt.

margaret_parker's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative reflective slow-paced

4.0

laura_mayfair's review against another edition

3.0

Fascinating read, not just about elephants but also about Africa, poachers, and wildlife conservationism.

fr057's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny informative inspiring reflective relaxing sad fast-paced

5.0

kyber_heart's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.75

theresa_timber's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring tense medium-paced

4.5

11shazen's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

4.75

book_concierge's review against another edition

4.0

Audio book narrated by Simon Vance

The subtitle says it all: My Life with the Herd in the African Wild
Opening lines to Prologue: In 1999, I was asked to accept a herd of troubled wild elephants on my game reserve. I had no inkling of the escapades and adventures I was about to embark upon. I had no idea how challenging it would be or how much my life would be enriched.

This is a fine memoir of the author’s experiences. Anthony is a conservationist and works tirelessly to preserve the wild animals on his reserve and elsewhere. I was enthralled by his stories of this time. While the elephants are certainly central to the tale, he also includes details of the Zulu culture in post-apartheid South Africa, information about other endangered species (White Rhino especially), and even a tidbit on his work to save the animals at the Baghdad Zoo as Sadam Hussein’s regime fell. There is plenty of humor as well as harrowing danger, but what really comes across is his deep love of these magnificent animals. The story of Mnumzane (the bull elephant) just about broke my heart. Eight pages of color photographs are included in the paperback.

The audio book is narrated by Simon Vance, who is rapidly becoming one of my favorite audio performers. His facility with various accents, as well as his acting ability really breathes life into the story. I felt as if I were sitting by a campfire in the bush, hearing Anthony recount his adventures.