My Family and Other Animals

Book Description

When the unconventional Durrell family can no longer endure the damp, gray English climate, they do what any sensible family would do: sell their house and relocate to the sunny Greek isle of Corfu. My Family and Other Animals was intended to embrace the natural history of the island but ended up as a delightful account of Durrell's family's experiences, from the many eccentric hangers-on to the ceaseless procession of puppies, toads, scorpions, geckoes, ladybugs, glowworms, octopuses, bats, and butterflies into their home.

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful book..........2007-09-21

This is a fantastically written book that anyone who appreciates literature can love. The immagery rich and deatiled, the charccters are wonderfully brought to life by some witty dialogue, and the charm is undeniable. It also arrived on time and in perfect shape. Reccomended.

Love this book!!!.......2007-09-03

I picked this up when I was in Spain because it was one of the only books I could easily find that was written in English. I loved it!!! Durrell's amazing depiction of Corfu made me really want to go and explore the magical island that he brings to life. Almost twenty years later, this is still one of my favorite books of all time.

Gerald Durrell at his funniest.......2007-07-11

This book is captivating and plain funny. Whether you're an adult or a teenager, you will be consumed by Durrell's great description of his family life in Greece. You'll see the sights, hear the sounds and experience the smells through his teenage eyes. From the mystery of the rose-beetle man, to his distracted mother, and the various friends he makes in Greece, you'll love it ALL.

When I first read this book, I couldn't put it down until the very end. And it introduced me to a whole new world of writing. Durrell's other books are lightweight (but just as amusing) compared to this one. It's a classic and deserves to be on every bookshelf.

An amazing work of art!.......2007-06-21

Wow! This is an amazing book. It has made me want to go to corfu! The book is the true story about gerry durrel and his stay on the greek island of corfu. Gerry has an extreme intrest in nature, (Much to the anoyance of his writer brother, Larry, lover of things hunting, Lesly, and his sister with an acny problem, Margo.) The story takes many twists and turns, in which he comes across many different animals including Dodo the dog, the maggenpyes, and Geronamo the gecko. Five star!

A Good Animal Lover Novel.......2007-05-27

The book My Family and other Animals is most definitely a different book. It is about a young boy, the author, who moves to a small island with his large and diverse family. Gerald is very interested in animals and such. So when they move to the island he likes to just wander around and look at the species and try to capture them. There are really two types of writing going on in the novel, a story part and an informational part. It is very interesting during the more story part, for me, since something is actually happening. However, I do no necessarily like the informational part since it is about animals. I do like animals, but I think it is a bore to read about them like it was a text book. Overall, this is a really good book and it keeps you on the edge of your seat, and it makes you laugh when the whole family gets together with all their differences. I recommend it highly to all the animal lovers out there

Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place

Average customer rating:

Nothing Unnatural About It; It's Sacred
This verse unlocks the heart.
If you have been affected by cancer it is worth reading!!!
Suprising turn of events
Disappointed

Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place
Terry Tempest Williams
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0679740244
Release Date: 1992-09-01

Amazon.com

The only constants in nature are change and death. Terry Tempest Williams, a naturalist and writer from northern Utah, has seen her share of both. The pages of Refuge resound with the deaths of her mother and grandmother and other women from cancer, the result of the American government's ongoing nuclear-weapons tests in the nearby Nevada desert. You won't find the episode in the standard history textbooks; the Feds wouldn't admit to conducting the tests until women and men in Utah, Nevada, and northwestern Arizona took the matter to court in the mid-1980s, and by then thousands of Americans had fallen victim to official technology. Parallel to her account of this devastation, Williams describes changes in bird life at the sanctuaries dotting the shores of the Great Salt Lake as water levels rose during the unusually wet early 1980s and threatened the nesting grounds of dozens of species. In this world of shattered eggs and drowned shorebirds, Williams reckons with the meaning of life, alternating despair and joy.

Book Description

In the spring of 1983 Terry Tempest Williams learned that her mother was dying of cancer. That same season, The Great Salt Lake began to rise to record heights, threatening the herons, owls, and snowy egrets that Williams, a poet and naturalist, had come to gauge her life by. One event was nature at its most random, the other a by-product of rogue technology: Terry's mother, and Terry herself, had been exposed to the fallout of atomic bomb tests in the 1950s. As it interweaves these narratives of dying and accommodation, Refuge transforms tragedy into a document of renewal and spiritual grace, resulting in a work that has become a classic.

Customer Reviews:

Nothing Unnatural About It; It's Sacred.......2006-10-28

The first time I went to Utah, I read Edward Abbey's "Desert Solitaire" and loved it. This time, at a bookstore in Moab, I picked up Williams' "Red" for a contemporary view of the ecological issues around this gorgeous desert landscape, which is unlike any place I have been. Although I liked "Red," people told me "Refuge" was even better.

This is a very special book. I'm no birdwatcher, but it made me want to be. I'm no scientist, but I wished I were. I'm no Mormon, but it gave me respect for a religion I have never been able to fathom. Terry Tempest Williams has profound insights into the natural world. Her observations of the Great Salt Lake and the many migratory birds that visit it are as moving as her account of the death by cancer of her mother and grandmothers. Not surprisingly, they taught Williams awe of birds and sunsets and their own bodies. All of them are brave and spiritual women, and we would be wise to learn from them.

I think what I most admire about Williams as a writer is her emotional courage. Time and time again, she strikes out where more conventional writers would hesitate. She finds redeeming passages from the Book of Mormon. She follows her mother through her long and circuitous spiritual journey with cancer. She follows her grandmother as she moves into Eastern thought and modern physics. She dips respectfully into ancient Indian and Mexican culture. She walks in the desert at some peril to her well-being. She speaks of the intimacy of her marriage and about her decision not to bear children.

Yet his is not a book "about" the desert or cancer or birds or Mormonism, but about life and how it can be richly observed, experienced. shared and redeemed. It's one brave woman's answer to "Desert Solitaire."

This verse unlocks the heart........2006-10-16

Terry Tempest Williams is a national treasure. Her unvarnished verse carries one deep into the mystery of the Earth and sends us helplessly into the depths of our own hearts. The landscape of wildness breaths a spectacular wisdom under the watchful eyes of this keen observer of wind, rock, desert, sky, sage, along with the birds who soar and dance and play in a benediction to non-sentient life.

When I need to recapture my own mortality along with my own humility, I always return to the verse of this elder of silence and truth. Williams stands alone in the power to convey both outer and inner wildness. Her verse is poetic and healing. One does not read these words but are instead initiated into the heart beat of wild nature. Savor its beauty as you might a calming sunset or a wind swept sea shore calling you ever deeper into your own soul.

Read everything she writes and find peace deep within.

If you have been affected by cancer it is worth reading!!!.......2006-06-26

I loved and hated this book. It is beatifully written. I found the author frustrating at times. Some parts got a little long winded about the birds. It takes you on a emotional rollercoaster but the pay off of finishing this book is worth it. Any one who has been affected by cancer will find this book very inciteful to the process of going through treatment and also the death process. Terry Tempest gives the most authentic and honest account of what life is like living through cancer I have every read. She put into words thought and feelings I could never express fully.
The research of the history of the Great Salt Lake was very fun to read about. I have lived in Utah all my life, but I have never been to the Lake I now am very curious to see it and the bird refuge. I think I will find the trip much more interesting now than if I had gone before reading this book.

Suprising turn of events.......2006-03-02

Terry Tempest Williams is a naturalist living in Utah who has the history of cancer in her family. Cancer in this novel is paralleled with the flooding of the neighboring Great Salt Lake. Overall this book goes to show that cancer goes deeper than the person who it is diagnosed to. I would suggest this book on limited circumstances: One-if you can get past the strong feminine presence and domination of this novel. Two-do not read the last 60 or so pages. I approved of this book up until that point. If the book ended at that point, leaving out the harassment of the government it would be ten times better. To anyone who is in the process of reading Refuge, you won't want to read past around page 230. Enough said.
My rating(first 230 or so pages): 7.5/10
My rating(after page 230 or so) 2.5/10

Disappointed.......2006-02-03

Although I found the passages about Ms. Williams relationships with her mother and grandmother and their struggles with cancer to be well-written and moving, I am surprised that she and many other reviewers imply that the cancers were the consequences of nuclear testing. I think of myself as an environmentalist, and I believe that such testing is likely to have been harmful to human health; however, the striking family history of breast and ovarian cancer in this case strongly suggests that there is a genetic disorder (mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene) that was responsible for the cancer in these women. I was living in Salt Lake City during the spring of 1983, and the flooding was indeed dramatic, but I was bored by the rather repetitious descriptions of the refuge and the birds.

Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America

Average customer rating:

History repeats itself.
The Rising Tide
The Great Flood
They're Gonna Wash Us Away - The Rest of the Story
Outstanding Piece of Work in History, Politics and Humanity

Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America
John M. Barry
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Natural Disasters | Earth Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0684810468

Amazon.com

When Mother Nature rages, the physical results are never subtle. Because we cannot contain the weather, we can only react by tabulating the damage in dollar amounts, estimating the number of people left homeless, and laying the plans for rebuilding. But as John M. Barry expertly details in Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America, some calamities transform much more than the landscape.

While tracing the history of the nation's most destructive natural disaster, Barry explains how ineptitude and greed helped cause the flood, and how the policies created to deal with the disaster changed the culture of the Mississippi Delta. Existing racial rifts expanded, helping to launch Herbert Hoover into the White House and shifting the political alliances of many blacks in the process. An absorbing account of a little-known, yet monumental event in American history, Rising Tide reveals how human behavior proved more destructive than the swollen river itself.

Book Description

An American epic of science, politics, race, honor, high society, and the Mississippi River, Rising Tide tells the riveting and nearly forgotten story of the greatest natural disaster this country has ever known -- the Mississippi flood of 1927. The river inundated the homes of nearly one million people, helped elect Huey Long governor and made Herbert Hoover president, drove hundreds of thousands of blacks north, and transformed American society and politics forever.

A New York Times Notable Book of the Year, winner of the Southern Book Critics Circle Award and the Lillian Smith Award.

Customer Reviews:

History repeats itself........2007-08-20

I happened to read this book when I was home from work waiting for Hurricane Katrina to make landfall (I live in Baton Rouge, 80 miles North of New Orleans). It was an ironic that I read this book that day. I had no idea of the book's relevance to that day's events. John Barry documents the events and reasons leading up to the great flood of 1927 in incredible detail. Being from South Louisiana, I knew a little about the flood, but most of what I thought I knew was not correct. The facts of what the US Corp of Engineers did or did not do is readily available from a number of sources. The Corp of Engineer's competence or incompetence is subject to debate (Well, It was subject to debate until August 29, 2005). The real revelations as far as I am concerned are the cultural and economic factors that Barry weaves into an enlightening book. It shows how the powers that ruled New Orleans (Canal Bank, Whitney Bank, Hibernia Bank and the Times Picayune Newspaper) deceived and lied to maintain their power and riches at everyone else's expense. St Bernard Parish (County to most of you) was sacrificed by bombing the levee system below New Orleans to take the pressure off of the New Orleans levees (as it turns out, unnecessarily). The amazing part of the book is the "how it changed America" part. From the creation of the Federal based welfare system, Herbert Hoover's rise to stardom and the ultimate election of Huey Long as Governor of Louisiana (and had he not been assassinated, may be President of the United States), the 1927 flood changed America more than any event I can think of other than the Revolutionary War and Civil War. This is a GREAT book worth your time to read. It is said that in order to know the future, you must study the past. Too bad we're still not paying attention !!!!!!!!!!!

The Rising Tide.......2007-02-18

I've barely dipped into the first chapter of this, plus reading at random to wherever the book fell open, and I'm awed. Barry's attention to detail and exhaustive documentation of his sources are exemplary. It is also a darn good read, and it is his thoroughness which makes it that way -- the principal players stand out like characters in a good novel. There was recently a PBS special (I believe it was The American Experience) on the history of New Orleans, and although Barry appeared in it, not nearly enough attention was paid to the 1927 flood, especially to some of the most unsavory aspects such as the machinations of the local power structure. Other than the pleasure of reading this book, I highly recommend it because we had a replay of this in Katrina with a similar display of greed, insensitivity and incompetence. And if it can happen in New Orleans, it can happen anywhere!

The Great Flood.......2006-12-14

I had never heard of the Mississippi flood before picking up this book and I am surprised that I had never hard of it after reading about it. This is arguably the greatest natural disaster to hit the United States until Hurricane Katrina. To see the response of the government then and now there are shocking similarities The army corp of engineers makes a similar performance and it is through private enterprise and local political networks that areas are saved. One of the sadder points in the book is the treatment of African Americans and southern racism in this time period is clearly displayed in most areas. The flood which wiped out parts of Mississippi and spread down to New Orleans was catastrophic. Seeing the idea of detonating levees and sacrificing areas of save others were tough choices that have implications in the post Katrina world. This is a highly recommend book that will make one think about natural disaster response from a truly catastrophic event.

They're Gonna Wash Us Away - The Rest of the Story.......2006-11-02

Randy Newman told the story of the great Louisiana flood of 1927 in a few memorable but not very historically accurate verses. Barry tells it with painstaking research and narrative of 75 years surrounding and including 1927. He opens with the civil engineering debate that raged for years about how to "control" the Mississippi River--levees or controlled drainage. Once the flood happens he focuses on how people dealt with it as it was happening (race relations in the early 20th century were sorely tested) and afterwards (St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes, having been sacrifice to "save" New Orleans, were left almost low and dry when it came time to distribute money for recovery---sound familiar?) One memorable theme is that nature is unsympathetic to political compromise. Barry rivals David McCullough in the genre of popular history writers.

Outstanding Piece of Work in History, Politics and Humanity.......2006-10-26

Mr. Barry has done an exceptional job of weaving the elements of modern life together, natural disaster, power, money, politics, race together to tell an ingrossing and disturbing story, one that is a relevant today as it was when it happened in the late twenties. America is still affected by what happened then and faces many of the same challenges today--Katrina and whenever or whereever there is great human suffering brought on by natural disaster. (Just wait until the New Madrid earthquake occurs again. That may be the only natural disaster that could rival this flood and its effect on our nation, society and culture.)

Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely, and money--having it--makes that corruption and the arrogance that comes with it, even more dangerous, despicable and deadly. We face all of those issues and threats today, and it is not limited to a political party, but rather to class,to wealth and, sadly and alarmingly, to those we "elect" to represent and protect us.

This book is a sobering look at America as it was, and, sadly, as it is. Political parties do not matter....This not about man's highest, nor is it about man's lowest. It is about man as he is...

The Secret Lives of Dogs: The Real Reasons Behind 52 Mysterious Canine Behaviors

Average customer rating:

A cute book for new dog owners
Sometimes The Dog Doesn't Even Know Why!
The best dog book ever!

The Secret Lives of Dogs: The Real Reasons Behind 52 Mysterious Canine Behaviors
Jana Murphy , The Editors of Pets: Part of the Family , and The Editors of Pets: Part of the Family
Manufacturer: Rodale Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 157954312X

Book Description

The real reasons that dogs do the things they do! You'll discover what's behind your dog's everyday actions, with intriguing, practical advice on topics such as: digging....chewing sticks....eating grass....and getting wet. The Secret Lives of Dogs reveals what dogs think, how they feel, and how they see the world and what you can do to make them happier than ever. The Secret Lives of Dogs is part of the Dog Care Companions, a series of books for pet lovers on behavior, health care, training, communication, and more.

Customer Reviews:

A cute book for new dog owners.......2006-01-31

Since I have been a dog owner for over 15 years and since I am an avid reader regarding the behavior of dogs I found this book to be cute but simplistic. The pages are glossy and full of darling pictures to accompany each section. The writing seems to be directed at someone quite a bit younger than I. This actually feels more like a fancy dog magazine BUT if you are new to the subject you will find some inspiration inside and will learn useful information about dog behavior. This would be an excellent book to share with children as a learning aid for their new pet.

Sometimes The Dog Doesn't Even Know Why!.......2000-10-08

This book is so fun! I totally enjoyed reading about the antics of our funny little buddies and some reasoning for their entertaining and sometimes enraging behaviors. Great ideas for positive ways to deal with behaviors that need to be changed and thought provoking ideas about behaviors we may consider okay but just wonder why in the world they do that. This is a very humanistic, uplifting, and optimistic author. I just can't tell you how very much I enjoyed it. My angel even took a sneek peek at what I was reading, and gave both paws up for this one! You'll love it!

The best dog book ever!.......2000-09-14

I have read many books on dogs, but this book really explains some of the mysteries of their behavior with suggestions for how to improve each situation. I highly recommend it and I am buying copies for all my friends that need help with their little troublemakers.

Discover American Indian Ways: A Carnegie Activity Book (Carnegie Discover Series)

Average customer rating:

Discover American Indian Ways: A Carnegie Activity Book (Carnegie Discover Series)
Pamela Soeder
Manufacturer: Roberts Rinehart Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 157098199X

Book Description

An engrossing mix of games, brainteasers, and stories makes learning the basics of natural science and history fun.

Average customer rating:

The title maybe Ugly Vegetables, but it's beautiful story
The Ugly Vegetables
Enjoyable
An awesome book and receipe included, how great is that!
Should Be in Every Library!

The Ugly Vegetables
Grace Lin
Manufacturer: Charlesbridge Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0881063363

Book Description

It's easy to appreciate a garden exploding with colorful flowers and fragrances, but what do you do with a patch of ugly vegetables? Author/illustrator Grace Lin recalls such a garden in this charming and eloquent story.

The neighbors' gardens look so much prettier and so much more inviting to the young gardener than the garden of “black-purple-green vines, fuzzy wrinkled leaves, prickly stems, and a few little yellow flowers” that she and her mother grow. Nevertheless, mother assures her that “these are better than flowers.” Come harvest time, everyone agrees as those ugly Chinese vegetables become the tastiest, most aromatic soup they have ever known. As the neighborhood comes together to share flowers and ugly vegetable soup, the young gardener learns that regardless of appearances, everything has its own beauty and purpose.

The Ugly Vegetables springs forth with the bright and cheerful colors of blooming flowers and bumpy, ugly vegetables. Grace Lin's colorful, playful illustrations pour forth with abundant treasures. Complete with a guide to the Chinese pronunciation of the vegetables and the recipe for ugly vegetable soup! Try it . . . you'll love it, too!

Customer Reviews:

The title maybe Ugly Vegetables, but it's beautiful story.......2007-05-13

I was drawn to this book for several reasons. First off, I have a child born in and adopted from China and am naturally drawn to books relating to Chinese people. As much as I want her to understand her birth culture I am also learning at the same time. We have several Grace Lin books in our library at home and have loved everyone of them. What I love about this book is that it illustrates how we all have something to teach one another and that through our sharing and teaching we actually become comfortable with ourselves. This isn't just a book about some unusual vegetables, it's a story about people and what we each have to offer the world.

The Ugly Vegetables.......2006-03-15

One of my two year olds favorite books. Beautiful illustrations and a fun story, especially if coming from a gardening background. My daughter also loves trying to say the Chinese words for the vegetables at the end of the book.

Enjoyable.......2005-10-04

I bought this book for my 3 year old, but I think it's a bit too complicated for her. The story is lovely, and I bought this based on our enjoyment together of several other books illustrated and/or written by Ms. Lin. However, her attention span at 3 is too short to get through all of the narrative, so we just looked at the pictures while I summarized. The pictures, as usual, were colorful and intriguing, but we put this book aside for next Summer, when she'll be closer to 4, and we can read it together as we plan our own "ugly" vegetable garden.

An awesome book and receipe included, how great is that!.......2004-08-22

Each Grace Lin book I get, I am just so impressed by her talent! Every child loves to get their hands into dirt and growing flowers or vegetables is always fun and gives the child great pride to show everyone their hard work and or beautiful flowers!

Every child wants to be just the same as their friends, especially those in the neighborhood. Mom and daughter start in the spring to plant their garden and while everyone else in the neighborhood each have their own way of tending their gardens totally different from how her and her mom garden. When their plants appear they look like grass, where other neighbors' appear they look like normal plants.

The little girl constantly asks questions as all children do, why mommy, why mommy and her mommy patiently answers each of her daughters questions. When others in the neighborhood have beautiful flowersthat smell so good, the little girls garden has what she sees as ugly plants with no beautiful scents. Once the vegetables are ready to be harvested the little girl and mother gather their wheelbarrow with their vegetables. Later that afternoon the daughter is out playing in the yard and smells a wonderful smell and it's coming from her house! Her mom has made soup using their harvest and her mom gives her a bowl..... it tastes so good! Then there comes knocking at their door and it's the little girls neighbors wanting to trade their beautiful flowers for a bowl of soup. The Mom tells the neighbors about each vegetables and the next spring the little girl notices her neighbors growing " Ugly Vegetables" too!

I love that Lin includes a receipe to make using these so called "ugly vegetables" and that she included their names and even sounded them out. Keep up the good work Mrs. Lin and I'll keep on buying your books and singing praises to anyone who'll read my reviews!

Should Be in Every Library!.......2001-06-29

This was a wonderful story that my husband and children just loved. We learned about some new vegetables in the process. As a kid I wasn't fond of bitter melon, but I'm willing to give it a second try after reading the book! My 5 and 6 year old boys are clamoring for us to go out, buy some ugly vegetables, and make the soup! This book appeals to every member of the family and the illustrations are beautiful.

Average customer rating:

Butterflies
Finally - the butterfly book I've been looking for!
Good information source
A. D. Tarbox, Freelance Reviewer for Midwest Book Review
Great Book on Raising Butterflies

The Family Butterfly Book
Rick Mikula
Manufacturer: Storey Publishing, LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 158017292X

Book Description

- Raise your own butterflies!

- Create a butterfly habitat o 15 projects and activities

- Close-ups of 40 favorite North American butterflies

Everyone enjoys seeing butterflies flitting about on a warm summer day, but few people realize that ma

Customer Reviews:

Butterflies.......2007-10-01

Good book for younger generation. Arrived on time, and in good condition. Thanks!

Finally - the butterfly book I've been looking for!.......2007-05-25

My youngest is an avid lepidopterist, but all the guidebooks I had found before this only showed one part of the life cycle (caterpillars or butterflies/moths). This one's got the breeding range, pictures of the eggs, larva, pupa and adult and descriptions of their nectar and host plants. The adults have full color photos enlarged to show detail, along with a measure below the photo showing actual size. Tons of instructions for creating outdoor and indoor habitats and even raising your own. Just an excellent book.

Good information source.......2007-03-19

This book is exactly what I was looking for. The author gives plenty of details about everything from simply enjoying butterflies, to raising them, to raising them as a business. Whatever your level of interest, you'll likely find something helpful here.

A. D. Tarbox, Freelance Reviewer for Midwest Book Review.......2005-12-12

THE FAMILY BUTTERFLY BOOK is very informative and the illustrations are vivid. Butterfly expert Rick Mikula does a fantastic job of explaining in his book how to attract, identify and raise butterflies. I found his book very helpful when I was raising butterflies for an elementary school project. I even contacted him and he came to my children's school as an author visit. His credentials are amazing. He has been in People magazine, on Animal Planet, designed gardens for Hershey Gardens, Dollywood and he is the author of several other books on butterflies. He owns Hole-in-Hand Butterfly Farm in Pennsylvania and raises butterflies for special events like weddings.
A. D. Tarbox, author of ALREADY ASLEEP (Oct. 2006)

Great Book on Raising Butterflies.......2005-09-09

After seeing a friend's book, I ordered my own copy right away. This book contains both good information and beautiful photos and drawings.

What I like most about The Family Butterfly Book is that it not only shows you what the butterflies look like but, unlike most butterfly books, it also shows pictures of the egg, caterpillar, and chrysalis of about 40 of the more common butterflies of North America. It also lists which plants the various caterpillars eat so you know where to look for them and what to feed them if you want to raise your own.

The book was not written as an comprehenive guide to butterfly identification. Its purpose is to teach you how to raise some of the butterflies you are more likely to find close to home.

This book is great for all ages.

The Wilderness Family: At Home with Africa's Wildlife

Average customer rating:

Feels like being in Africa
Wonderful Book!
if there were 10 stars, this book would get them all
A Great Escape
The biggest problem with non-fiction is no sequels.

The Wilderness Family: At Home with Africa's Wildlife
Kobie Kruger
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

South Africa | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0345444264
Release Date: 2001-05-01

Amazon.com

Longtime animal lover Kobie Krüger got a little more than she bargained for when she married a game warden and moved deep into some of South Africa's wildest country.

In The Wilderness Family, Krüger recounts adventures and misadventures with the curious menagerie that shared her turf--and sometimes her roof--in the remote Mahlangeni section of Kruger National Park, which lies in the river-laced country between South Africa and Mozambique. Among the animals she encounters in the pages of her memoir are enterprising hyenas who, for whatever reason, pilfer cookware and blankets; a python that crept into bed with the Krügers on their first night in Mahlangeni; Egyptian goslings raised by a proud but broad-minded bantam hen; and the occasional ill-tempered elephant. Most affecting of all her encounters, however, is her long association with an orphaned lion cub named Leo, whom she and her family raised into adulthood. Leo, whose pastimes included alarming unsuspecting visitors and staring at passing birds in the sky, takes center stage for much of this book, and Krüger's loving portrait is a warm rejoinder to Joy Adamson's Born Free.

Readers who come to this memorable study of life in the African outback will be duly entertained, and those who are planning a trip there will learn a thing or two about how to behave around genets, cobras, rhinos--and, yes, lions. --Gregory McNamee

Book Description

Everyone warned Kobie Krüger that being the wife of a game warden at a remote ranger station in South Africa's largest national park would be an arduous move. The heat was unbearable, malaria would be a constant danger, her husband would have to be away for long stretches, there were no schools or nearby doctors for their three daughters, and of course the area teemed with wild animals. Yet for Kobie and her family, the seventeen years at South Africa's Kruger National Park were the most magical of their lives. Now, in The Wilderness Family, Kobie recounts the enchanting adventures and extraordinary encounters they experienced in this vast reserve where wildlife has right of way.

Kobie and her husband Kobus were overwhelmed by the beauty of the Mahlangeni ranger station when they arrived with their little girls in the autumn of 1980. Golden sunshine glowed in the lush garden where fruit bats hung in the sausage trees; hippos basked in the glittering waters of the Letaba River; storks and herons perched along the shore. Kobie felt she had found heaven on earth--until she awoke that first night to find a python slithering silently across her bedroom floor. It was the perfect introduction to the wonders and terrors that awaited her.

As the Krügers settled in, they became accustomed to living in the midst of ravishing splendor and daily surprises. A honey badger they nursed back to health rampaged affectionately through the house. Sneaky hyenas stole blankets and cook pots. Ordinarily placid elephants grew foul-tempered and violent in the summer heat. And one terrible day, the shadow of tragedy fell across the family when a lion attacked Kobus in the bush and nearly killed him.

But nothing prepared the Krügers for the adventure of raising an orphaned lion cub. The cub was only a few days old and on the verge of death when they found him alone. Leo, as the girls promptly named the cub, survived on loads of love and bottles of fat-enriched milk, and soon became an affectionate, rambunctious member of the family. At the heart of the book, Kobie recounts the unique bond that each of the Krügers forged with Leo and their sometimes hilarious endeavor to teach him to become a "real" lion and live with his own kind in the wild.

Writing with deep affection and luminous prose, Kobie Krüger captures here the mystery of untamed Africa--its fathomless skies, soulful landscapes, and most of all, its astonishing array of animals. By turns funny and
heart-breaking, engaging and suspenseful, The Wilderness Family is an unforgettable memoir of a woman, her family, and the amazing game reserve they called home for seventeen incredible years.

Customer Reviews:

Feels like being in Africa.......2007-04-11

Ever since I was a child, I have dreamed of going to visit or to live in Africa. I don't know why. I have this fascination with Africa, its culture, history, and its wildlife. But at my age and with my income the dream may not ever be possible except this one exception.

Wilderness Family is the first book that truly made me feel that I actually living in the bush of Kruger National Park. The stories shared in the book drew you into this family's lives. Rather than looking at them as an outsider peering through the window at their lives, you felt as though you were part of the family.

You could sense Leo the lion, Wolfie their dog and the way those two animals had a real relationship. It was so humorous to see Leo, this growing lion being submissive to the dog and actually thinking it was a dog at times.

It is a book that I will feel a need to pick up and read again and again as my thoughts will surely wonder to Africa and I will use it to slake my desire to be there personally.

I recommend this book to everyone. There is joy, laughter, sadness, all the emotions there is in this book, but it will happen because it dares you to live their lives with them.

Wonderful Book!.......2006-08-06

I agree with all of the earlier reviews of this book - it is a must-read! My family had the privilege of visiting Kruger Park last November. Ms. Kruger does a wonderful job of capturing what it feels like to be there. I highly encourage anyone who can to make the trip - South Africa is a beautiful country that shouldn't be missed.

if there were 10 stars, this book would get them all.......2006-03-18

The question is - where do you go from here? After this book you have to take a break before launching yourself into any other read just because there's so much verve and life to this book, it lingers in you for days. You laugh with it and you cry with it. Extraordinary book!

A Great Escape.......2005-03-06

This is one of my favorite excape reads. I've read it many times and each time get just a bit more out of it as well as the feeling of being there and wishing I was. It's an incredible adventure written with humor and honesty. Life was not easy and it certainly wasn't dull. Ms. Kruger displays the courage and humility it takes to survive, sometimes alone, as part of Africa's protector. The interaction between humans and animals, even the fearful-for-her snakes speaks volumes. It's a book I don't want to end. Imagine raising children to appreciate life in this incredible location! Wonderful.

The biggest problem with non-fiction is no sequels........2004-06-14

Probably one of the most touching and stirring non-fiction books I've ever read, I finished it far too quickly. Kobie Kruger is a very talented author, with a natural talent for engendering empathy to her deepest maternal love for both animals and her children.

I found myself in tears at their losses and beaming at their joys, and craving a life in Africa, far from telephones and the other modern annoyances of society.

Average customer rating:

A Nostalgic look back at a summer experience

Wonderful story! Wonderful illustrations!

"Head'n up North to the cabin!"

Up North at the Cabin
Marsha Wilson Chall
Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Fiction | Multigenerational | Family Life | People & Places | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0688097324

Book Description

Up north ath the cabin,
I am a great gray dolphin.
The lake is my ocean...

Up north at the cabin,
I am a fearless voyageur,
guiding our canoe through the wilderness...

Up north at the cabin
I am always brave --
even in the dark woods,
when blood thumps through my head
like old Ojiway drums.

The magic of summer, the call of the north woods, and the exuberance of childhood imagination combine here to create a book that will be treasured long after the last autumn leaf has fallen.

Customer Reviews:

A Nostalgic look back at a summer experience.......2007-03-25

Many children's books are really for adults, and this is likely one of them. It's aimed at adults who wish to remember their childhood summers spent in a family-owned cabin in the woods. If the kid readers lack this experience, they wouldn't enjoy the book as much, but they might still enjoy the story being read to them by a parent.

~Jack J.

Wonderful story! Wonderful illustrations!.......2001-04-07

I use this book often with my elementary students to show them that words can create pictures in their readers' minds. The author paints a picture on each page, vividly describing fond memories of different parts of her vacation at the cabin. The illustrator supports that with incredibly detailed pictures. The kids were in awe of this book, it was very powerful for them, and for their writing!

"Head'n up North to the cabin!".......2000-05-06

A beautiful story about a girl's experiences with her family at a lake. The illustrations enhance the story line providing an opportunity to re-live past memories of my own. I recommend this to anyone who has spent time near/on a lake. A great gift idea for all ages!

Hiking, Cycling, and Canoeing in Maryland: A Family Guide

Average customer rating:

My copy is wearing thin
Cycling in Baltimore: A Family Guide
At last!

Hiking, Cycling, and Canoeing in Maryland: A Family Guide
Bryan MacKay
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books

Instructional | Hiking & Camping | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

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Rayovac SPHLTLED 3-in-1 LED Head-Lite

ASIN: 0801850355

Customer Reviews:

My copy is wearing thin.......2004-06-17

I first purchased this book a few years ago and have used it so often that I may have to invest in a new copy. As a lifelong outdoor enthusiast and Marylander, I was surprised at how many little known gems Mr. MacKay packed into this one book. The trip descriptions are accurate and complete; directions are easy to understand; and the natural history info is authoritative, sharply observed, and truly fascinating. It's the best Maryland guidebook of its kind. Thank you Mr. MacKay. I've recommended it to so many new paddlers, cyclists, hikers, and out-of-towners that I should probably get a commission...

Cycling in Baltimore: A Family Guide.......2002-07-14

From the standpoint of a cyclist who doesn't live near Baltimore, this book is no help at all. It offers a description of 16 bike rides, most of them near Baltimore or Anne Arundel county, and a few rides in Pennsylvania and Virginia. This may be helpful for anyone near the city, but I feel calling it a guide for Maryland is misleading.....However, their descriptions do go into great detail about directions, what kind of traffic you can expect, and the wildlife you may encounter. There are about 10 pages for each trail described.

If you're looking for good biking near the city then I highly recommend this book.....

At last!.......2001-08-28

At last a perfect guide for hiking and biking in Maryland! I don't have children but found this book to be a great resource for the short hikes and bike trips I enjoy with my husband. We went to the Cranesville swamp and had a difficult time finding information. This guide had the trails, directions, and plenty of interesting info on the natural history and ecology of the sites. I have used it for two of the other sites and have dogged-eared several more. I find it to be the perfect companion.

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