The Elephant Whisperer: My Life with the Herd in the African Wild

The Elephant Whisperer is one of the most beautiful, engaging, and heartwarming stories I have ever read. Lawrence Anthony’s and Graham Spence’s book draws you in and holds you long after you have finished reading it. My sincere hope is that Thura Thura and all of Africa’s native parks thrive forever. I look forward to reading all of the books in this series.

I had received an e-mail from a friend, telling of the elephants coming to his house when Mr. Anthony passed away earlier this year. Being an animal lover, and 'knowing' how intuitive animals are about others - both 4-legged and 2-legged (humans) who have 'connected/bonded' with them, I decided to purchase the book. The book is well written - an easy read - and being involved in the publishing industry as a proof reader, this is a sincere compliment to the publisher. I bought the e-book, (wondering if it was a wise decision), because I have found, in the past, e-books are not always very well edited. Sometimes I wonder if they're just dumped into an e-file and 'published' as an e-book. Enough about the quality of the editing. I would have given the book 5 stars, even if it wasn't top quality - editing wise. This is a wonderful book about a man who is (was) truly one-of-a kind. His caring (love) comes thru in every chapter, for the wild animals on the reserve, and for those who work for him and with him. He doesn't take anyone or anything for granted, and understands sometimes a 'bad' thing happens - even to those who may not (appear) to deserve it - both wild animal and human. His knowledge about animals was obviously gathered over years of living and working with them. I wish I could have met him - he must have had soooo much to share, beyond what was in the book; both about the animals, and the history of this area of Africa where he and his family made their home, and struggled to do so. From what I got from the book, this was not a man with more money than brains, who so decided to 'do something politically correct' with his wealth. He truly belived in what he chose to do, and fund ways to do it. I, also, have experienced the bonding that can take place between animals and humans who truly care about them, so this book touched me in a way it might not touch others, but even if you only read it for the 'facts' - the people and animals who are part of his stories, and the comments on the history and culture in the area, it's well worth reading. You may find yourself laughing, you may find yourself crying, and most certainly you'll aquire a new understanding of the creatures that some call 'dumb animals - just because they don't have the same type of communication that humans have'. This isn't a Nat Geo special, following a herd of Elephants for a year or two (although I'm not putting down the Science and Naure specials) - it's about a lifetime spent dedicated to preserving wild life in it's (formerly) natural habitate, before 'civilizaition' crowded them out to raise cattle and to farm - more profit than letting animals native to the area roam free! The stories (chapters) aren't all warm and fuzzy about cute little animals - these are wild animals, and are allowed to remain wild, not tamed and doing tricks in a circus. Poachers kill rhinos for their tusks - and vultures for their heads, which some of the native people and others believe have 'strong medicine'. He and the rangers working for him do their best to stop the poaching - sometimes in innovative ways - without simply shooting the 'criminals'. Some poach to feed their village, some strictly for profit - all are treated in a way to stop their poaching, without causing them harm. Lately I've been wondering if there are any really good books being written, books that don't rely on blood and gore to catch the reader's attention. Although this one is not 'new', per se, it's at the top of my favorite books of all times. I'd love to go to Thula Thula and 'meet' Nana and her herd, as well as all of the others who live there--well, maybe not the huge croc and the poisonous snakes, but they, too, have their 'jobs' to do, and are allowed to do them. This is non fiction - a true account of a small part of Lawrence Anthony' s life in the bush - and well worth reading. Once you start a Charter, it's hard to put it down until you know the whole story - and then it's hard not to start the next one.

Though Anthony is a conservationist and not a writer by trade, he tells a multitude of fascinating, tear-jerking, and evocative stories about the herd of elephants he adopted to save from execution. They were described as a rogue herd for their aggression and amazing escape artistry. It didn't surprise me that elephants could push over a tree to break an electric fence, but I had no idea they can actually feel along just under the top wire of an electric fence for breaks in the current, or that they had the uncanny ability to know when Anthony was going to return from a trip while he was still miles away. It turns out that elephants use a combination of intuition and a very low frequency noise emitted from the stomach to communicate over incredibly long distances and keep tabs on their loved ones. Unless Anthony is really embellishing and I don't think he is, he's convinced me elephants are as intelligent as humans in many ways, and that they are often braver and more noble. It turned out that rogue was entirely the wrong word for Anthony's herd. The elephants had been continually traumatized and betrayed by watching their family members get shot for disobedience, and had resolved always to escape, and never to trust another human. Anthony turns this distrust around over the span of years, and the way that the elephants react to him evidences their incredibly complex intelligence. What I love about this book is that it's about so much more than a single herd of elephants. Anthony situates his stories in the complex ecosystem of a game reserve, showing we city-dwellers the incredibly delicately balanced and orchestrated system that operates just below the surface of any outdoor environment. His years of experience are rich with insight, and every story was page-turning. The game reserve's tenuous status among local Zulu tribes was also fascinating. Many of the surrounding people had never even seen an elephant or a rhino, so long had they been disconnected from the land of their birthright, so long had poaching and human encroachment caused wildlife at every level to dwindle dangerously low. This would have been a life-changing 5-star book for me; the only downside is the occasionally distracting machismo and bravado in Anthony's description of his exploits on the reserve, and the fact that the writing could have been better in places. However, I defy anyone to read this and not care about conservation or be completely floored by the intelligence of elephants.

One of the best and most moving books about wildlife conservation. Highly recommend it. The story is incredibly compelling, funny and heartbreaking at the same time.

First off, understand that the title of this book is highly misleading. This story is actually a balance of wondrous and woeful perspective of the reality of physical life, especially in the latter chapters, depicted through fascinating experiences. There is a powerful, elemental message threaded through this writing about all life forms journeying together, connected, and dependent on each other for existence, which includes humans. If strong emotions aren't aroused, then I suspect the reader may be blinded by their human bubble and/or have a heart of stone. "<i>In our noisy cities we tend to forget the things our ancestors knew on a gut level: that the wilderness is alive, that its whispers are there for all to hear – and to respond to.</i>" "<i>Living rough in the wilderness is a salve for the soul. Ancient instincts awaken; forgotten skills are relearned, consciousness is sharpened and life thrums at a richer tempo.</i>" "<i>Under the microscope, living organisms are just a soup of chemicals and minerals. But what about what the microscope doesn’t see? That life force, the vital ingredient of existence – from an acacia to an elephant – can it be quantified?</i> "<i>My herd showed me that it can. That understanding and generosity of spirit is alive and well in the pachyderm kingdom; that elephants are emotional, caring and extremely intelligent; and that they value good relations with humans.</i> "<i>This is their story. They taught me that all life forms are important to each other in our common quest for happiness and survival. That there is more to life than just yourself, your own family, or your own kind.</i>" The story can be seen in one vein as the age old struggle between the primal savagery of trigger happy men killing for the thrill of it, and wiser minds trying to protect wildlife, knowing humankind's future is at stake. It perplexes me how our blinkered cognitive processes exhibit such vagaries, even though knowing of the fickleness of evolution's trials and the influences of subjective experiences. "<i>It was something I simply couldn’t fathom … what type of person would shoot a terrified teenage elephant, and a female at that? For a tawdry fireside trophy? For the pleasure of the kill? And what kind of reserve owner would hawk a vulnerable young animal for such a reason?</i>" The message comes through loud and clear, that to truly protect any life form is to protect all by living in respectful coexistence with all life forms in the natural world model of life fueled by life. In such, death and the recycling of essential elements is a necessary precursor to new life in Earth's closed system of physical life. "<i>Death is an integral part of life. This is the dominant bush reality and I like it that way. It’s natural, uncluttered by materialism or artificial ethics and it helps me to maintain a wholesome perspective of my own existence and that of my friends and family.</i>" Yet, in this book I was also amazed by the cognitive processes of the wildlife, especially the elephants. Whatever the explanations, it is beyond doubt that these creatures have senses far superior to ours, and more acute life forces. What have we lost in our human bubble? "<i>We also have to understand that there are things we cannot understand. Elephants possess qualities and abilities well beyond the means of science to decipher. Elephants cannot repair a computer, but they do have communication, physical and metaphysical, that would make Bill Gates’s mouth drop open. In some very important ways they are ahead of us.</i>" Lest one get the wrong idea, reading this story is definitely not wading through didactical musings. It is for the most part presented as an engrossing adventure in an edge of the seat manner. Could you retain your cool with a charging bull elephant bearing down on you, or for that manner on finding yourself face to face with a black mamba, or even confront poachers that would happily shoot you? What is depicted are varying mesmerizing situations the author has experienced that the reader may glean the relevance of. The occasional opining is hardly noticed as such. "<i>Every wild thing is in tune with its surroundings, awake to its fate and in absolute harmony with the planet. Their attention is focused totally outwards. Humans, on the other hand, tend to focus introspectively on their own lives too often, brooding and magnifying problems that the animal kingdom would not waste a millisecond of energy upon. To most people, the magnificent order of the natural world where life and death actually mean something has become unrecognizable.</i>" In closing I should note that in March of 2012 the author Lawrence Anthony passed away. As reported by the CBC on July 25, 2012, "After his death, although they were not alerted to the event, a group of wild elephants Anthony helped to rescue and rehabilitate travelled to his house in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. They stood around the house in an apparent vigil for two days, and then dispersed. Today, the elephants are 'completely wild and doing fine' according to Graham Spence, Anthony's brother-in-law and co-author of three books." The imaginative concoctions of too much of storytelling these days don't elicit anyway near the real life emotional swings and metaphysical aspects inherent in this book. “How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.” ― Henry David Thoreau

What an amazing story and a wonderful read for any lover of elephants! Bravo to Lawrence!…may he rest in peace knowing what a great thing he did for generations of African elephants, descendants of Nana, Frankie and Mnumzena’s herd. He lives on in them.

An interesting book focused on the preservation of a herd of elephants but with a larger goal. The book is laced with some life lessons and interesting short stories It’s worth a good read

An awesome read — so glad I stumbled on to this. The author is an incredible story-teller and a fine person for doing so much for wildlife in Africa.

What an incredible story of love, patience, and dedication to conservation. The story of this herd of elephants taught me so much about the power of connection.

Touching story. Love elephants now even more. Learnt a lot about life in South Africa.

Sigh an enjoyable read about Africa and its wildlife, and I mostly appreciated all that concerned the elephants. Highly recommended.

A book that will teach you to use your senses to understand others living around you,they are not created by a lesser God. Love them all like your children but do not harm them and the love is reciprocated. Leave the world without destroying its contents living or non-living. Greed is self harming where as service is creative force. May be this should be a school book to be taught in every school all over the world. It is well written, good plot, conflict, beginning and end with a moral to learn.

The Elephant Whisperer is an amazing book. To think that such a huge animal can become close to the author. Beautiful