The Dolphin Who Saved Me: How An Extraordinary Friendship Helped Me Overcome Trauma and Find Hope

by Melody Horrill

"An inspiring book about love in its purest form."-JANE GOODALL, DBE, Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace



With the heartwrenching vulnerability of The Glass Castle and the spiritual journey of H is for Hawk, this stunning debut memoir tells the story of a traumatized young woman's friendship with an injured dolphin whose habitat she fights to save.



When Melody Horrill arrived at university she was a troubled and lost young woman, hiding behind a carefully crafted exterior. She had experienced a childhood of emotional and physical trauma mainly at the hands of her violent father that was as damaging as it was brutal.



One day Melody volunteered to help her lecturer monitor pods of river nearby dolphins. There for the first time she encountered Jock, a solitary dolphin with a maimed fin, who lived apart from the highly social pods. Melody was to form a bond with Jock that gave her the key to freeing herself from the demons of her own past, and their extraordinary friendship was the start of a long-term mission to try to save the river dolphins.



Beautifully written and filled with insight and compassion, Melody's memoir details her life-changing friendship with the river dolphins, and how Jock helped her to heal.

Genres: Animals, Nature

296 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2023

About the author

Melody Horrill is an award-winning journalist, presenter, and documentary producer, with more than 20 years' experience in broadcast media both in Australia and overseas.
A familiar face on TV in South Australia, she is well-known for her passionate writing and filming about the wild dolphins in the Port River. Her documentary A Dance with a Dolphin was broadcast across Australia on Network 10 and around the globe on CNN, with Melody presenting it from the US. It was one of three documentaries she produced for the 10 Network.
Melody is well known for her work as a senior science and environment reporter for ABC News, Channel 9 News, Channel 10 News and Channel 7 News and across the globe for the CNN World Report. She also presented the weekday weather for Channel 7 in Adelaide for almost 10 years.
In the mid 90’s Melody quit her first full time job to co-create a charity aimed at raising awareness about Adelaide’s unique dolphins. This work led to the formation of Australia’s first Dolphin Sanctuary in the Port River, SA. She continues lobbying for the protection of Adelaide’s dolphins even though she now lives in Melbourne.

Reviews

[chloe noel]

"The baby's mum perseveres, then breaks away to come up for air. One of the other adult females takes her place. They are working together to ensure the survival of this teeny, crumpled wonder. 'Mum will keep going until her baby can breathe fully on its own.' ...It doesn't matter what kind of dolphin this little baby will grow up to be... Its mother just wants it to survive."

Beautiful text about the nature of love and devotion, both manipulated and unconditional. Horrill does an excellent job of weaving Jock and other dolphins into her own internal monologues and struggles to persevere.

[kay]

People's stories are important. The rating is entirely to do with how well I thought the parts about the dolphins were combined with the parts about the author's life and how interesting the writing style was.

[Sally]

‘I know that words have weight and stories can change the world - and that is one of the reasons why I have decided to write this book. I have always been passionate about protecting marine life..’

Melody Horrill is a journalist, an award winning broadcaster and a campaigner for dolphins. At 6 years old she was living in Cornwall with her family, her abusive father …This is the story of how she overcame personal trauma to find connection and purpose through contact with dolphins - one in particular, Jock..

This book weaves together two stories. In Australia Melody is assisting her University professor, Mike, to observe a pod of river dolphins. One of the dolphins has been named Jock. He has been disfigured, entangled in discarded nets and fishing lines..he swims alone. Scenes of Melody interacting with Josh, observing dolphins are interspersed with the disturbing timeline of her childhood and early adulthood. Her parents are mismatched, violent and physical with each other and their children live in an atmosphere of constant tension and police visits. Melody’s father rejected her, believing her to be someone else’s and her Mother’s attention rarely seems to be focused on her children. As Melody forms early attachments to animals, a cat, a horse..these are taken from her..

This is an utterly beautiful book. There is darkness, the brutality of humans towards each other and towards animals, but there is so much hope and positivity. The way the author weaves the two timelines together helps to mediate the darkness. Dolphins have long been beloved of humans, with their cheery personalities, and this book is full of fascinating observation and detail about their lives and habits. And there are some beautiful photos. We learn alongside the author ploughing up and down the rivers. On the one hand this is about overcoming domestic violence and trauma and one the other a parallel search for protections for dolphins battling the effects of humanity which pollutes their waters and attacks

The writing is lucid, deeply personal and intimate and I flew through these pages. I felt I knew this family, that I had watched Jock swimming along his stretch of the water. I am a huge believer in what we can learn from animals and sadly this is being lost in a world in which humans are corrupting nature…This eloquent account is a powerful reminder of what we can learn and what we must learn and preserve before it is too late…

They showed me the beautiful simplicity of living in the moment, accepting what is, forgiving what isn’t and acknowledging what will never be. Connection with the natural world also helped me find a purpose , a path and passion…’

[Cassidy]

A wonderful story of family trauma and finding healing through animal friendship and nature. The author gives readers a very relatable story of her life and highlights the importance of protecting species.

[Cindy Spear]

“Dolphins bring light and optimism.”

“Dolphins can inspire us to find the light.”



It took me a number of days to read this heart-wrenching memoir by Melody Horrill. I was overcome with such emotion that I had to keep taking breaks. I could feel the pain pour from the pages into my heart—like searing words through a fragile funnel. The extensive trauma and ongoing loss described in vivid and unforgettable detail, squeezed out my innermost thoughts. Melody has a real way with words and their power drew me in— to such an extent, I felt as though I was there in the scenes with her, while she walked, stumbled, swam and ran through endless valleys, waterways and up mountain peaks. Incidents of her homelife and then her time with the dolphins, moved me deeply. The horrors she experienced along with her brother and mother, at the hands of her violent father, are worse than any fiction novelist could conjure. But the freedom she expressed when in the water with the dolphins, was encouraging. This came after the damage done in childhood and teenage years when it left her void of trust and love. While in university, she worked as a field research assistant for her psychology instructor. This was where her real learning began— on the water. These adventures in and out of the boat were the highlight of the book. I could feel Melody’s excitement as she entered new territory with Jock the dolphin. He became the hero, a special teacher and compassionate friend who helped her heal and connect with her true self.

The memoir ebbs and flows like the sea moving back and forth from present to past. It begins in a current timeline with the Prologue where Melody is full of anticipation to learn more about these exquisite dolphins. The excitement mounts as she gets ready to go out on Port River in Adelaide with her lecturer Dr. Mike Bossley.

In the world of symbolism, dolphins represent peace and harmony. Watching them at play shows how joyful and graceful they are but they are also known to be intelligent, generous and protective, as Melody discovered when Jock thought she was drowning and tried to save her. Dolphins are cooperative but are free spirited too, as one can see watching a pod (group of dolphins) in motion. In chapter one, we are introduced to the gorgeous, though physically scarred Jock. Melody’s thoughts of him are written down in a diary like manner where she expresses great feelings of wonder and tenderness for her new flipper friend. There are many beautiful images here that express both delight and sorrow.

Her journey is a complex one and all lessons she learns from Jock and the other dolphins inspire and free her. But it takes time and we are led back into the past where pain and suffering abound. The beloved books of C. S Lewis’s Narnia Chronicles are mentioned and we discover how they comforted and sparked her creative mind. As she said, ‘Although life did not hold much joy, I found happiness in my imagination.’

She had an interest in English Lit and journalism and made a decision to go back to school and complete year twelve, then university. This is the path that led her to healing as it was during her psychology studies she met Mike, her lecturer. He studied dolphins, their behaviour and how people could learn from them. Melody was keen to enter that world as his assistant and when she did, she developed a unique connection with dolphins—particularly Jock and also Millie who inspired her. Through these two and watching others, she developed courage and resilience in the face of adversity—and how to keep moving forward when bad things happened to her.

I learned a great deal about dolphin behaviour from reading The Dolphin Who Saved Me and was amazed by their intelligence and ability to help humans—even though humans have often caused them harm. Their unique communication skills with each other, and with those outside their realm, are amazing.

I got to know Melody through her second book Sheltered when Ultimo Press offered me a review copy. I was quite taken with the rescued animal stories and could see what a caring soul she is and how much she loves, protects and respects them. When she offered me a copy of The Dolphin Who Saved Me, I was more than keen to read her story but nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to encounter. The pain and trauma she experienced growing up, the losses and setbacks, the fear and isolation, the abuse and rejection— were far bigger than any human could imagine or endure. But endure she has and learned from her past to help those who are hurting, broken, lost and abandoned. And that includes animals.

Looking at the stark reality of Melody’s beginnings, the joy she experienced later when she met Jock is an unexpected by-product for it is in sharp contrast to the life she underwent. He was the beautiful soul who inspired, uplifted and led her to light and optimism. And this book is a tribute to him for so many reasons. Just as the message in her second book, Sheltered, is about animals that have been rescued, it is also about how they have rescued their rescuers! We may save them from the cruelty found sometimes in this world, but their presence in our lives can also lead us to healing, hope and wholeness. Their unconditional love, devotion and pure demonstrations teach us lessons we might never have learned otherwise. And for Melody, dolphins were her teachers, particularly Jock who became her hero.

I really cannot express enough the power and importance of Melody’s story with its raw, genuine honesty. It takes great courage to share what she has experienced and I am so happy she overcame the odds. I could easily imagine Aslan, Narnia’s lion or Jock, the dolphin, nudging her back on the path with their noses when things became too difficult. And thankfully she felt their messages of encouragement and never gave up, when she had every reason to. This has also made her victories even more special amid the trials she endured. The result is her well-deserved joy. A joy that shines so brightly it crushes the disappointments, despair and cruelty that came beforehand.

Melody has blossomed into an incredibly accomplished person and made a huge difference in both humans’ and animals’ lives. And even though she wears a mosaic of scars on her heart, mind and soul, they are part of who she is, but they do not define her. They have been woven into a beautiful tapestry of experience with their various shades and colours and now they exhibit her love, kindness and strength. I admire this woman who is a true champion in every way. She has every reason to celebrate her hard earned accomplishments that have been forged in fire. They will stand the test of time. This is, without doubt, the most profound unforgettable memoir I have ever read. 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to Melody for a copy of her book for review.

[Perri]

Horrill alternates memories of her traumatic childhood with her adult journey into marine and environmental activism. I would argue that there were many animal and human relationships which helped her heal including her own strength of character. A hopeful and encountering story. I enjoyed the audio version.

[Sonja Charters]

This is a beautifully written but heart-wrenching story which focusses on two contrasting periods of the authors life. The brutality of human nature and the calm, simplicity of the animal kingdom.

Melody had had a terribly traumatic childhood. With an abusive father and a mother who didn't care for her.
At her lowest point she arrives at university, where her life begins to take shape.
When she offers to help her professor to monitor a pod of dolphins and meets the lonely, maimed dolphin they named Jock, an unusual bond and friendship begins which helps them both.

This book held some real darkness in the telling of Melody's early days - it always amazes me that these things happen and that people can be so, so brutal, especially when these are the people you are meant to be able to trust the most and who should be taking care of you!
These sections were dark and chaotic, showing just how harmful this period of life had been.

I'm so pleased that this story was told with interweaving the early years story with the period of time spent healing and forming that cruscial bond with Jock.
This relived some of the tension of the darkness and lightened it effectively.

I adored the the authors descriptions of the bond and friendship formed with Jock.
It's well known that animals can pick up on human feelings, emotions and moods and that they can be responsive to this and help to calm and heal.
This is a perfect example of this in action.

It is clear from the writing that this is a personal experience and it evokes similar feelings in you as you read.
An emotional journey, but one filled with hope and healing.
A really enjoyable read.

[Susan Johnston]

Princess Fuzzypants here: Anyone who has ever seen a dolphin cannot help but admire these beautiful and graceful creatures. The more we learn about them, the more amazing they are. Their intelligence is awe-inspiring and the honour of being able to develop a deep and personal relationship with a dolphin would be a dream of many an animal lover.

Jack, the dolphin in the title, is everything Melody could hope for and so much more. In spite of his many wounds caused either by omission or commission by humans, it did not destroy his ability to connect and form a relationship with Melody. He learned to trust and to love his human friend. Anything he may have gained from his interaction with humans is nothing compared to what he gave Melody..

Scarred and traumatized by her violent and negligent parents, Melody’s scar formed a protection against future hurt by not allowing anyone or anything to penetrate. Jack could easily have done the same. Jack taught Melody to forgive and to move on. He was a great teacher. Perhaps the saddest part of the inter-species connections though can be the danger that it brings to the dolphins. Sadly, there are still cruel and sadistic humans who care nothing for the well being of others. Do we, as humans, put them in jeopardy every time we create bonds that others might abuse. It is certainly the question that haunts me most after reading this story. They deserve better than this.

Still, the book was moving. Melody’s early life was tragic but each time she wrote about Jack, there was light. It was worth plodding through the dark to find it. Four purrs and two paws up.

[Cheryl M-M]

In a sense the two beings mirror each other in certain ways, which is probably something Melody instinctively and subconsciously recognises, but perhaps only realises the importance of as time passes. The damaged mammals echo pain in body and soul, and their closeness is an emotional and visual healing process. I think it’s equally important to take note that this is also a message about the way we treat not only the most vulnerable, but also living beings in general. The path they have both taken seems to be one of isolation, one as the outcast the other perhaps more as a coping mechanism.

It’s a beautiful and poignant journey and story. Whilst the reader can only assume what the response one side is I think the experience and response is evidence that the connection between Jock and Melody is a core memory, a connection one of them will ever forget. It has clearly left a positive mark in the life of the author, and one can only hope it has helped to heal previous trauma.

The other important element of this book is the discussion about how attitudes have changed when it comes to interacting with marine life and the way we should be supporting the conservation of species, the reintroduction or naturalisation of captive marine life. I think the world has taken a step in the right direction when it comes to the general public, but we have a long way to go. If this story leaves any kind of impact it should be the special relationship between human and dolphin, and the remarkable journey the two of them experienced together.

[Dan Dundon]

Anyone who has ever enjoyed watching dolphins swim in a river or the ocean will be entertained by Melody Horrill’s book “The Dolphin Who Saved Me.”
The book is presented on two levels and Horrill manages to weave the two stories into one coherent book. One story focuses with Melody’s relationship with a dolphin by the name of Jock who lives in Australia’s Port River. The second story deals with the author’s difficult childhood living with an abusive father. These two stories are alternatingly presented to the reader to provide a deeper understanding of dolphins in general and how Horrill was able to overcome her early setbacks in life.
The book deals with some difficult subjects ranging from the death of Jock as well as the assault by her father who ultimately commits suicide after a prison sentence. Despite all this, Horrill manages to find a bright side of this story by explaining her role in the creation of Australia’s first dolphin sanctuary which the public generously supports.
Some readers may be repelled by the author’s graphic description of her difficult and sometimes violent past. However, Horrill manages to overcome these obstacles and by doing so may offer hope to those in similar circumstances.
Above all, for readers who love and respect dolphins this is a memorable book because it raises some difficult questions about how we treat these incredibly intelligent animals.

[Gwendolyn Broadmore]

The Dolphin Who Saved Me, by Melody Horrill: a passionate, poignant and heartwarming memoir. Traumatized by childhood abuse, mainly at the hands of her violent father, Melody becomes adept at emotional hiding. When she volunteers to help her university professor with monitoring pods of river dolphins Melody encounters a whole new world. Jock's a solitary dolphin (which is unusual); perhaps, due to his maimed fin, or did he prematurely lose his mother? Melody doesn't know the answers, and neither does her professor. While Melody rapidly absorbs new insights of marine life, she becomes awed by the innate intelligence of Dolphins. While cautious not to put Jock's essential wildness in jeopardy, together they slowly form a mutual trust and a special bond; eventually, opening to a healing path. "The Dolphin Who Saved Me" is as brave as it is lovely! Gwendolyn Broadmore, author, Life Came to a Standstill.

[Paula Learmouth]

This is a true story, told by Melody Horrill. Melody Horrill grow Upon a violent and traumatic childhood. Melody’s father was a brutal, violent man, that took t out on her mother. When Melody went to university she was at her lowest she had ever been. Melody volunteered to help her tutor to monitor a pod of river dolphins in Pot River Adelaide. Jock one of the dolphin’s wasn’t as sociable as the others in his pod, he was a solitary dolphin, he had a damaged fin. It wasn’t long before Jock and Melody made a connection, this is where the story really begins. With the help from Jock, Melody soon started to face her demons and what had gone on in her childhood, facing her emotions. The bond that was made between Melody and Jock shows how much animals feel and help humans. I found this a beautiful story, how you can be at your lowest and still come through it, with the help from a friend.

[Jen]

Audio Listen 🎧 not my favorite audio reader

What a tragic and heroic story where we weave in and out of Melody Horrill’s life! Growing up in an abusive household where her mother and father physically fought and her and her brother witnessed regularly! Her father verbally abused towards her and a mother too scarred to understand her daughter’s impact to the life she was being raised in! ultimately made her hide a carefully crafted exterior. After a lot of challenges she did manage to get her education and onto university, where she then had the opportunity to help monitor pods of river dolphins. She forms a very close connection with Jock with a maimed fin! Those bond would mold Melody to find strength through her own life challenges and find strength to free from past demons

[Jacquie]

An interesting book. The juxtaposition of the author's life and the life of Jock and her interactions with Jock were poignant and showed how the power of being exposed to nature and its world is so good for healing. The disconnection of people with the land, landscape and nature really does show how we're lacking humanity these days. I also found her personal life story wrenching and how resilient she was.

I had a bit of a giggle with the time frame as I also spent time in Australia as a child in the 1970s and the Little River Band and the orange Marina references took me back to that corner of my past. Thanks for prodding those memories to the surface.

[Denise Chojnacki]

How do you possibly heal with a childhood that was so dysfunctional and violent? How do you find any sense of normalcy? As with so many of the books I've picked up on the power of nature to heal, so many times people find it in animals or nature. This account was no different. My heart just ached for this author. However, there is hope here. Her resilience to overcome the vile negativity that was spoken over her was miraculous. She found that miracle in a dolphin and nature. This was not an easy read by any stretch. However, the good that this author was able to do channeling her pain was amazing and inspiring.

[Katherine]

Highly Highly recommend! Heartbreaking, inspirational, and makes you motivated to save marine life. If you like books like Kristin Hannah The Great Alone you will love this! A real life tale of how nature/animals can save you when you are going through hardships. Melody Horrill memoir follows past and preset timelines.

[Victoria]

This was a wonderful story about how powerful animals can be in healing emotionally and how special the relationship between animals and humans can be. I think anyone who enjoys animal stories will enjoy this! Special Thank You to Melody Horrill, Greystone Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Steffanie]

What an incredible book! It was both heartwarming And heartbreaking.❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[Emily Hayes]

Heart breaking but inspiring

[Tina Boyd]

I couldn't put this book down. I'm glad she found happiness.