Sniper: A YA Survival Thriller About Danger and Mystery at a Wildlife Preserve

by Theodore Taylor

When Ben's parents go to Africa, they leave the fourteen-year-old in charge of the family's wild animal preserve. Everything seems to be running smoothly until one night when the silence is broken by the sound of peacocks screeching. When Ben leaves the house to investigate, he sees a terrifying two lions shot dead from bullets sent straight to their hearts. Someone is out there, someone with a score to settle . . . and there's no telling who will be the next victim.
Includes a reader's guide.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Suspense, Adventure, Horror, Childrens

240 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1989

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Reviews

[Madeline Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book! It was fun and entertaining, but I didn't like how the mystery ended or how the suspects were introduced. We only were introduced to the guilty suspect in the last 50 pages of the story. Overall, it was alright, though.

[Xavier Rylander]

zookeeper to army man in a span of three days how!!! I highly recommend this book for entertainment.

[Megan Ferguson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not up to the level of The Cay, an interesting perspective though.

[P.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

What interesting timing! This is a story about Big Cats being targeted in a game preserve and Animal Planet had a special about the big cats in the Masai Mara.

[Zack · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Sniper' It is the book i'm reading . It is a thirller you will not be disopointed. I've finshed half the book in one day. What would you do if your parents went to africa. Then you owned a Reasearh type zoo place. To add on that what if tigers were getting picked off like flies. Does it sound thrilling to you. I love it so far you will to if you like thrillers.

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've only ever read The Cay from him before; another good coming of age book that kept me turning the page.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Its an amazing book

[Wolf · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know I'm probably a little old to read such a book, but it was sitting on my shelf and I was deciding whether to sell it or not. No question: I'm selling it.

So forgive my harsh review. Perhaps the book wasn't intended to be intellectually stimulating at all? If that's the case, ignore this. BUT, I couldn't help but wonder why this book irritated me, so I spent a bit thinking about it once I'd finished it. Here's what I've found.

There was no attempt to explore the captivity vs. freedom theme that young Ben kept briefly mentioning. I mean, maybe Taylor assumed that everyone had already heard so much about the argument that it would really have just been a bore. At first, that's what I was thinking, and I was grateful that there wasn't a whole paragraph devoted to debating the subject. But... on second thought, the book does center around a bunch of animals in captivity. Not to mention, this book was apparently written for "young adults" (or, in some goodreads list's opinion, 7-10 year olds), and either way, not everyone that young has read Life of Pi or done extensive research in the matter of zoos & ethics. There should have been at least a two-second mention of what, exactly, Ben thought about all this. But no. He's apparently just a boring 14 (or 15?) year old who really doesn't care about things taht affect him directly.

That also got on my nerves: the characterization of Ben. I felt the author was making a very strong case for it being perfectly fine for 14/15 year olds to drive everywhere without a permit (since the age of 12), drink their parents beer while making stupid plots about how to kill/threaten one's neighbour, and... just a bunch of other stupid, 1600's-type crap. And that just personally irritated me. Let's just encourage kids to act like really rude, selfish assholes cowboys because they think they're old enough to do so. And I don't hate cowboys. I loved Lonesome Dove. But when you're in charge of running a very important facility and you don't know what you're doing it may be best not to act like an idiot.

A more serious problem was what the description of the book and what the first few chapters of the book had in common: practically nothing. I mean, the decription (and often Ben himself) gave the very clear idea that Ben's parents left him to take care of the facility - intentionally. And Alfredo wasn't even part of the picture. But in the first chapter, Taylor writes that, no, Alfredo was actually the one left in charge. The only reason Ben had an inkling of responsibility was because he was in the hospital. So, although there was an attempt at the theme of child-with-too-much-freedom-because-his-parents-trusted-him, it failed. Halfway, at least, because somehow Ben ended up taking care or 80-90 or so rare animals.

I also didn't like the setup of the whole research-center (or whatever Ben decided it should be called). It seemed rather quickly put together. How big was this place that he could do a night walk and check on everybody in less than ten minutes? How does a boy get to take his lion for a walk whenever he wants to, in a place without perimetes fencing? Or did I miss something? I probably missed something...

Anyway, two more things and then I'm done. First is Ben's relationship with his mother. There was barely any exploration of that, either. Sure, at one point Ben's dad said something along the lines of "she shows her love in a different way and cares about you," but Ben never really seemed to believe this. And at the end, he states he can finally deal with his mother after talking to her on the phone and having her ignore him (even when he shouts at her). But since when have these two characters discussed their issues with each other? When did Ben finally realize that she actually loves him and is simply ludicrously over-protective of him? Sure, Taylor clearly wrote that Ben got over feeling mediocre - but that wasn't half of the problem! Or, at least, it shouldn't have been! Wasn't Ben doubting his mother's love for him?

Good God. Help me.

The last thing was Sandy. There was this frequency of the author to draw comparisons between Ben and Sandy to show that certain things about her made Ben confused or angry or just plain stupid. For instance, Sandy was playing Depeche Mode. Ben basically thinks that the lyrics don't make sense. The end. Now, I have a huge problem with this because Depeche Mode's lyrics DO make sense to anyone who cares to listen and think about it. But perhaps there's an attempt to criticize any "weird" or slightly progressive music by the author. Fine. So go ahread and criticize it, but for crying out loud, why didn't Ben and Sandy get into an argument? That's what real living couples do. And near the end, when Ben was acting like a vengeful two-year old with no self-control and little intelligence, chasing after a guy with a gun just because he wants to, Taylor kept mentioning Sandy was more tense and angry than usual. Wow. I wonder why. But there was no conclusion to her tension; no resolution. Why build her up to do this if there was absolutely no connection between her actions and the plot (or at least, with Ben, her supposed beloved)? Was it commentary that she's a coward? That she's not a coward? That what Ben was doing was actually incredibly stupid and you shouldn't write about such things when Ben's supposed to be growing more mature? Was it foreshadowing that Sandy and Ben aren't right for each other? Foreshadowing that Ben is going to die? (well, obviously that wasn't it). But really, my point here is that the author is very clearly trying to say something about Sandy, but it comes across muddled and not very interesting. So I think what I'm saying here, if it hasn't come across as muddled and confusing as Sandy's point of being in the book, is that Sandy and Ben's relationship made almost no sense and it seemed like they were just "together" so Ben could have a girlfriend who enacted the typical female role of helping him, hindering him, irritating him, and getting irritated by him. Which really any character in that book could have fulfilled without Ben having Sandy massage his head in her lap. Wait, what? How did that get in the book?

Needless to say, I didn't really like the book. But I didn't hate it: there were parts where I was genuinely interested in the animals, or in the parents, or even in the other characters. However, overall this book didn't keep my interest and I was overjoyed when it was done. And, yeah, this wasn't written for a sophmore in college. But I'm not raiting it for everyone; I'm rating it for myself. :P

Oh! And why are Ben's parents going to see Phantom of the Opera when they were just at risk of dying for a good week??? No. Just no.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were many cool parts to this book, but almost as many annoying and frustrating ones. The climactic scenes and the final resolution were part of the frustrating ones, which is what brought this book down from four stars to only three.
For example, there are things which are never really resolved, like whether the apparent "bad guy" was really involved with running someone off the road. Or why Ben goes into a weird "forgiving" mode during the ending, in a way that just doesn't ring true. Or why the police and parole officials hadn't been trying to get in touch with Ben's parents for some time...
Chasing down a dangerous person who has probably killed at least one human being and several big cats, including one directly important to you...um...that whole segment didn't make a bit of sense, and Sandy's fear and anger about being dragged along are never dealt with at all.
I have to say that I really didn't like Ben's parents. I don't care what her excuse is, his mom is not a good person, and her dad isn't much of a parent.
The book felt hurriedly abridged, and that is too bad. I think that a few more pages spent dealing with the feelings of the characters would have helped.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting premise, it was also a good reminder how life without cell phones made things very different at times. Ended in a realistic manner with things all not nicely wrapped but good character growth.

[Isaac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The descriptions of the big cats and their characteristics were eminently fascinating. I had never thought much about lions, tigers, cheetahs, leopards, etc., in terms of their personalities. To me, they're all big and scary. The thought of having a cheetah as a house pet, and that Ben mentions that they are well-suited to being housepets, is crazy. I was surprised when it was mentioned that Rachel, the cheetah belonging to the Jepson family and who lives in their house, was afraid to be around the other cats. I suppose it makes sense, cheetahs are far from being the largest of cats, but in my mind, the fact that cheetahs are so fast and able to accelerate so quickly, I was taken aback.
I am assuming that Theodore Taylor did extensive research on the big cats and their personalities/characteristics before he wrote this book, because I feel like I learned a lot about the cats by reading this novel. I would hate for some of my new knowledge to actually be incorrect. Not that I will be opening a big cat preserve any time soon.
This book was written roughly twenty years ago and there were a few instances where I felt that it was dated, most of the action still had a current feel. I was a little put off by Ben and Sandy's relationship. I know that teenagers can be very serious about each other, but I work with teenagers and I can't picture any of them acting in the same manner as Ben and Sandy. Their relationship seemed serious in an "old soul" way, not in a typical teenaged way.
The action and mystery was very suspenseful and compelling, especially during the night scenes. The interspersed backstory describing Ben's parents and their neighbors was very good.
My biggest complaint is the ending. And this may be a bit of a spoiler...I didn't like how all along I was reading the book, wondering which neighbor could have been so dastardly as to kill the family's lions and cheetah, when, all of a sudden, here comes a new character. Except he really wasn't so new. Apparently, when Ben was a toddler, his father was targeted during a lawsuit and subsequent criminal case, and the man with a huge chip on his shoulder is out to get Mr. Jepson. So, to wrap up the story neatly, Theodore Taylor decides to drop this new character into the mix. I hated that, and I was seriously put off by it. What was all of the lead-up and questions about the neighbors for? Nothing, apparently. And what was the point of killing Richie Lewis? I suppose the reader can rest easy knowing that the town will no longer be terrorized by him.
Ben's reconciliation with his emotions toward his mother were also hastily contrived at the end of the book. Not only do we not have to worry about the killings of any more cats, Richie Lewis, or persnickety neighbors, Ben's parents have also miraculously survived all of their travails in Africa and will be celebrating by going to see "The Phantom of the Opera" while in London.
The hasty, implausible ending tainted the book for me.

[Brian Boni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hopefully, when you pick this kind of book up it catches your attention with the title being ‘Sniper.’Having the main character being the same age as you puts you in their shoes, “In charge of his family's wild animal preserve, fifteen-year-old Ben discovers that a sniper is stalking the grounds.” Being seen as a target from a sniper with no protection will be a challenge to survive these days as his parents are out. This book by Theodore Taylor will make you want to keep turning pages after the slow start to this incredible story.



It is about fourteen year old Benjamin Jepson. His parents are out on a vacation in Africa thinking everything is going well, what they havent discovered yet is that things arent going as planned. He has some problems of his own. One night when Ben woke up he went to go on his everything is "good walk", when all of a sudden he sees that a couple of gates are open and the lions are out of their cages.He then goes to get the two hispanics. When they get back outside and they gather up all the lions except for the two sisters they find them laying on the dirt, shot right in their hearts. He then starts panicking thinking of possibilities that may have occurred.
He then comes to the conclusion that someone is there, someone who isnt up to any good, not for peace. From this point on, Ben has to find his way through many obstacles that the typical 15 year old wouldn’t be able to.


I really recommend this book! Especially if you’re a young adult like the main character. Withthrew all the action, this book appeals to a wide variety of audiences. Teens, girls, adults, and maybe even the elderly may enjoy this action thrilling novel that has many nail- biting, chilly moments throughout it. This novel will make the reader feel as if they can make a change in reality even when its a horrible situation. This book is certainly going down in my top 5 books ever! I didnt want the book to finish, hoping there was more conflict as i got closer and closer to the end. Be sure to check out the rest of Theodores novels, hope you enjoy the book!

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ian, Williams

Ms. Moles

English 1

October 7, 2016

“Sniper”

There are many stories that contain the elements of mystery, suspense, and action, but not many deal with a young character and a wildlife preserve in California that houses large predatory cats. In the book Sniper, by Theodore Taylor, the main character Ben is a 14 year old boy that lives in a preserve that studies lions and other kinds of big cats. He is struggling to keep the lions alive while a sniper is trying to poach. He has many neighbors that didn´t want them around because of the dangers the cats caused. For my opinion on this book I really like reading it. I like reading books like this because it has mysteries and bad guys.

What I like about this book is it has mystery and suspense. It also has animals in it too. The book affected me by sort of relating to me but it wasn’t a person that killed my animals it was a fox. I would recommend this book to all of my friends and others that like mystery, suspense, and a killer.

[Adrian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dear friend,

I'm reading the book entitled "Sniper" by Theodore Taylor which is a work of nonfiction.

The book told me a lot about the coexisting between animals and humans because in this book the animals are taken dangerous because they are lions. But a 14 year old boy named Ben, and his mother and father own a research zoo, which is a household to more than 100 types of lions. Ben grew up with lions most of his life; he knows how they act and which ones are dangerous and friendly. When Ben was a kid, a lion cub named Rocky was born and Ben grew up with him since he was a kid. They horsed around with each other and Ben would talk to Rocky like he was his brother. But in present time, Ben heard the gate to the pen opened and that one night 3 lions escaped and where killed, and from there the investigation continues.

[Daymon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was a very well written book. It is about fourteen year old Benjamin Jepson. Ben's parents are out on a vacation in Africa. While there over he thinks there having the time of their lives, but he is way wrong on that. He has some problems of his own. One night when Ben woke up he went to go on his everything is "good walk", when all of a sudden he sees that a couple of compounds are open and the lions are out of there cages. He goes and wakes up two mexican helpers. When they get back outside and they gather up all the lions except for the two sisters. When he finds them laying down on the ground shot that is when he starts freaking out. If you want to know what happens next you'll have to go and check it out, and read a few pages you'll get hooked on to it. I recommend this book for anyone who is really into war and snipers.

[Kahurangi Morehu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sniper from Theodore Taylor was an interesting and enjoyable book. When Ben’s parents go to Africa they leave their fourteen year old son in charge of their family’s wild animal preserve. Then suddenly one night lions start getting shot, but Ben does not know who the killer is or who will be the next victim.

My favourite part in the book was when Ben found out that the sniper was a man named Thomas Hedgepeth.

I enjoyed the whole book because every page had a new step towards finding the killer.

My favourite character in this book was Ben because although he is only young he still managed to stand up for himself and find the killer.

Overall I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading another one of Theodore Taylors books.

[Sarper Tutuncuoglu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sarper Tutuncuoglu L9-10
The book I read earlier was Sniper from Theodore Taylor. Book’s genre is realistic fiction. I recommend it to everybody, every audience. The story takes place in California in the 80s. The main themes of the book are sadness, grief and love. There is a teenager who comes to Africa with his parents. His parents leave him in a wild animal preserve. In this preserve there are wild cats and someone is taking them down by shooting at nights. And this teenager, Ben, tries to solve this mystery. My favorite character was the main character, Ben. I like pretty much liked the book. One thing I didn’t like was the book was kind of wrote for children, teenagers and not “mature” enough for me. But it was a great book.

[Ian W. 1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

The novel Sniper by Theodore Taylor, is a book that is told from a fifteen year old boy named Ben. I liked this personally because I am close to his age. He and his parents live on a "zoo." Except all they have is big cats. After his parents leave for a trip to Africa he is left alone to take care of everything. In the middle of the night two of the lions are shot and killed. He is confused and scared. This book had my sitting on the edge of my seat and I could not put the book down. The author used great words and situations that it is really easy to relate too. Overall I would give the book a good review because of the way the author wrote it. I liked mysteries and this book fit perfectly into this category.

[Zora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Y.A. thriller. Plot: a kid grows up in a big cat preserve, 90 lions, tigers, leopards, pumas. His parents go to Africa for 10 days to write an article for National Geographic, and while he is alone with only a couple of illegal immigrant workers, a sniper comes and starts picking off the cats. He has to cope in the face of hostile neighbors, a jerk of an Animal Control officer, and some self-esteem problems.

Like the other book I read by this author, this was well written and rich with believable detail (the author had worked with big cats). A page-turner, and probably good for reluctant male readers.

[Kendallgregory · Rating 4 out of 5]

The conflict of this story comes in shortly after the story begins an ex-military sniper is out after the jespons lion zoo basically. And when the parents left to go to africa, that's when the raft began when he started shooting lions.(Taylor ) and it's his misson to try to find who it was, The conflict is resolved when ben finds him and confronts him for shooting the animals and also why he has this grugde against the jepson family. this conflict is external because it is basically man vs. man , and it's major because ben is only 14 years old.

[Bradon Dickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book Sniper is a really good book! I liked it a lot with the whole mystery Ben trying to find out who is killing all of his lions. The part the got me off guard was when Richie the prime suspect was murder and then I thought it could be anyone maybe even his parents. The best part of book was when he got the .38 from hi friend I really thought he was going to kill Richie with it. I recommend this book to everyone who like mysteries.

[Jacob M · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a very good mystery book about a sniper who shoots cats at the los coyotes preservation for lions, tigers, and pumas. It was a very suspenseful book and everyone should read it when they have the time because the book is 227 pages long. It will draw your attention and keep you up until you finish it. It's a great book and you should read it.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super suspenseful - I read this in 7th or 8th grade and it was good enough to read a few times! Really interesting story, the main character's family owns a preserve for big cats, like tigers and such. Someone starts shooting them, and Ben has to figure out what's up before he becomes a victim too!

[Karen]

This book changed from shocking to scary and gruesome.Why? Because it is very possible that this has occured , wih all the wars around the world .Wars can be really hard for families.

[Colten Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was a good book. i dont remember all that much of it being i read it in sixth grade. but what i do remember it was a good book.

[Bridget B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!!!!!!
Bens parents go away and people begin shooting the cats at the wild amimal preserve.....
I <3 it!!!!!

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great young adult book!

[Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Creepy. It was certainly a mystery I had to read the whole way through to see how it ended.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great suspense as teen has to defend his family's California big game preserve from a sniper.