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Elephant Winter
Sophie Walker is back from Africa to nurse her dying mother. Her mother's Ontario farm borders on "Safari"—a tacky tourist spot now deserted for the winter. From her mother's window Sophie sees not cows, or horses, but a group of Indian elephants playing gracefully in the snow. Elephant Winter is a novel about the forms of intimacy, from the turbulent love between a mother and daughter to the fulfilling bond between Sophie and the elephants.
204 pages, Hardcover
First published February 3, 1998
3 people are currently reading
285 people want to read
About the author
Kim Echlin
20 books112 followersAward-winning author Kim Echlin lives in Toronto. She is the author of Elephant Winter and Dagmar’s Daughter, and her third novel, The Disappeared, was short-listed for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and won the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Award for Fiction. She has translated a collection of poetry about the goddess Inanna, the earliest written poetry in the world. Her new novel, Speak, Silence is coming out in March 2021.
Kim has lived and worked around the world. She has been a documentary producer at the CBC and currently teaches creative writing.
Kim has lived and worked around the world. She has been a documentary producer at the CBC and currently teaches creative writing.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
September 28, 2017
This is not a real review, perhaps, but my way to try and distil the amalgam of thoughts that assailed me after reading this novel, ... twenty years ago. I've never forgotten the feeling nor the image of that little elephant on the savannah.
I was moved by the beauty and simplicity of the prose: there is an elegance here that is larger than life, a great rumbling resonance echoes in the mind, much as elephants displace one's sense of reality by their very size. Everything is connected in such an elemental way: the mother dying of cancer; the captivity of this "all too solid flesh" which inhibits the freedom of spirit in both human and elephant; the death and birth cycle(s) of both human and elephant; the transmigration of thoughts between human and elephant.
But ... the resonance that so engaged me was as elusive as it was palpable: a paradox; a delightful tangential disturbance of the soul. We are connected in ways which are beyond all power of description. It is for this very reason, I suspect, that Echlin gives the elephants themselves a voice. In great detail, she reproduces their language, their rhythms; records both sound and meaning on the printed page, of the echoes she has heard ... elephant infra-sound she terms it.
There is also ironic pleasure in holding Echlin's book in one's hands: the book is half-size, a tiny gift in the hand. The dust jacket is subtle: on a khaki background (a wonderful connection to the savannahs in which elephants roam) a picture of an elephant is super-imposed. The elephant is moving toward the reader in a misty haze of blues and greys: is the elephant charging? ... or merely walking toward the reader? Is this a confrontation, or an offering?
From the first words, Batter My Heart, the title of the first chapter, one encounters the meaning of the novel. It will be both a confrontation and an offering. Echlin intends to open your heart. She weaves elusive magic intricately, subtly. There isn't even a hint of seduction, until, to take a breath, the reader looks up and realizes that 200 pages have drifted through one's consciousness; that one has been communing silently, all the hours of a long, sunny afternoon. One closes the book and re-enters a void, which for a few short hours, had been filled, wholly, completely with a sense of being connected to all things. Wordsworth comes to mind, in a flash of sunlight:
... And I have felt
A presence that disturbs me with the joy
Of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime
Of something far more deeply interfused
Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns,
And the round ocean, and the living air,
And the blue sky, and in the mind of man.
A motion and a spirit that impels
All thinking things, all objects of all thought
And rolls through all things ...
(Tintern Abbey, 1798)
Two hundred years later, Echlin picks up Wordsworth's song and refreshes our memory about the inter-connected beauty of all things. (As the noises have gotten louder in the intervening two centuries, we have drowned out the wisdom of our elemental selves.) I hope I never forget how I feel in this moment, and at the same time, hope that the ache in my heart will stop soon.
From the novel:
When I was in Africa, I went out with a ranger in a Land-Rover to look at the bones of an elephant killed by poachers two days earlier. Lions and vultures had already stripped the skeleton clean and as we approached we saw a small group of elephants scatter them, then spread dust over them with their trunks. After several hours, the group moved off leaving a small elephant about four or five years old, behind. The driver, no longer afraid, reached to his keys to turn on his engine, but I begged him to stay a little longer. And so we sat and watched. The small elephant mimicked her elders, smelling the bones, pushing them, trying to spread dust over them. The driver said softly, "Go back little one, there are lions."
It is eerie to see a small animal alone in the open in Africa. There are so many threats. I kept checking the bushes and the trees for hyenas and lions. I asked the ranger why the usually protective herd would let the little one stay alone, and he said, "They have to eat and drink. They don't have any choice."
"Why?"
"That little one won't go. She did this yesterday too. They came back for her at night. Perhaps tonight she'll give it up."
"But why does she keep staying?"
"The bones are her mother's."
"I wonder if I'll want to stay with my mother's bones when she's dead," I said.
"The ranger, a young man who had spent his life in the bush silently watching, answered drily, "I wonder, would you risk your life to do it."
I was moved by the beauty and simplicity of the prose: there is an elegance here that is larger than life, a great rumbling resonance echoes in the mind, much as elephants displace one's sense of reality by their very size. Everything is connected in such an elemental way: the mother dying of cancer; the captivity of this "all too solid flesh" which inhibits the freedom of spirit in both human and elephant; the death and birth cycle(s) of both human and elephant; the transmigration of thoughts between human and elephant.
But ... the resonance that so engaged me was as elusive as it was palpable: a paradox; a delightful tangential disturbance of the soul. We are connected in ways which are beyond all power of description. It is for this very reason, I suspect, that Echlin gives the elephants themselves a voice. In great detail, she reproduces their language, their rhythms; records both sound and meaning on the printed page, of the echoes she has heard ... elephant infra-sound she terms it.
There is also ironic pleasure in holding Echlin's book in one's hands: the book is half-size, a tiny gift in the hand. The dust jacket is subtle: on a khaki background (a wonderful connection to the savannahs in which elephants roam) a picture of an elephant is super-imposed. The elephant is moving toward the reader in a misty haze of blues and greys: is the elephant charging? ... or merely walking toward the reader? Is this a confrontation, or an offering?
From the first words, Batter My Heart, the title of the first chapter, one encounters the meaning of the novel. It will be both a confrontation and an offering. Echlin intends to open your heart. She weaves elusive magic intricately, subtly. There isn't even a hint of seduction, until, to take a breath, the reader looks up and realizes that 200 pages have drifted through one's consciousness; that one has been communing silently, all the hours of a long, sunny afternoon. One closes the book and re-enters a void, which for a few short hours, had been filled, wholly, completely with a sense of being connected to all things. Wordsworth comes to mind, in a flash of sunlight:
... And I have felt
A presence that disturbs me with the joy
Of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime
Of something far more deeply interfused
Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns,
And the round ocean, and the living air,
And the blue sky, and in the mind of man.
A motion and a spirit that impels
All thinking things, all objects of all thought
And rolls through all things ...
(Tintern Abbey, 1798)
Two hundred years later, Echlin picks up Wordsworth's song and refreshes our memory about the inter-connected beauty of all things. (As the noises have gotten louder in the intervening two centuries, we have drowned out the wisdom of our elemental selves.) I hope I never forget how I feel in this moment, and at the same time, hope that the ache in my heart will stop soon.
From the novel:
When I was in Africa, I went out with a ranger in a Land-Rover to look at the bones of an elephant killed by poachers two days earlier. Lions and vultures had already stripped the skeleton clean and as we approached we saw a small group of elephants scatter them, then spread dust over them with their trunks. After several hours, the group moved off leaving a small elephant about four or five years old, behind. The driver, no longer afraid, reached to his keys to turn on his engine, but I begged him to stay a little longer. And so we sat and watched. The small elephant mimicked her elders, smelling the bones, pushing them, trying to spread dust over them. The driver said softly, "Go back little one, there are lions."
It is eerie to see a small animal alone in the open in Africa. There are so many threats. I kept checking the bushes and the trees for hyenas and lions. I asked the ranger why the usually protective herd would let the little one stay alone, and he said, "They have to eat and drink. They don't have any choice."
"Why?"
"That little one won't go. She did this yesterday too. They came back for her at night. Perhaps tonight she'll give it up."
"But why does she keep staying?"
"The bones are her mother's."
"I wonder if I'll want to stay with my mother's bones when she's dead," I said.
"The ranger, a young man who had spent his life in the bush silently watching, answered drily, "I wonder, would you risk your life to do it."
December 9, 2015
This quiet little book, from this under-the-radar Canadian writer, is really something special. The dual story line - the death of Sophie's mother and Sophie's developing bonds with a group of elephants in a southern Ontario safari tourist attraction - work subtly and beautifully together to reveal themes of family (esp. mother-daughter) love, communication, empathy, compassion, and the connection between people and between people and animals.
Echlin has a unique way of writing, I find, (the same is true to an even greater extent in The Disappeared), to gently, deftly wring the emotional power out of words and sentences and plot without anything obviously showy or flashy, and without ever resorting to sentimental literary trickery.
Very worth the read - but caution: sadness. (Not nearly so much as The White Bone, though. Not even remotely close.)
Echlin has a unique way of writing, I find, (the same is true to an even greater extent in The Disappeared), to gently, deftly wring the emotional power out of words and sentences and plot without anything obviously showy or flashy, and without ever resorting to sentimental literary trickery.
Very worth the read - but caution: sadness. (Not nearly so much as The White Bone, though. Not even remotely close.)
March 1, 2018
When she learns that her mother is dying, Sophie Walker must give up her nomadic lifestyle and leave Zimbabwe to return to the family farm in southern Ontario. As she contemplates her life, she looks out her mother’s kitchen window, at the snowy winter landscape … and a herd of Asian elephants. The adjacent property is not a farm, but a small safari park. Sophie interprets a gesture from the elephants’ trainer, Jo Mann, as an invitation, and ventures onto the park grounds. Thus, begins her “elephant winter.”
This is really a character-based story, though there are some significant events, including a couple of violent altercations. Mostly, however, Echlin treats the reader to Sophie’s thoughts as she considers her mother’s condition, her role as daughter, lover, friend, her past and future. And she has conversations with her mother, a wildlife painter, on the importance of work, of finding your passion, of following your dream, of being a mother.
I really liked Echlin’s writing style. There was something so quiet and comforting about it. And still her imagery is very vivid. Some examples:
The light over those snowy Ontario fields was short and grey and bleak. We were just past winter solstice and though I’d been home some weeks, I still found it odd to look through the kitchen window and see the curious face of a giraffe above the snowy maple trees.
I listened to the creaking of the barnboard, to the breath of the elephants, to the cracking to frozen branches outside. I could feel the elephants rumbling … For as long as I could I lay listening to all the sounds of the barn and beyond.
I heard her loneliness rattling around like a pea in a dried-up pod.
Winter came twice that year. The earth had been wet and fragrant and then there was a spring snowstorm. Chickadees tucked themselves against frozen tree trunks and curled their heads under plumped-up wings.
The thin dawn taped itself like a piece of old and yellowing cellophane to the horizon and the cold adhered to my skin.
Echlin intersperses chapters from Sophie’s work on Elephant language throughout the book. There are studies on elephants and their communication methods, but this is, of course, total fiction; still, I found it just fascinating.
Note There are scenes where animals are injured or die. Readers who are sensitive to such scenes are forewarned.
This is really a character-based story, though there are some significant events, including a couple of violent altercations. Mostly, however, Echlin treats the reader to Sophie’s thoughts as she considers her mother’s condition, her role as daughter, lover, friend, her past and future. And she has conversations with her mother, a wildlife painter, on the importance of work, of finding your passion, of following your dream, of being a mother.
I really liked Echlin’s writing style. There was something so quiet and comforting about it. And still her imagery is very vivid. Some examples:
The light over those snowy Ontario fields was short and grey and bleak. We were just past winter solstice and though I’d been home some weeks, I still found it odd to look through the kitchen window and see the curious face of a giraffe above the snowy maple trees.
I listened to the creaking of the barnboard, to the breath of the elephants, to the cracking to frozen branches outside. I could feel the elephants rumbling … For as long as I could I lay listening to all the sounds of the barn and beyond.
I heard her loneliness rattling around like a pea in a dried-up pod.
Winter came twice that year. The earth had been wet and fragrant and then there was a spring snowstorm. Chickadees tucked themselves against frozen tree trunks and curled their heads under plumped-up wings.
The thin dawn taped itself like a piece of old and yellowing cellophane to the horizon and the cold adhered to my skin.
Echlin intersperses chapters from Sophie’s work on Elephant language throughout the book. There are studies on elephants and their communication methods, but this is, of course, total fiction; still, I found it just fascinating.
Note There are scenes where animals are injured or die. Readers who are sensitive to such scenes are forewarned.
January 14, 2010
I have always loved elephants, and enjoy books that give me a taste of what it might be like to know one (or more!). This novel about elephants out of their element and the loss of close human friends/family was tender, intimate, and candid.
If real elephants are anything like the ones in this book, there is something right with the world.
If real elephants are anything like the ones in this book, there is something right with the world.
January 5, 2013
Half of my brain kept saying, "You have to finish! There are elephants! There has to be something in here!" while the other half kept screeching, "LET ME GO. This is the most boring literary torture I have ever been dragged through without a grade riding on it." They compromised, letting the first half win so the second half could complain about it.
December 31, 2021
Wow, a book you have to slow down to read. No rushing, no speed reading to try and read the story faster so you know what happens, you read every word, you feel every emotion. I'm so glad to have this book as a beautiful comfort story and learning guide. Unique and warming.
August 10, 2024
Ratings:
Writing 4
Story line 3
Characters 4
Impact/enjoyment 4
Overall rating 3.75
Writing 4
Story line 3
Characters 4
Impact/enjoyment 4
Overall rating 3.75
June 11, 2023
A quiet beautiful book. I read this in small morsels while my son was in hospital, as he was sleeping on me. So it will always hold a special place in my heart. Kim Echlin’s prose is so elegant and strong and I was glad to have her words and this small world she created during that time.
April 6, 2016
"If you choose to live with elephants you've chosen to live enthralled."
This book enthralled me. I slowed my reading, but it still ended before I wanted it to.
Echlin imbues a fairly simple story with magic.
Sophie Walker comes home to southern Ontario from Africa because her mother is dying. Her mother's home backs onto the tourist attraction Ontario Safari. From the window of the house, Sophie watches the elephant keeper, who "moved with the attractive, loose carriage of men who choose not to submit to offices and desks," toss snowballs to his charges.
And so begins Sophie's Elephant Winter. It is full of love, loss and new forms of communication. And elephants. The mother-daughter dynamic and language are two great themes. Sophie's brilliantly-imagined Elephant-English Dictionary is worth reading all on its own. Lovely and lyrical.
The only element that bothered me were the birds -- they made a charming addition to the story, but my personal aversion to being in an enclosed space with flying creatures spoiled the ambiance.
Echlin's elephants, captive or not, are worth worshiping.
This book enthralled me. I slowed my reading, but it still ended before I wanted it to.
Echlin imbues a fairly simple story with magic.
Sophie Walker comes home to southern Ontario from Africa because her mother is dying. Her mother's home backs onto the tourist attraction Ontario Safari. From the window of the house, Sophie watches the elephant keeper, who "moved with the attractive, loose carriage of men who choose not to submit to offices and desks," toss snowballs to his charges.
And so begins Sophie's Elephant Winter. It is full of love, loss and new forms of communication. And elephants. The mother-daughter dynamic and language are two great themes. Sophie's brilliantly-imagined Elephant-English Dictionary is worth reading all on its own. Lovely and lyrical.
The only element that bothered me were the birds -- they made a charming addition to the story, but my personal aversion to being in an enclosed space with flying creatures spoiled the ambiance.
Echlin's elephants, captive or not, are worth worshiping.
May 16, 2008
This one was just a bit too weird for me. First of all, they raised Elephants. That should say it all! ha ha But really, the characters were difficult for me to relate to. Also, the ending stunk, big time!!
February 22, 2020
Winter is just beginning when Sophie Walker returns to her home in Ontario, Canada from Zimbabwe, to help care for her terminally ill mother. Their home is bordered by woods, and by an elephant compound which houses the animals that are part of an animal safari/circus. It is off season for the circus, and so Sophie spends much of her time watching the elephants as they take daily walks through the woods, and move through their daily routine in the compound. Before too long, Sophie is spending her afternoons, while her mother is sleepg, working with the elephants, assisting the young man who is their caretaker. And in a short matter of time, Sophie begins to call her self an "amateur lexicographer" as she studies the way the elephants communicate with one another.
I was fairly engaged with this story from the beginning, although it seemed to be moving a little slow at times. But once the chapters were interspersed with Sophie's "Elephant-English Dictionary" I was all in. I was fascinated with how Sophie studied the animals vocalizations, and interpreted them. She tells how she traces their language through long frequencies of rumbles, ones too low for the human ear to detect. But with the use of a recording device, Sophie begins to hear, and then she also sees the evidence when this is happening, in the fluttering in the forehead of the animal. She interprets various sounds the animals make, stating that most are about community, being together, and mean things like contentment, or exuberance in a welcome to another elephant. Other sounds are ones of empathy, of sorrow, love, and comfort.
Through Sophie's close work with the elephants, I became more engaged with her own personal life as well, as she talks about her mother, an artist whose work sounds fascinating, and her relationships with the elephant caretaker, and another man, a character who adds some mystery, and some sense of danger to this story. And several of the elephants become characters in this story, as Sophie tells of their personalities and utterances. There are numerous wonderful lines in this novel, and this is one that will definitely stick with me.
This meets the Equinox Challenge #6 to read a book set in my current seasonal time of year.
I was fairly engaged with this story from the beginning, although it seemed to be moving a little slow at times. But once the chapters were interspersed with Sophie's "Elephant-English Dictionary" I was all in. I was fascinated with how Sophie studied the animals vocalizations, and interpreted them. She tells how she traces their language through long frequencies of rumbles, ones too low for the human ear to detect. But with the use of a recording device, Sophie begins to hear, and then she also sees the evidence when this is happening, in the fluttering in the forehead of the animal. She interprets various sounds the animals make, stating that most are about community, being together, and mean things like contentment, or exuberance in a welcome to another elephant. Other sounds are ones of empathy, of sorrow, love, and comfort.
Through Sophie's close work with the elephants, I became more engaged with her own personal life as well, as she talks about her mother, an artist whose work sounds fascinating, and her relationships with the elephant caretaker, and another man, a character who adds some mystery, and some sense of danger to this story. And several of the elephants become characters in this story, as Sophie tells of their personalities and utterances. There are numerous wonderful lines in this novel, and this is one that will definitely stick with me.
This meets the Equinox Challenge #6 to read a book set in my current seasonal time of year.
January 10, 2025
Kim Echlin’s Elephant Winter is an elegiac love story about the circle of life. Despite Sophie’s wanderlust, she returns home when she discovers that her mother is dying. Eager to break the monotony of the sickroom, Sophie watches a handler guiding wild elephants across the fields at a nearby safari compound. One day, he notices her from a distance, and beckons her to join him. And thus, the tale unspools – Sophie falling in love at the same time her mother is slowly dying – against the background of living with and caring for the elephants. Beautifully written, with scenes of haunting intimacy and insight. Highly recommended.
November 20, 2019
A poignant story about the nature and language of elephants and how one woman relates to them. A young woman cares for her dying mother in a remote home near the Safari in Southwestern Ontario. She secures a job as elephant keeper at the Safari, which is essentially in their back yard in the countryside. She listens to the sounds and vibrations that the elephants make and develops a compendium of their language. It is a story of mother and daughter, their shared interest in art and their love for creatures other than human. Beautifully written!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 6, 2025
I adored this book, not only because of my intense wonderment of elephants but also the way all the aspects of this novel ebbed and flowed. The intense loss of loved ones, in both the human and elephant families, and the healing powers and comfort that are brought by understanding one another. I would be awestruck to experience such a sense of community that is described in this book, if I am ever gifted the opportunity to meet them.
September 7, 2017
A tale of death, cancer, survival and the love for elephants. This novel is set in Southern Ontario, where elephants are trained for the circus. The trainer meets a lonely woman, who comes home to look after her ailing mom.....a stunning achievement. Can't wait to read everything else Kim Echlin has written.
December 21, 2018
A melancholy portrait of daughterhood and new motherhood, human and animal. An unusual story with lots of texture - painting, music, the earthy world of the elephants. I appreciated the format, going back and forth between story and an imagined Elephant-English dictionary. Well-written and imagined.
June 4, 2024
My geographical bias aside, I loved the flow of this beautiful book, the emotions of it, the complexity and rawness of the relationships between humans/humans and even more the ones between humans/animals. I wanted to hug "Sophie" throughout the entire story - and that's not something I do often with a fictional character. Beautiful book
September 24, 2017
This is a beautiful little book, drenched in emotion. As with Echlin's other books, it highlights my lack of musical knowledge and I know I am missing the impact of her references to classical pieces, that enrich the story.
June 14, 2019
A beautifully written story full of love, compassion, sorrow and hope.
A story based on dying and birth, filling the space inbetween with such touching literary descriptions. I have read other books by this author, but this one has touched me the most. I loved this story.
A story based on dying and birth, filling the space inbetween with such touching literary descriptions. I have read other books by this author, but this one has touched me the most. I loved this story.
May 3, 2018
Very interesting books about a mother, daughter and elephants.
August 25, 2018
Beautifully written.
April 5, 2020
cute wholesome story
not really my thing
not really my thing
Want to read
July 19, 2020elibrary
April 20, 2023
Reading at night as quiet, mystical, fascinating and beautiful. Kim Echlin has such talent.
September 29, 2017
I barely know what is going on. It is so slow getting through this book. I got to the halfway point and started skimming the rest. Not worth the read. The characters are flat and not much happens. There are emotional points in the story that are just glanced over. There is no emotion in what the characters are doing.
October 10, 2017
Libro a metà fra il romanzo ed un saggio di etologia sul comportamento e la vita degli elefanti in cattività. ci ha messo un po' per entusiasmarmi, ma poi ho capito che era proprio questa la caratteristiche che ne ha reso avvincente la lettura.
July 6, 2014
Looking into the eyes of an elephant, I perceive gentleness and a calm self-assurance that beckons me to come near and touch its trunk. But my primal response is always one of fear of being crushed by its enormous body. My slight fondness for them grew from my perception, based on photos and travel stories, that they are creatures capable of empathy. And after reading this book, I'd say I am now officially an elephant lover.
This book offers a fresh understanding of elephants with an acceptable balance of facts, mythology and creative imagination. I was easily swept up by the realistic and honest interweaving of themes as togetherness and isolation, silence and communication, freedom and captivity, joy and pain, life and death. The characters are captivating and engaging without being unnecessarily sentimental. The Elephant-English Dictionary may seem meaningless but I am amazed at the pure ingenuity of it. I like how the author occasionally alludes to poems and songs to describe an event or experience. And I find the relationships explored in the story having a believable 'human' quality that's both heartbreaking and heartwarming, sad and uplifting.
In short, this is a story about intimacy and how humans and animals tap on their emotional intelligence to learn and live.
Note: Sine Timore, Stana Katic's production company, has recently announced its acquisition of this novel. The project is currently in development.
This book offers a fresh understanding of elephants with an acceptable balance of facts, mythology and creative imagination. I was easily swept up by the realistic and honest interweaving of themes as togetherness and isolation, silence and communication, freedom and captivity, joy and pain, life and death. The characters are captivating and engaging without being unnecessarily sentimental. The Elephant-English Dictionary may seem meaningless but I am amazed at the pure ingenuity of it. I like how the author occasionally alludes to poems and songs to describe an event or experience. And I find the relationships explored in the story having a believable 'human' quality that's both heartbreaking and heartwarming, sad and uplifting.
In short, this is a story about intimacy and how humans and animals tap on their emotional intelligence to learn and live.
Note: Sine Timore, Stana Katic's production company, has recently announced its acquisition of this novel. The project is currently in development.
Read
July 24, 2011I decided to read Elephant Winter by Kim Echlin in part because I had been very moved by her most recent book, The Disappeared. Elephant Winter, Echlin's first novel, does not approach the brilliance of The Disappeared but it is an intelligent book about relationships, life, death, love and duty. The novel is set in an Ontario winter in an old house close to a tourist safari which houses elephants. The main character, Sophie, returns to Ontario to be with her mother who is dying of cancer. As Sophie and her mother wait for death, they discover a new intimacy that comforts them and seems to transcend the horror of dying. Sophie is drawn to the keeper of the elephants, becomes pregnant, and develops an empathetic relationship with the elephants themselves. From the elephants, Sohie comes to understand the importance of communication and the generosity of a nurturing community. Elephant Winter is worth reading. I plan to read Echlin's Dagmar's Daughter as well.
January 29, 2012
This is a piece of fiction that felt incomplete to me in some ways. I obviously love animals and was hoping to read about the emotional connection the protagonist experienced with the elephants. Written in the first person, everything seemed removed and unemotional. There wasn't much to connect to. Though the author did a very good job of writing about the main character's reactions to her mother dying and having to be there for her last weeks, everything else felt unfinished. Like it needed to be fleshed out.
The elephant dictionary chapters interspersed throughout the book seemed jarring and too scientific and unrealistic. I feel like the author wrote the story to tell about the elephant dictionary but it didn't quite come across.
She has a wonderful premise and strong prose but the story didn't come along with it.
Sidenote: it was neat to read another book written by a local author to see some of the familiar landmarks and city names. (African Lion's Safari etc.)
The elephant dictionary chapters interspersed throughout the book seemed jarring and too scientific and unrealistic. I feel like the author wrote the story to tell about the elephant dictionary but it didn't quite come across.
She has a wonderful premise and strong prose but the story didn't come along with it.
Sidenote: it was neat to read another book written by a local author to see some of the familiar landmarks and city names. (African Lion's Safari etc.)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 21, 2009
I haven't much to say about this book, but it was indeed quite easy reading and a very lovely read as well. Very touching. I loved the elephants. I've had a somewhat big fascination with them, I found the Elephant Dictionary very interesting - I'd like to read more on that sort of thing. I did find it hard to see that Jo seemed to leave his beloved animals so easily, but I was also glad that Sophie did not make that choice, perhaps it was really for the best after what happened with Lear. They did have a strange relationship, after all.
Kim Echlin was another new-to-me author, and once again I find myself glad to have ventured out of my reading "comfort zone."
Kim Echlin was another new-to-me author, and once again I find myself glad to have ventured out of my reading "comfort zone."
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews