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The Backyard Tribe
When Dr. Bud Payne of Mobile, Alabama, donates two weeks of his time to a Kenyan village hospital, it is the beginning of an astonishing adventure for him and his family.
Bud offers to fly a young Maasai girl back to America for life-saving heart surgery. She comes - but not her entire tribe is with her, Maasai warriors carrying spears, mothers in tribal dress carrying babies, even a mysterious medicine man alight from the airplane.
The girl goes to the hospital, but the tribe goes to the Paynes' backyard. Gone are Gail Payne's prized rose beds, gone is the lawn. In their place are the mud huts of the Maasai.
As the suburban neighbors mingle with the tribesmen and the medicine man mingles with the surgeons, hilarious, harrowing, and even enlightening adventures result. The warriors rustle the nearest redneck's prime dairy cow for slaughter, and the Paynes' children swap their school clothes for war paint. Gail nearly loses her mind and Bud nearly loses his medical license.
However, it all leads to a classic happy ending, heightened by a cultural exchange beyond anyone's original dreams.
Bud offers to fly a young Maasai girl back to America for life-saving heart surgery. She comes - but not her entire tribe is with her, Maasai warriors carrying spears, mothers in tribal dress carrying babies, even a mysterious medicine man alight from the airplane.
The girl goes to the hospital, but the tribe goes to the Paynes' backyard. Gone are Gail Payne's prized rose beds, gone is the lawn. In their place are the mud huts of the Maasai.
As the suburban neighbors mingle with the tribesmen and the medicine man mingles with the surgeons, hilarious, harrowing, and even enlightening adventures result. The warriors rustle the nearest redneck's prime dairy cow for slaughter, and the Paynes' children swap their school clothes for war paint. Gail nearly loses her mind and Bud nearly loses his medical license.
However, it all leads to a classic happy ending, heightened by a cultural exchange beyond anyone's original dreams.
- GenresFiction
147 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 1994
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 22, 2008
Mobile, Alabama will never be the same, and neither will Dr Bud Payne, his wife Gail, his family or the neighborhood.
What starts out as a Good Samaritan deed, quickly becomes a comedy of errors that grow beyond Bud's wildest dreams.
Having traveled to Kenya to donate his medical services and have a few days away with his wife, Bud stumbles upon a Maasai girl who needs life-saving heart surgery.
Bud believes he has made arrangements for the girl and her mother to travel to Mobile for the surgery.
Imagine his surprise when her entire tribe disembarks from the 747!
What starts out as a Good Samaritan deed, quickly becomes a comedy of errors that grow beyond Bud's wildest dreams.
Having traveled to Kenya to donate his medical services and have a few days away with his wife, Bud stumbles upon a Maasai girl who needs life-saving heart surgery.
Bud believes he has made arrangements for the girl and her mother to travel to Mobile for the surgery.
Imagine his surprise when her entire tribe disembarks from the 747!
December 29, 2008
I first read this book 15 years ago -- one of many that I read aloud to my daughter during her 6 month stay in the NICU at Texas Childrens Hospital after her premature birth. It's a delightful, fun read with a lot of heart.
September 22, 2007
Cute and funny. Quick fun read.
December 29, 2008
Very entertaining book. I just may have found another organization to support in Heart to Heart.
December 21, 2015
The Backyard Tribe was a quick read with lots of laughs. I wish it had of been more thought provoking throughout but it was faced paced, which helped.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews