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The Boy from the Wild
An Adventure story never told, until now.
Peter Meyer grew up on an African game reserve. His idyllic childhood was spent running wild in the bush with Zulu friends and other free spirits.
His adventures in the wilderness honed his character, nurtured by an inspirational father who taught him to believe that everything is possible. Before he had turned eight he had survived Rhino attacks, close encounters with Buffalo and Wildebeest — and the terror of twice being bitten by snakes. His pets were a baby Elephant, Warthogs and an Ostrich that frequented his backyard.
He lived in a world where beauty was tempered by daily struggles for survival. He discovered that the reality of the bush is often heart-breaking, such as when an Nyala doe that he had hand-reared was taken by predators. He learned through first-hand experience that the cycle of life on Africa’s feral outbacks can be as unforgiving as it is magnificent.
These were the key lessons from the wilds of Africa that he took with him when his family left the continent; from school days in England where his tough upbringing resulted in being a top sportsman, to studying at an exclusive Swiss hotel school and becoming one of the youngest directors in the Hilton group, managing exotic resorts in Jamaica and the Middle East.
He was on top of the world when everything came crashing down due to tragedy. Drawing on resilience learned in the African bush, he started to rebuild his life, becoming an actor and model, clawing his way up in one of the most critically demanding industries in the world.
This is an inspiring true story of living the dream — a dream nurtured by the freedom and self-reliance of growing up wild in Africa.
Peter Meyer grew up on an African game reserve. His idyllic childhood was spent running wild in the bush with Zulu friends and other free spirits.
His adventures in the wilderness honed his character, nurtured by an inspirational father who taught him to believe that everything is possible. Before he had turned eight he had survived Rhino attacks, close encounters with Buffalo and Wildebeest — and the terror of twice being bitten by snakes. His pets were a baby Elephant, Warthogs and an Ostrich that frequented his backyard.
He lived in a world where beauty was tempered by daily struggles for survival. He discovered that the reality of the bush is often heart-breaking, such as when an Nyala doe that he had hand-reared was taken by predators. He learned through first-hand experience that the cycle of life on Africa’s feral outbacks can be as unforgiving as it is magnificent.
These were the key lessons from the wilds of Africa that he took with him when his family left the continent; from school days in England where his tough upbringing resulted in being a top sportsman, to studying at an exclusive Swiss hotel school and becoming one of the youngest directors in the Hilton group, managing exotic resorts in Jamaica and the Middle East.
He was on top of the world when everything came crashing down due to tragedy. Drawing on resilience learned in the African bush, he started to rebuild his life, becoming an actor and model, clawing his way up in one of the most critically demanding industries in the world.
This is an inspiring true story of living the dream — a dream nurtured by the freedom and self-reliance of growing up wild in Africa.
213 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 22, 2017
247 people are currently reading
162 people want to read
About the author
Peter Meyer
2 books4 followersPeter Meyer was born on 28th October 1983 in Durban, South Africa.
Peter grew up in South Africa on an incredible Safari Reserve running wild with Zulus and wild Animals. His father who had an amazing dream to bring something new to the word set up this reserve. Before the age of 8 Peter had survived snake bite(s), Rhino attacks, buffalo charges and much more. The adventures he lived were like no other, from learning to swim in rivers, to riding elephants, to walking among the wild and facing dangerous encounters. His pets were a baby Elephant, Warthogs, a loving Ostrich and other free spirits.
At the age of 6 Peter was sent to boarding school. At the age of 10 he moved to boarding school in the UK and there would excel at sports being a 1st Team player of all sports and a record breaking swimmer. He would fly back to South Africa for holidays until he was 16 when it was his last visit for another 16 yrs.
Having being born into the African wilderness the Reserve had a luxury Hotel, so naturally Peter was accustomed to the trade and ended up studying for 3 years at Les Roches University in Switzerland, arguably one of the best hotel schools in the world. There he excelled and graduated to enter the world of Hotels.
Peter lived and worked all around the world in countries like the UK, USA, Jamaica, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. 5 years was spent with Hilton hotels where he became one of the youngest directors at the age of 26. Peter was a senior Director at corporate level looking after multiple hotels worldwide for other companies such as Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, JA Hotels and YTL Hotels.
In 2014 at the age of 30 Peter sadly lost his father to cancer, where he was there by his side. His father was his hero and best friend. Struggling to focus on the Hotel world he found himself presented with an opportunity in Acting and Modelling. Taking the opportunity by the horns Peter has worked his way up in 2 years to acting in feature films including Hollywood productions along side A-Lists Actors such as Brad Pitt & Marion Cotillard in Allied, Liam Neeson in The Commuter and The Transformers The Last Knight all as an extra. He had his first lead-role playing Lee Reynolds in Guide to Get Lucky in 2015. He has had supporting roles in other British Independent films too. He has been involved in commercials representing brands such as BMW, Ford, Argos, Burberry, Oracle and Deutsche Bank. Some of his Modeling has been with brands such as Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren, GANT & Tommy Hilfiger through El Corte Ingles in Spain and Jacamo & Ben Sherman in the UK.
Today, Peter is now the author of The Boy From the Wild, written by International best selling author Graham Spence. It’s a true story of his life in the wild of Africa.
Peter grew up in South Africa on an incredible Safari Reserve running wild with Zulus and wild Animals. His father who had an amazing dream to bring something new to the word set up this reserve. Before the age of 8 Peter had survived snake bite(s), Rhino attacks, buffalo charges and much more. The adventures he lived were like no other, from learning to swim in rivers, to riding elephants, to walking among the wild and facing dangerous encounters. His pets were a baby Elephant, Warthogs, a loving Ostrich and other free spirits.
At the age of 6 Peter was sent to boarding school. At the age of 10 he moved to boarding school in the UK and there would excel at sports being a 1st Team player of all sports and a record breaking swimmer. He would fly back to South Africa for holidays until he was 16 when it was his last visit for another 16 yrs.
Having being born into the African wilderness the Reserve had a luxury Hotel, so naturally Peter was accustomed to the trade and ended up studying for 3 years at Les Roches University in Switzerland, arguably one of the best hotel schools in the world. There he excelled and graduated to enter the world of Hotels.
Peter lived and worked all around the world in countries like the UK, USA, Jamaica, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. 5 years was spent with Hilton hotels where he became one of the youngest directors at the age of 26. Peter was a senior Director at corporate level looking after multiple hotels worldwide for other companies such as Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, JA Hotels and YTL Hotels.
In 2014 at the age of 30 Peter sadly lost his father to cancer, where he was there by his side. His father was his hero and best friend. Struggling to focus on the Hotel world he found himself presented with an opportunity in Acting and Modelling. Taking the opportunity by the horns Peter has worked his way up in 2 years to acting in feature films including Hollywood productions along side A-Lists Actors such as Brad Pitt & Marion Cotillard in Allied, Liam Neeson in The Commuter and The Transformers The Last Knight all as an extra. He had his first lead-role playing Lee Reynolds in Guide to Get Lucky in 2015. He has had supporting roles in other British Independent films too. He has been involved in commercials representing brands such as BMW, Ford, Argos, Burberry, Oracle and Deutsche Bank. Some of his Modeling has been with brands such as Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren, GANT & Tommy Hilfiger through El Corte Ingles in Spain and Jacamo & Ben Sherman in the UK.
Today, Peter is now the author of The Boy From the Wild, written by International best selling author Graham Spence. It’s a true story of his life in the wild of Africa.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
April 2, 2018
Africa: the greatest teacher of life lessons.
James Meyer, Peter’s father, was a pupil at Hilton College, a prestigious boys-only boarding school situated in the Midlands of KwaZulu Natal when he first dreamed of buying and establishing a game conservation reserve on the land that the Zulus call the Valley of Heaven and where the river called the Karkloof gave its name to this wildlife reserve. It would take years of hard work and toil to buy this property, but he did and that’s where Peter grew up.
James met his second wife, Mandy Nichols (Peter’s mother) while on holiday in Cape Town. She was eighteen and he was forty, but age didn’t seem to play a part in their relationship and soon after their wedding, they set up home on their first game farm in Klaserie, Limpopo Province. James especially learnt to fly a helicopter so that he could help with the corralling of their wild game. (Still classified as one of the most dangerous occupations for any helicopter pilot!). Life in Klaserie was hard work and once Peter was born, followed by Jamie arriving a year later, James realised that they were too far from “civilisation” that, if anything serious happened, help was simply going to be too far away.
This led him back to his schoolboy dream of owning the land, Karkloof. It was here that Peter and Jamie grew up and where the memories of their idyllic African childhood come from, growing up with rhinos, elephants, lions and wildlife sharing their back garden!
Reading some of the escapades that Peter and his best friend at the time, Pugga, got up to make me conclude that Mandy, his mother has a special place reserved for her in heaven. From jumping on the back of their really aggressive rhino “Big Boy,” thinking he was a rock, to getting bitten by a snake, to dodging a wildebeest mother after coming between her and her newborn baby. These are just some of the incidents that had me rolling around with tears pouring down my face with laughter.
This is one of the funniest, most vivid depictions of an African childhood that shows Peter still forging his way in the world. He did exceptionally well as a student at the Les Roches International School of Hotel Management in Switzerland which saw him landing some very lucrative jobs working for groups like the Hilton then moving on to JA Hotels in Dubai, before returning to the UK.
Unfortunately, Peter’s return to the UK was more for his father than his career as James had been diagnosed with cancer. Peter helped nurse his dad until the end. His death hit him particularly hard and left him feeling very lost until he realised that he needed to return to Africa and Karkloof in particular so that the next chapter of his life could start – but he first needed to tell this very personal and unique story about a boy and his father.
There is only one way to finish this review and that’s by quoting Peter’s words, “I have been bequeathed a precious gift. I was shown by a maestro that living the dream, from Africa to wherever you choose, is a moveable feast. Dreams only come true if you have the guts to pursue them. That, for me, is the lesson of my father. If you don’t follow your dreams, you only have yourself to blame.”
Imbali
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.
James Meyer, Peter’s father, was a pupil at Hilton College, a prestigious boys-only boarding school situated in the Midlands of KwaZulu Natal when he first dreamed of buying and establishing a game conservation reserve on the land that the Zulus call the Valley of Heaven and where the river called the Karkloof gave its name to this wildlife reserve. It would take years of hard work and toil to buy this property, but he did and that’s where Peter grew up.
James met his second wife, Mandy Nichols (Peter’s mother) while on holiday in Cape Town. She was eighteen and he was forty, but age didn’t seem to play a part in their relationship and soon after their wedding, they set up home on their first game farm in Klaserie, Limpopo Province. James especially learnt to fly a helicopter so that he could help with the corralling of their wild game. (Still classified as one of the most dangerous occupations for any helicopter pilot!). Life in Klaserie was hard work and once Peter was born, followed by Jamie arriving a year later, James realised that they were too far from “civilisation” that, if anything serious happened, help was simply going to be too far away.
This led him back to his schoolboy dream of owning the land, Karkloof. It was here that Peter and Jamie grew up and where the memories of their idyllic African childhood come from, growing up with rhinos, elephants, lions and wildlife sharing their back garden!
Reading some of the escapades that Peter and his best friend at the time, Pugga, got up to make me conclude that Mandy, his mother has a special place reserved for her in heaven. From jumping on the back of their really aggressive rhino “Big Boy,” thinking he was a rock, to getting bitten by a snake, to dodging a wildebeest mother after coming between her and her newborn baby. These are just some of the incidents that had me rolling around with tears pouring down my face with laughter.
This is one of the funniest, most vivid depictions of an African childhood that shows Peter still forging his way in the world. He did exceptionally well as a student at the Les Roches International School of Hotel Management in Switzerland which saw him landing some very lucrative jobs working for groups like the Hilton then moving on to JA Hotels in Dubai, before returning to the UK.
Unfortunately, Peter’s return to the UK was more for his father than his career as James had been diagnosed with cancer. Peter helped nurse his dad until the end. His death hit him particularly hard and left him feeling very lost until he realised that he needed to return to Africa and Karkloof in particular so that the next chapter of his life could start – but he first needed to tell this very personal and unique story about a boy and his father.
There is only one way to finish this review and that’s by quoting Peter’s words, “I have been bequeathed a precious gift. I was shown by a maestro that living the dream, from Africa to wherever you choose, is a moveable feast. Dreams only come true if you have the guts to pursue them. That, for me, is the lesson of my father. If you don’t follow your dreams, you only have yourself to blame.”
Imbali
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.
December 5, 2017
I wrote it with Graham Spence and loved every minute seeing how Graham could put the beauty of the words into play. Its my first book but Graham was the best person to do it.
It tells all about my life growing up on a Safari in South Africa and all the incredible adventures. Before 8 yrs old I had survived Snake bites, Animal Attacks, nearly drowning and much more.
It tells all about my life growing up on a Safari in South Africa and all the incredible adventures. Before 8 yrs old I had survived Snake bites, Animal Attacks, nearly drowning and much more.
July 16, 2018
Fascinating epic tale of a family from England who made Africa and beyond home.
I enjoyed every minute of the book as I am an avid lover of the bush. He brought it all back to me as vivid and lovely as he remembers it
I enjoyed every minute of the book as I am an avid lover of the bush. He brought it all back to me as vivid and lovely as he remembers it
June 20, 2018
Great Read!
So much passion and love!! Animal lovers will embrace this moving life’s tale. It brings you there to Africa with it’s wilderness and beauty. Loved this book!
So much passion and love!! Animal lovers will embrace this moving life’s tale. It brings you there to Africa with it’s wilderness and beauty. Loved this book!
December 11, 2017
I loved the humour, excitement and sheer difference of this amazing true story of a boy and his family and the wonderful creatures that surrounded them. But be warned! It's a story that will grow your longing to be out in the wild places of the world.
The story is told by Peter Meyer whose father James was a man with a dream. In his teens James gazed out at a piece of unspoilt bushveld in South Africa, and knew from that moment he had a connection to it. After adventurous years turning a large company into a very large one he sold his business in England and moved to South Africa as owner of a large private game reserve. A dashing horseman and helicopter pilot, he became an expert in game management.
When his son Peter was a year old, James finally bought the Valley of Heaven that had so enchanted him as a child, and restored it to its pristine beauty, stocking it with the most iconic animals in Africa. The story takes the reader into a wonderful world of animals and surprises. A boy growing up among rhinos, snakes, buffalo, hippos and elephants - the adventures he and his Zulu friend had were awesome.
If you enjoyed 'Born Free', 'The Elephant Whisperer', 'A Lion called Christian, and if you watch any of David Attenborough's TV series, this book is for you.
The story is told by Peter Meyer whose father James was a man with a dream. In his teens James gazed out at a piece of unspoilt bushveld in South Africa, and knew from that moment he had a connection to it. After adventurous years turning a large company into a very large one he sold his business in England and moved to South Africa as owner of a large private game reserve. A dashing horseman and helicopter pilot, he became an expert in game management.
When his son Peter was a year old, James finally bought the Valley of Heaven that had so enchanted him as a child, and restored it to its pristine beauty, stocking it with the most iconic animals in Africa. The story takes the reader into a wonderful world of animals and surprises. A boy growing up among rhinos, snakes, buffalo, hippos and elephants - the adventures he and his Zulu friend had were awesome.
If you enjoyed 'Born Free', 'The Elephant Whisperer', 'A Lion called Christian, and if you watch any of David Attenborough's TV series, this book is for you.
January 22, 2021
This book just didn't really do it for me, personally. I was looking for wild adventure and stories of the wilderness and crazy bush experiences. But this wasn't really it. Maybe it's just because I am a born and bred South African, who happened to grow up on a farm that borders the Kruger National Park and had a dad who worked inside the Park. The experiences in this book just seemed very ordinary and run of the mill to me. Nothing that got my adrenaline pumping or made me gasp in awe. I just was not excited by it. Perhaps for someone who grew up in a big city and has not had much bush experience, this sort of childhood would seem riveting and quite unusual, and they would be able to find more enjoyment from this book. I also found that it became too much about business ventures and all the luxuries and privileges which were afforded to the author, owing to the fact that his father was a wildly successful businessman. A luxury home in the middle of a 5-star game lodge just doesn't really constitute "wild" to me. It unfortunately just didn't live up to it's title, in my humble opinion.
April 24, 2019
Amazing story of life and love. A must read!!!!
Picked this book because I love South Africa and wanted to read about growing up in the bush. However, I really learned more life lessons from the authors father which was an added bonus. This is more than a story of a boy growing up in the bush. This is a story of an incredible man and the way he loved the bush and his family. Many life lessons were shared. Thank you so much for writing this book and sharing your incredibly adventurous life but also sharing your incredible father with all the world. He must be so proud of the young man you have become.
Picked this book because I love South Africa and wanted to read about growing up in the bush. However, I really learned more life lessons from the authors father which was an added bonus. This is more than a story of a boy growing up in the bush. This is a story of an incredible man and the way he loved the bush and his family. Many life lessons were shared. Thank you so much for writing this book and sharing your incredibly adventurous life but also sharing your incredible father with all the world. He must be so proud of the young man you have become.
September 16, 2018
A lovely tale
A very detailed and interesting autobiography. However, you really sense that it is more than just an autobiography. It is a dedication to the authors family and how they have shaped his life. Funny, touching and very moving.
A very detailed and interesting autobiography. However, you really sense that it is more than just an autobiography. It is a dedication to the authors family and how they have shaped his life. Funny, touching and very moving.
April 28, 2019
Incredible and inspiring true story of the adventures of a boy with a totally unique upbringing in the magic of the wilderness of Karkloof, his amazing family, friends, wonderful wildlife - together with the dangers, experiencing the highs and lows, enchanting and captivating. Beautifully written, heartfelt, humorous and totally draws you in! Massive congratulations Peter!
Key notes include preserving Africa's pristine beauty, protecting wildlife for future generations, it's about dreams - striving to make them come true and following them, never giving up and true stories of friendships, living life on your terms, facing fears and failures, character building in unusual circumstances. Childhoods can and do shape our adult lives.
Best quote: 'You've got to risk it to get the biscuit'. The granite strong bond between father and son, kindness towards others, and fun at the same time. Thoroughly loved this book, can't wait to see the upcoming documentary.
Definitely highly recommend reading it. If you love wildlife, adventuring and Africa you'll love it! Really would love to travel there, sounds so magical.
Key notes include preserving Africa's pristine beauty, protecting wildlife for future generations, it's about dreams - striving to make them come true and following them, never giving up and true stories of friendships, living life on your terms, facing fears and failures, character building in unusual circumstances. Childhoods can and do shape our adult lives.
Best quote: 'You've got to risk it to get the biscuit'. The granite strong bond between father and son, kindness towards others, and fun at the same time. Thoroughly loved this book, can't wait to see the upcoming documentary.
Definitely highly recommend reading it. If you love wildlife, adventuring and Africa you'll love it! Really would love to travel there, sounds so magical.
December 31, 2020
Autobiographical self who massaging
This book is a homage to a father...this I understand. BUT it is not a book featuring adventure and growing up in a South African wilderness..There is some of this here( other books have this content in Blackfriars and in more intriguing ways) .It clearly features a person who mentions all he has done..mainly in hospitality and how well he has done Near the end he talks about not wanting to sound egotistical but the book sounds like an who massage. It is then a first into acting and modelling...again how brilliant he has been....Whilst my life as a teacher would make very full reading this book see a ghost writer make the best of a scant script substitution is not needed as much as it occurs. If the subject matter had been a conservationist fair does but he was a conservationist son. You can predict with each chapter that he will fairly soon congratulate himself on how well he has done or what fantastic idea he has had. Bigger...better not in a literature settings certain.
This book is a homage to a father...this I understand. BUT it is not a book featuring adventure and growing up in a South African wilderness..There is some of this here( other books have this content in Blackfriars and in more intriguing ways) .It clearly features a person who mentions all he has done..mainly in hospitality and how well he has done Near the end he talks about not wanting to sound egotistical but the book sounds like an who massage. It is then a first into acting and modelling...again how brilliant he has been....Whilst my life as a teacher would make very full reading this book see a ghost writer make the best of a scant script substitution is not needed as much as it occurs. If the subject matter had been a conservationist fair does but he was a conservationist son. You can predict with each chapter that he will fairly soon congratulate himself on how well he has done or what fantastic idea he has had. Bigger...better not in a literature settings certain.
October 6, 2021
Unfortunately it isn't possible to give a 0 or a negative rating for this "book"
It has nothing to do with growing up in a South African wilderness.
A better title would have been "why I became the smartest good looking Extra, that came across some celebrities and the world should know about it" instead
We live in south africa in the wild ourselves and we've thought this book would be nice to read to our boys (7 and 10) so that they could appreciate that they are "free range kids". Unfortunately it had the opposite effect as even they got bored with the self enrichment of the writer.
We are surprised that Graham Spence was a ghost writer in this; as all the other books we read from him have more educational value than this low standard.
It has nothing to do with growing up in a South African wilderness.
A better title would have been "why I became the smartest good looking Extra, that came across some celebrities and the world should know about it" instead
We live in south africa in the wild ourselves and we've thought this book would be nice to read to our boys (7 and 10) so that they could appreciate that they are "free range kids". Unfortunately it had the opposite effect as even they got bored with the self enrichment of the writer.
We are surprised that Graham Spence was a ghost writer in this; as all the other books we read from him have more educational value than this low standard.
March 5, 2019
The African Dream
This story begins fulfilling a dream in Africa. Most of the story is about Peter Meyer's occupations. Which were a lot less interesting than his experiences in Africa.
This story begins fulfilling a dream in Africa. Most of the story is about Peter Meyer's occupations. Which were a lot less interesting than his experiences in Africa.
June 29, 2019
Well written story about family and a fathers place in it.
Loved the experiences growing up on a game preserve. Appreciation for his father and all he provided and taught was moving.
Loved the experiences growing up on a game preserve. Appreciation for his father and all he provided and taught was moving.
July 4, 2019
This is an amazing book written by Peter describing his life growing up in the bush of South Africa and the Safari Park his father set up which still exists today. His exploits running free with the animals is sometimes heart stopping. He then moves on as an adult leaving the Park and becoming involved in Hotel Management and Acting. The tragedy of his fathers death and the sale of the Park. Peter has made a documentary to back up the book.
October 1, 2019
What an incredible and moving story, could not put the book down, a real page turner. After watching YouTube episodes, I had to reread it! This unique bond between a son and his dad, the magic of wilderness, adventure, laughter and tears, lots of humor , captivating from the beginning till the end. It’s about love, family, friendship, it’s about wildlife and Africa. If I may quote another author, « Finding our humanity ? » In this book it’s all over, understanding what it means to be human.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews