The Caiman

by Maria Eugenia Manrique, Ramon Paris (Illustrator), Amy Brill (Translator)

The unforgettable story of a man and his alligator. When Faoro the clockmaker adopts a baby alligator, he has no idea that someday their story will travel far and wide. But the town of San Fernando de Apure would never forget this kind young man and his adoring alligator, who played with the neighborhood children, took part in Faoro’s wedding, and, eventually, mourned his loss. Now their story is being shared with the world. In this delightful picture book first published in Venezuela, the author brings us back to her own childhood in Venezuela, as one of the children who used to visit this famous caiman, to tell the story of a man who loved animals and how his friendship with his alligator sparked a lasting legacy.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Nonfiction, Biography, Ebooks, Short Stories

40 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2019

About the author

María Eugenia Manrique was born in Caracas, Venezuela, and currently lives in Barcelona, Spain. She studied fine art in Mexico City, specializing in xylography and engraving; Eastern painting at Nankín University, China; and sumi-e and calligraphy at the Nihon Shuji Kyoiku Zaidan Foundation in Japan. Her work has been exhibited in museums and galleries in Venezuela, Spain, Mexico, Colombia, the United States, Puerto Rico, China, Italy, Argentina, and Japan. In 2014 she won the Grand Prize in Eastern Painting at the International Chinese Painting and Calligraphy Exposition at the Anshan Museum in China. She has published four books on Eastern painting. The Caiman is her first children’s book.

Reviews

[H (trying to keep up with GR friends) Balikov · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book should appeal to many around 10 years of age who are fascinated by the thought of getting to know this first cousin to an alligator. The story is told simply and the illustrations are a very good match for the text.

Can a caiman unite a town; bring happiness to children and adults alike; enjoy being petted; give rides to kids?

There is a lot of good information about caimans to enhance this story but the “fantasy” of having a caiman as an un-caged family pet, even when it grows to over 10 feet long, is something that you had better be able to explain to your audience.

Otherwise, it is easy to go with the flow and feel good about what has been happening.

[Louie the Mustache Matos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every year, in order to promote diversity and understanding, Amazon offers several international books for free as part of the World Book Day celebrations. In 2022, The Caiman by Maria Eugenia Manrique is not just a children's book offering for ten-year-old's and older, but it also comes from Venezuela.

Thematically the book revolves around the lived experience of a Venezuelan clockmaker named Faoro. The children of the village find the freshwater caiman and gift it to Faoro who decides to take care of the reptile, even building a pond to house the beast. He names it Negro and allows it free range through the house.

There is some drama that occurs when Faoro gets a girlfriend who is not completely comfortable living with Negro, but the issues get resolved relatively well and quickly. The story is not particularly involved, but certainly a cute story. A perfect children's offering for World Book Day. What should not be understated is that the art is drawn beautifully by Ramon Paris. Overall, a short (40 pages), fun read.

[Caro · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful story for children of all ages about a domesticated caiman that lives in a jeweler’s home in a small town in Venezuela. It’s short, interesting, and the illustrations are beautiful.

Highly recommend it!

[Ceecee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful

San Fernando de Apure, Venezuela, is a tiny city on a big river. Many years ago some children found a river caiman ( similar to an alligator) which was really tiny. Faoro the clockmaker, kept him and put him in his pocket. He named her Night. She grew and grew but stayed with him all his life. This is a wonderful true story illustrated by a someone who used to play with her. The illustrations are gorgeous. It’s a beautiful story, sweet, sad and very poignant .

Amazon Prime First Read - June.

[Ярослава]

Взяла колись, коли Амазон роздавав книжки в день промоції перекладної літератури - і добре, що не купила, бо ілюстрації страшенно милі, але сама книжка за функціоналом як домашній хом'ячок. Ну, знаєте той жарт, що хом'ячків купують дітям, аби привчити їх до факту смертності? Так от дітям, яким чомусь не можна хом'ячка, купують цю книжку. Маленький кайман лишився сиріткою і плакав, його виростив один добрий чоловік із містечка, але каймани живуть довше, ніж люди, тож потім чоловік теж помер, кайман лишився сиріткою вдруге і знову плакав. І це все якимось стилем без блиску, ходульненьким таким, штибу "The discovery caused a commotion". Коротше, я з фактом людської смертності вже змирилася й так, тому не є цільовою авдиторією.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very charming freebie from Amazon first reads. I’m building up quite a collection of lovely looking illustrated books and stories to share with my nephews. This one was based on a baby freshwater caiman who is found and raised by a watchmaker. She becomes a point of local interest and children from the neighbourhood come and play with her. A true story.

[Celia · Rating 5 out of 5]

All right it is a picture book. A book is a book though and I am counting it.

No 116 on my quest to read at least one book in each country in the world. The country is Venezuela.

This book is 40 pages long and the story very touching. It was told to the author by her uncle when she was a child. She did not believe it to be true, but the description at the end says it is true and based on a real person who loved animals.

I found my copy on Kindle Unlimited and hope you can find a copy too.

5 stars

Will attempt to highlight my Kindle and share.

[CaseyTheCanadianLesbrarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully illustrated picture book about an amazing true story in Venezeula! A baby crocodile grows up as a pet in jeweller's shop. Be forewarned, though: it is REALLY sad near the end (it made both me and my partner cry), although there is a happy resolution. A great book to practise my Spanish. I will never forget the word for crocodile now.

[Jae · Rating 5 out of 5]

María Eugenia Manrique has written a beautiful and uplifting little book for children about an abandoned baby alligator found by some children in Venezuela. The tiny creature is taken in and cared for by José Faoro, the jeweller of the small town in which they live, and becomes part of his life and that of the town.

The illustrations by Ramón París suit the story perfectly and are a joy to look at.

[♥Milica♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A picture book (that's based on a true story) made me cry, who would've thought.

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an endearing, true story about a caiman who is raised as a pet. Faoro get the caiman, Negro (Black in Spanish), when he is 3 days old and loves him. Even when Faoro marries Angela, the caiman continues to be a beloved member of the family. The story of this caiman became well-known.

[Harshada · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet, true story of a human's friendship with a caiman. Very homely illustrations. Will definitely take you back to your childhood summer vacations, whether you ever had an interaction with a caiman or not.
Read thanks to Amazon's World Book Day offer.

[Shainlock · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and I am so glad I read it. I believe animals are a gift and are just as much a part of this earth as we are; and some people have a gift with animals. I am really glad I read this. It was a little sad, but also hopeful.
Night and Faoro.
I love the explanations at the end. Everyone included in the book was definitely a special kind of person. I am glad that Faoro found Angela and that she and Night had each other. The illustrations really helped pull me into the story. I thought the mixed media and digital illustrations were specially suited to the story, and well done; especially Night’s beautiful skin.

I couldn’t help but think of when I was young and I saw a puppy on the side of the road. I pointed to show my sister and we both carried on loudly until my Mom turned around. She was wounded on the crown of her head. I couldn’t stand it!
We took her to the vet and got her fixed up. I named her Ebony because she was a shiny, glossy black. She was like a beautiful piece of obsidian and only had a tiny white cross of fur on her chest. She was a cocker spaniel and Labrador retriever mix. I loved that dog. She always came. She was always there. So protective.
So, this story reminded me of her. I have always had a soft spot for black animals or misunderstood ones.
I don’t consider black cats to be unlucky at all.
My black cats picked me if anything; and they are the smartest cats I have ever been around. When I went to go pick a cat from a rescue they were all black cats or a few tuxedo cats.
Then the cat I have now crawled up my leg on the carport. She was abandoned. Black cat number two days after the first had passed.
…. Definitely a gift.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sweet story about a caiman and his human. I think the story was told in a way that would make it easy to discuss the more sensitive subjects of life to smaller listeners and readers.

Rating: PG -due to the passing of one of the characters
Language: clean
Recommend: yes

[Tantravahi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I teared up on the last page. A 30-page illustrated story about a man and his pet alligator that is going to tug at your heart strings and make a tune. Reminds me of Love Story, with none of the fuss and feathers, just plain, uncomplicated love.

[This Kooky Wildflower Loves a Little Tea and Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely story about an orphaned alligator and her caregivers. The illustrations display the story in a muted, but eye-catching, fashion.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful story about a pet Caiman. The illustrations are lovely. (This is part of Amazon's free kindle books for World Book Day for 2022 and is currently free as of 4/14/22).

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the story of the Caiman and the illustrations. From what I can tell, the story is based on real-life events and follows the unlikely friendship between a man and a wild creature. The man made a pond for his caiman, Night, so he had a natural outdoor habitat. This story could have gone horribly wrong because people tend to want to take wild animals out of their natural habitats and it can cause disaster and distress for the animal. In this case, it seems the caiman and the man were meant to be together.

[Bethany Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an Amazon First Reads story that I got for my son. It is a very sweet story, apparently based on real events. I also really felt the need to frequently say, "but don't actually do any of this, or go anywhere near an alligator".

[Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really lovely sweet tale based on a true story. The illustrations are so wonderful and really bring the story to life. Sad but touching this is an incredible story that I'm glad to have had the chance to learn about.

[Ruchi Das · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, what is with the agelessness and timelessness of children's books? The more I read them, the more I realize that some of these achieve in a few pages what even the most accomplished authors' books cannot with a tome.

The Caiman is the wholesome (and real-life) story of a pocket-sized alligator growing to more than six feet in the company of Faoro, a jewelry maker, who decides to adopt him. Alligators are scary, so I can only imagine the strength of the bond Faoro must have developed with Night (the caiman) to build a freshwater pond for it in his backyard and have it as a guest over at his wedding.

The 30-page story is told in vivid and heartwarming illustrations and is the perfect bedtime story for children and adults alike. It certainly eased my nerves (plagued by demons of anxiety) enough to put me to sleep.

P.S:I would have never stumbled upon this gem of a book had it not been a part of Amazon's endeavor to give out ten free e-books from the author's across the world on World Book Day 2022. Whoever put it in the selection, if you're reading this, I want you to know that you've got taste.

[Eileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a heartwarming story

I didn’t realize this was a true story or based on one until I got to the end. The idea of a Caiman baby being adopted at 3 days old by a man who loved all creatures is such a sweet story. I actually shed some tears in the middle of the story! I think children would love the story of the tame Caiman who loved her human father as well as the woman he fell in love with. Such a neat story with wonderful illustrations. I’d love to read it in the original Spanish!

[DivaDiane SM · Rating 4 out of 5]

True story

Lovely story of a man with an unusual pet and a special connection to wild animals. This is a true story that the author experienced.

[Yibbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m afraid I have very little sympathy for exotic pet owners, so finding out that this was a true story was a little jarring. Still, it was interesting thinking about how having an alligator as a pet would change your life. I’m sure any child that loves animals would love this story. They might even want to be able to visit the local alligator for a ride just as the author did.
The illustrations are darling. I loved the colors. They made you feel as if you are in a jungle town. I also really liked how clear they were.
I would recommend it for any child interesting in large reptiles.

[Madhulika Liddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet, poignant little story about a jeweller who adopts a baby caiman - and how close they grow as the years pass. This one is based on a real life story, and is touching. Quirky, delightful illustrations to go with the text, too.

(P.S. My eight year old, who also read it, insists this merits a 5-star rating because "though it was sad, it was also very good").

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bittersweet wonderful story

I was laughing then crying then smiling as I read the story of night and the people who loved her
The fact that it was based on a true story was fascinating who knew alligators could love people. This is a book for all ages.

[C.S.Oniro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely children book

It's a unique and lovely illustrated story to teach the value of friendship between different species and animals.
A heart warming tale.

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Caiman is a children's book based on the true story of a clockmaker who adopts a baby alligator. The illustrations have a cool, retro vibe to them, but the writing feels a little dull. I am also not an advocate for domesticating wild animals, so that might have thrown me a little with the story too.

[Glire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bellísimas ilustraciones para una trama que quizás parezca rozar el realismo mágico, pero con la cual muchos venezolanos se sentirán transportados a los recuerdos de su infancia.

El Negro de mi niñez no fue un caimán, sino un morrocoy al que adoraba.

Por más historias ilustradas tan auténticas como está.

[TL *Humaning the Best She Can* · Rating 3 out of 5]

*free on Amazon for World 🌎 Book 📖 Day*

A sweet story with lovely illustrations :)

3.5 stars 🌟 🤩