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Project Hannibal: A Zoomorrow Book
How do you hide a herd of mammoths? When the government terminates its secret project to restore genetically engineered mammoths to Alaska, animal trainer Luis Cortez goes to extraordinary lengths to spirit the hand-raised mammoth herd to freedom in the wild.
Estelle Dupris is a flying doctor visiting patients in an isolated Native Alaskan village. With her is her teenaged niece, grieving after her mother's suicide.
In Alaska's harsh and beautiful landscape, Luis and Estelle's worlds collide. Project Hannibal is a life-affirming story of overcoming adversity while recovering hope and faith after terrible personal loss.
"Loved it! It’s like an elephantine Jurassic Park where genetics have been used for an altruistic purpose." Rachel Deeming, Reedsy Discovery.
"Kathryn Hoff doesn't just write a character, she brings a genuine person to life, full of complexities, doubts and flaws." Douglas Phillips, author of the Quantum science fiction series.
Estelle Dupris is a flying doctor visiting patients in an isolated Native Alaskan village. With her is her teenaged niece, grieving after her mother's suicide.
In Alaska's harsh and beautiful landscape, Luis and Estelle's worlds collide. Project Hannibal is a life-affirming story of overcoming adversity while recovering hope and faith after terrible personal loss.
"Loved it! It’s like an elephantine Jurassic Park where genetics have been used for an altruistic purpose." Rachel Deeming, Reedsy Discovery.
"Kathryn Hoff doesn't just write a character, she brings a genuine person to life, full of complexities, doubts and flaws." Douglas Phillips, author of the Quantum science fiction series.
329 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 17, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 13, 2026
Project Hannibal
by Kathryn Hoff
An entertaining book about mammoths brought back to life secretly and raised for 12 or 14 years. Now the government wants to get rid of the program which means destroying the mammoths. Some of the caregivers are taking the mammoths to the Alaska wilds. It ends happily.
by Kathryn Hoff
An entertaining book about mammoths brought back to life secretly and raised for 12 or 14 years. Now the government wants to get rid of the program which means destroying the mammoths. Some of the caregivers are taking the mammoths to the Alaska wilds. It ends happily.
March 22, 2021
Project Hannibal by Kathryn Hoff is a book about mammoths being genetically engineered with the potential to release them into the Arctic to preserve the permafrost, thereby helping to save the planet. It’s like an elephantine Jurassic Park where genetics have been used for an altruistic purpose without the titillation of a theme park nor the menacing prospect of gruesome death. I love this idea which is what attracted me to the book in the first place- woolly elephants in a story could never be wrong.
But what that summary doesn’t tell you is that this is a really enjoyable book which takes a scientific premise, which is feasible in these days of genetic advances and discovery and uses it as a vehicle to create an adventure story filled with a little danger, a lot of humour and characters whose stories warm the heart.
I liked the way that Hoff threads her different stories together as we follow three different angles in the book: the scientists, Henri and Ginger; the Alaskan doctor, Estelle and her niece, Sera and finally, Luis and the mammoths themselves.
Hoff creates credible characters throughout and has sharp dialogue which brings them alive and clearly delineates their personalities through the narrative, making the people who inhabit her book lively and entertaining and most importantly, realistic. She is even able to give the mammoths personalities to make them distinct within the story.
Her plot development is well thought through and flows from scene to scene with ease and her skipping between the perspectives and action of the different characters to the climax at the end is smooth and believable.
I especially liked the development of the relationship between Estelle and Sera and how their shared experience of danger and duress enables them to bond and provides Sera with a much-needed sense of purpose.
If I have one criticism, it is the way that Hoff uses onomatopoeic words to denote noises in her narrative such as “Bang, bang” and “Bam!” as a for instance, examples of when a mammoth is hitting something. As an authorial style, I found it distracting and felt like a descriptive sentence of the mammoth banging was enough to conjure the image for me, no added sound prompts needed.
But this is a minor observation and I have to say that “little hairy elephants” have provided me with a lot of reading joy.
I was privileged to read this book as an ARC on Reedsy Discovery where this review was first posted.
But what that summary doesn’t tell you is that this is a really enjoyable book which takes a scientific premise, which is feasible in these days of genetic advances and discovery and uses it as a vehicle to create an adventure story filled with a little danger, a lot of humour and characters whose stories warm the heart.
I liked the way that Hoff threads her different stories together as we follow three different angles in the book: the scientists, Henri and Ginger; the Alaskan doctor, Estelle and her niece, Sera and finally, Luis and the mammoths themselves.
Hoff creates credible characters throughout and has sharp dialogue which brings them alive and clearly delineates their personalities through the narrative, making the people who inhabit her book lively and entertaining and most importantly, realistic. She is even able to give the mammoths personalities to make them distinct within the story.
Her plot development is well thought through and flows from scene to scene with ease and her skipping between the perspectives and action of the different characters to the climax at the end is smooth and believable.
I especially liked the development of the relationship between Estelle and Sera and how their shared experience of danger and duress enables them to bond and provides Sera with a much-needed sense of purpose.
If I have one criticism, it is the way that Hoff uses onomatopoeic words to denote noises in her narrative such as “Bang, bang” and “Bam!” as a for instance, examples of when a mammoth is hitting something. As an authorial style, I found it distracting and felt like a descriptive sentence of the mammoth banging was enough to conjure the image for me, no added sound prompts needed.
But this is a minor observation and I have to say that “little hairy elephants” have provided me with a lot of reading joy.
I was privileged to read this book as an ARC on Reedsy Discovery where this review was first posted.
December 4, 2021
Like Jurassic Park with woolly mammoths
Hidden away in a remote corner of Alaska a team of scientists figures out how to bring the woolly mammoth back to life. The intention is to breed them and turn them loose in the tundra in hopes that they will help slow down the melting of the permafrost which is contributing to global warming.
It's an engaging tale with quite a lot of science behind it, actually. Apparently Harvard is looking at just such a scenario in real life. The characters are fun, and the woolly mammoths are the true heroes. Definitely worth a read.
Hidden away in a remote corner of Alaska a team of scientists figures out how to bring the woolly mammoth back to life. The intention is to breed them and turn them loose in the tundra in hopes that they will help slow down the melting of the permafrost which is contributing to global warming.
It's an engaging tale with quite a lot of science behind it, actually. Apparently Harvard is looking at just such a scenario in real life. The characters are fun, and the woolly mammoths are the true heroes. Definitely worth a read.
January 2, 2022
This book gave an extremely faithful depiction of the behavior of elephants. My grandfather, who raised me, was the assistant trainer of the performing elephants at the Saint Louis Zoo and the head keeper of the elephants for nearly 30 years. I spent a lot of time around them growing up and seemed to be aware of the "family" scent and reach their trunks through the bars to me. Anyone around Saint Louis is aware of Rajah; my grandfather raised his mother Pearl from a baby from the late 1950's until he died. He loved his elephants.
February 20, 2026
Solid s-f
I was not previously familiar with this author, and obtained the book on a lark. I was most definitely not disappointed. The author is obviously extremely familiar with the science she needs to tell the story, and she offers it painlessly, the way good hard s-f authors always have. None of the principal characters come across like cardboard cutouts, and she even manages to make a few mammoths into distinct characters. The plot moves along well with no wasted motions, and offers a surprise or two at the end. I enjoyed this book a lot.
I was not previously familiar with this author, and obtained the book on a lark. I was most definitely not disappointed. The author is obviously extremely familiar with the science she needs to tell the story, and she offers it painlessly, the way good hard s-f authors always have. None of the principal characters come across like cardboard cutouts, and she even manages to make a few mammoths into distinct characters. The plot moves along well with no wasted motions, and offers a surprise or two at the end. I enjoyed this book a lot.
February 28, 2026
Fantastic! Good science and good storytelling
And a surprise twist! I am absolutely in love with the mammoths. And the human characters in the book were very three-dimensional. A wonderful, happy story. I guess the most one-dimensional character in the book was the Army Major, but then again, I met more than a few officers like him when I was in the army. People that confuse their rank with their intelligence. This book was a great read. I'd like to find more like it.
And a surprise twist! I am absolutely in love with the mammoths. And the human characters in the book were very three-dimensional. A wonderful, happy story. I guess the most one-dimensional character in the book was the Army Major, but then again, I met more than a few officers like him when I was in the army. People that confuse their rank with their intelligence. This book was a great read. I'd like to find more like it.
December 3, 2021
I picked up this book because the premise sounded so interesting, but I was very disappointed. It felt very much like it had been written by a 15 year old as a school project, and I just couldn't finish it. Everything was extremely unrealistic, and on every page I was thinking 'this is just so stupid', so I had to put it down.
November 27, 2021
Incredible
Well written story about a herd of modern day mammoths regenerated from cloned DNA in order to save the Earth from climate change. The herd needs to be relocated to a remote Alaskan wilderness without being killed by the military. Lots of adventure and a great read
Well written story about a herd of modern day mammoths regenerated from cloned DNA in order to save the Earth from climate change. The herd needs to be relocated to a remote Alaskan wilderness without being killed by the military. Lots of adventure and a great read
August 20, 2022
What a beautiful story with many complicated and triumphant parts to it. I would love to visit Alaska. If this story were true, I believe humans would find a way to render mammoths extinct again. No animal is safe from humans while the animals in their own habitat.
June 7, 2023
very engaging
This was an enjoyable story. It was a very sweet with limited menace. It does a good job of championing the need to stop climate change without beating the reader up.
This was an enjoyable story. It was a very sweet with limited menace. It does a good job of championing the need to stop climate change without beating the reader up.
October 27, 2023
Project Hannibal is the second book by Kathryn Hoff and I found it completely enjoyable. I will pick up another. It is a five-star book, in my opinion. I have no problem with recommending her books.
September 19, 2024
I enjoyed it a lot.
I really enjoyed this book. It's unique and interesting. Great characters and plot. Great for all ages with no sexual content or gory violence. No cuss words as well.
I really enjoyed this book. It's unique and interesting. Great characters and plot. Great for all ages with no sexual content or gory violence. No cuss words as well.
November 29, 2025
Fun book.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews