Saving Sun Bears: One man's quest to save a species

by Sarah Pye

A must-read book about endangered wildlife. Hunters poach adult sun bears for body parts which are thought to have medicinal properties. Orphaned cubs are kept illegally as pets. Natural habitat is disappearing fast.In this inspirational story, Malaysian ecologist Dr Wong Siew Te, or ‘papa bear’, tries to save the ‘forgotten bear’ from extinction. His quest takes him around the world, and in 2017 he is named a CNN Wildlife Hero - proving one person can make a difference.Australian author Dr Sarah Pye takes readers on a journey of discovery, introducing individuals sun bears she Natalie who learns to survive without her mother; Bonkud, who is struck by lightning; Gutuk, who is too scared to go outside; and Debbie, who grabs her chance at freedom. Saving Sun Bears is Wong's story - and theirs.You too can make a difference.Read this heartwarming biography to learn more.

264 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 28, 2021

About the author

Sarah may be a writer, speaker and teacher, but that hasn’t always been the case. Sarah was born on a tiny British outpost jutting into the Mediterranean called Gibraltar and spent the summers of her first decade plying the waters of the Norfolk broads aboard a classic clinker-built wooden boat. When she was 13, Sarah’s teacher parents moved their family onto a 30ft ketch. Sarah was boat-schooled by the world around her — holding night watches, grocery shopping in foreign ports, and hunkering down in ranging storms.

At 17, Sarah left her floating home for college in the United States. Then, with a hospitality management degree under her arm, continued her westward migration to Hawaii, and on to Australia’s Whitsunday Islands. Sarah’s business, Ocean Rafting was awarded the Queensland Tourism Award for Best Adventure Product in 2001.

As a single parent, Sarah completed her Master of Communication degree at the University of the Sunshine Coast and published a guidebook called Kids Welcome to Queensland in 2009. The resulting travel business led to Sarah being named Sunshine Coast Small Business Woman of the Year in 2010.

A trip to Borneo with her daughter changed the trajectory of Sarah’s life when she met Wong Siew Te. She commenced her Doctor of Creative Arts Degree in 2016, exploring how narratives can be used to engage non-scientists in conservation. In 2018, She took a break from the books to walk 800km across Spain, and in 2020, Wong’s biography, Saving Sun Bears was published.