Summary of Lawrence Anthony & Graham Spence's The Elephant Whisperer

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Book Preview: #1 Poachers had been the scourge of our lives since we bought Thula Thula, a game reserve in central Zululand. They had been targeting us for almost a year now. I couldn’t work out who they were or where they were coming from.

#2 I learned that the izinduna were right: someone was operating within the reserve, and they were not local tribesmen and scrawny dogs. They were a well-organized criminal operation led by someone who followed our every move.

#3 I had heard of the Elephant Managers and Owners Association, a private organization that took interest in elephant welfare. They had heard about Thula Thula and the variety of magnificent indigenous Zululand wildlife, and wanted to give me a herd of elephants.

#4 I knew that the poachers were coming, and I wanted to save the elephants. I knew that the risk was great, but I knew that the opportunity was great as well.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Mar 4, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669355588

IRB Media

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Book preview

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

Poachers had been the scourge of our lives since we bought Thula Thula, a game reserve in central Zululand. They had been targeting us for almost a year now. I couldn’t work out who they were or where they were coming from.

#2

I learned that the izinduna were right: someone was operating within the reserve, and they were not local tribesmen and scrawny dogs. They were a well-organized criminal operation led by someone who followed our every move.

#3

I had heard of the Elephant Managers and Owners Association, a private organization that took interest in elephant welfare. They had heard about Thula Thula and the variety of magnificent indigenous Zululand wildlife, and wanted to give me a herd of elephants.

#4

I knew that the poachers were coming, and I wanted to save the elephants. I knew that the risk was great, but I knew that the opportunity was great as well.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

I bought Thula Thula in 1998, and within two weeks, the current owners wanted the herd off their property. They were planning on shooting the elephants as they thought they were a liability. I knew I had to save them.

#2

I fell in love with Thula Thula from the moment I went walkabout. It’s a landscape that is an elephant’s paradise. I radioed David and Ndonga to come to the office.

#3

I had been given nine elephants. The current owners had given me a deadline of two weeks to fix the fences. The locals were worried about the safety of their women when they went for water, and the children when they played around the fences.

#4

The fence was being built, and while it was not going as fast as we had hoped, we still saw progress. Then we ran into a wall. The workers on the western boundary had down tools, saying they were being shot at. It turned out that the workers were being attacked by muthi, or witchcraft.

#5

The electric fence continued to expand, and the workers’ competency levels increased. The boma was also built, and the poachers were unable to break in anymore.

#6

The final task was to chop down any trees that could be pushed onto the fence, an elephant’s favorite method of breaking it. The deadline passed in an eye-blink, and we were nowhere near finished, even though I had employed more men.

Insights from Chapter 3

#1

The fence was checked by an inspector from KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife, who said it was safe.