Thandi and Tumela

By Mike Anderson

Mike Anderson's delightful children's book Thandi and Tumela is a collection of short stories about the lives of two children whose parents work in a game reserve. The exciting and different lives of these families who live in wild and remote places are often the envy of the tourists and visitors who relax in the timeless, unspoilt environment of South Africa's reserves.

 

These are some of the stories Anderson has told his wide-eyed grandchildren before tucking them into bed. Hence, to Jess, Nic, Emma, Matt, Stuart, Richie, Elizabeth, Mike and Emily, thanks for listening and asking for more!

 

 

Acknowledgements

 

I am very grateful to Jane Goodfellow for her wonderful illustrations that bring the stories to life and to Melissa Sautereau for her beautiful gentle sketches of the wildlife found in the area. My grateful thanks go to my wife Di who put constant pressure on me to have these stories recorded in print.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mike Anderson
• Release date: Sep 18, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223290087

Book preview

Thandi_and_Tumela_-_Cover_.jpg

Copyright © 2023 Mike Anderson

Published by Mike Anderson at Smashwords

First edition 2023

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the copyright holder.

The Author has made every effort to trace and acknowledge sources/resources/individuals. In the event that any images/information have been incorrectly attributed or credited, the Author will be pleased to rectify these omissions at the earliest opportunity.

Published by Mike Anderson using Reach Publishers’ services,

P O Box 1384, Wandsbeck, South Africa, 3631

Edited by Francois Rabe for Reach Publishers

Cover designed by Reach Publishers

Website: www.reachpublishers.org

E-mail: [e-mail]

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Mike Anderson

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Introduction

Thandi and Tumela are cousins and live with their parents in the staff village of one of the biggest game reserves in Southern Africa.

Mr Ngwenya is Thandi’s father and is the senior section ranger of the reserve. Mr Modise, who is Tumela’s father, is the mechanic in charge of the workshop and sees to it that all the road maintenance vehicles, as well as the trucks and cars, are kept in good condition. Mr Ngwenya’s wife is the sister of Mr Modise’s wife. They are a close-knit family and spend a lot of their spare time together.

Thandi and Tumela are in Grade 11 at the local school. There are only nine children in their class. It is a very small school and only caters for the children of

the reserve’s staff.

Richard and Jacob are really good friends and are both training to be mechanics. They work in Mr Modise’s truck service workshop. The two boys spend a lot of time with the girls and are very close – they are almost like brothers to the girls.

Dougie is also part of the team. He is a beautiful German Shepherd dog and has been part of Thandi’s family since he was a puppy.

In time, the family is joined by Pork and Pie, but you will hear about them later.

Poachers

One day at the beginning of the April holidays, Mr Ngwenya asked the two girls, as well as Richard and Jacob, if they would like to come with him for a walk in the reserve. He needed to check the condition of the veld to see whether it would be a good idea to burn the grass that year.

Early that morning they all clambered into his Land Rover and drove to the eastern side of the reserve where the landscape is relatively flat. Here, a few drainage lines and dry riverbeds cross the plains. They parked the Land Rover under a tree, and in single file set off along a game path