(Reviewed by Ann Onymous )
#CommissionsEarned
“…Michael nodded, climbing into his car and silently steering back toward camp. He passed by the troop of baboons, still frolicking in the savanna, slowly making their way back home, oblivious to the powers shaping their future world. Michael looked at them play and longed for the ease of their routine. He wondered if they understood their own mortality. He wondered if they wondered.”
Jeffery Ulin graduated from Harvard and lived in Kenya. His experiences have influenced his writing this novel.
The situation in Kenya is not simple nor straightforward and the plot of this book is equally challenging. Mr. Ulin included a lot of issues that the nation faces to this day. Most of the novel takes place the early 1980’s. The story explains poaching and the challenges of governing the young nation.
Inspired by the true history of Kenya, the British-born characters experience the challenges of citizens living in the newly independent country. All of the characters display the dichotomy of village vs. city, tradition vs. education, insider vs. outsider, feeling at home in Kenya or wishing they were elsewhere.
The main character is a man who expects to be a “Lord” in the future, waiting for his inheritance. Meanwhile he marries the newly widowed wife of the former ambassador to Kenya. The marriage brings him her money and he gives her a title again. Her two children gain a new stepfather with an incredible appetite for money, power and status. The young researcher and veterinarian focus on studying and saving the lives of animals. The “Lord” in this story goes about retrieving elephant tusks and rhino horns by any means necessary.
Talking about the entire country of Kenya in a novel is a monumental task. But if you like bloody adventure, this book is for you. If you like romance, you will find it here also. There is lying, stealing, killing of animals and poachers. The characters face choices, consequences, and moral dilemmas. If you hunger for justice and punishment your appetite will be quenched.
With a very successful career under his belt already, this author has written a book to educate people about poaching. He aims to inspire all of us to save these magnificent animals. The illegal trade of ivory continues in 2023. We must indeed heed the message before it is too late.
