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CM . . .
. Volume XXIII Number 32. . . April 28, 2017
excerpt:
This appealing wildlife story is told with authentic detail by a talented author/photographer with expert credentials. Given her passion for conservation, the circumstances of this tale provided Suzi Eszterhas with the perfect topic for a nonfiction book to communicate her message to a young audience. She plans to donate royalties to support the Mara Conservancy, the Kenyan setting for the story of an orphaned serval (spotted wildcat) called Moto. The book opens with brief background about the work that took the author to Kenya. The details of her camp home—the shower was a bag of warm water hung from a tree branch—and close encounters with wildlife immediately grip the reader’s attention, and the facts of Moto’s accidental abandonment after a grass fire are equally captivating. The author uses each aspect of Moto’s upbringing to introduce general information about serval wildcats —his need for security, suitable food, grooming, the companionship of litter mates, learning hunting skills and defense methods, and finally gaining independence in his natural habitat. A page of facts, “All About Servals”, extends the learning with further notes. The writing style is both simple and engaging, with dramatic episodes easily holding the reader’s attention throughout. For instance, empathy for the little cat is aroused with specific detail about how he was separated from his wild family by an over-zealous group of tourists, a near-crisis when he gulped his milk and almost choked, and his instinctive reaction to a first taste of mouse prey—“...he knew exactly what to do. He grabbed it from my hand and hissed at me….took the mouse right back to his nest—which was my bed!”. Being a wildlife photographer located in a Kenyan bush camp naturally gave Eszterhas the advantage of a wealth of opportunities to collect the shots she’d need for this book. Consequently, the reader is treated to the best and most appealing close-ups of Moto at each stage of his development. Who can resist these baby animal shots: Moto with his stuffed ducky, his bottle, his grooming toothbrush, and even with his first mouse. Children who love animals will find this “diary” of a lesser known wildcat especially memorable. This style of presentation is a terrific way for them to understand the value of saving even one small orphaned member of a species, of keeping wildlife wild, and of conservation efforts to save habitat. Highly Recommended. Gillian Richardson is a freelance writer living in BC.
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