My Gorilla Journey - Hardcover

Attwater, Helen

3.69

16 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 028306336X ISBN 13: 9780283063367

Publisher: Sidgwick & Jackson Ltd, 1999

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Helen and Mark Attwood both had a sense of adventure, but little did they realize that they would soon be heading off to set up an orphanage for baby gorillas in the heart of Africa, and even less that they would become embroiled in a civil war. This is the story of life with 50 or more of these most endearing animals, and survival through incredible adversity. Set in the Congo, they reared gorillas orphaned by poachers until they could be reintroduced into the wild, in a supposedly "protected" area.

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Review:

Helen Attwater met her future husband Mark when they worked together at London's Royal Festival Hall; both knew that they shared a deep sense of adventure, but neither could have ever imagined that they would spend their lives living in the heart of Africa caring for orphaned baby gorillas.

This remarkable story of a life spent with 50 or more of the world's most endearing and vulnerable animals is far more than just a book about gorillas. It is a stunning, heartrending story of compassion in the face of harsh brutality, of utter determination in the face of adversity and ultimately of love, not just between an exceptional man and woman, but between two species.

Helen Attwater writes with an all-consuming passion for her subject and not only allows the reader to eavesdrop on a life that most of us can barely even imagine, but encourages a deeper understanding of the politics and culture which provide the backdrop for her work. My Gorilla Journey is a vital, well-written autobiography which avoids any kind of self-indulgence, but is instead an inspiring, heartwarming and thought-provoking story of a woman whose life is filled with true love and enviable devotion to an important cause. --Susan Harrison

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