An Elephant in My Kitchen

We visited the Thula Thula private game reserve for our first wedding anniversary, it was a special holiday that still lives on in my heart with the most incredible game sightings, interesting wildlife walks, and obviously meeting the famous herd of elephants that now call this beautiful reserve their home.

I loved reading about the journey Lawrence Anthony had taken in his book The Elephant Whisperer, and so I couldn’t wait to start the new book An Elephant in my Kitchen written by his wife Françoise Malby-Anthony.

The story of how she met Lawrence, came to live in South Africa from Paris, bought the reserve with him and saved a herd of elephants is a fascinating one. You will find yourself captivated as you get an in-depth and behind the scenes look at the conservation efforts taking place in our country. The story itself is also inspirational, a reminder and encouragement to never give up on your dreams, to push hard for something you believe in and to always follow your heart.

An Elephant in my Kitchen will give you an up-close seat to one woman’s journey to learning about caring for wild animals after her husband suddenly passes away. Prepare to be shocked at the brutal lengths that poachers will go to in order to get their hands on rhino horn, no matter the cost to these gentle and beautiful animals. See how much love and sacrifice goes into caring for orphaned elephant, hippo and rhino calves at the rhino orphanage at Thula Thula. Gain a deeper understanding of exactly what is being done to try and keep these wild animals safe for our children’s future. While you will hold your breath for some of the incredibly brave actions undertaken by the Thula Thula team to help the animals, you will also laugh at the mischievous antics of certain elephants and marvel at the trust and instincts that the matriarch of the elephant herd has.

An Elephant in My Kitchen has already reached readers from around the world, enthralling both those who have visited the stunning game reserve and those who wish to in the future. It’s an engaging book that will open your eyes to the beauty of the bush, but it’s also an honest account of the anguish, drama and danger that comes hand in hand with wildlife conservation in South Africa. It will perhaps also be the book to open your eyes to doing more to help where you can to ensure there is less suffering for our animals and that our children, and our children’s children, will one day also be able to visit game reserves to see majestic rhinos and mighty elephants in the wild.

An Elephant in My Kitchen is available from bookstores and online retailers for a recommended retail price of R290.

Thanks to Pan Macmillan for taking us back to Thula Thula to continue this exciting adventure.