The White Bone
The White Bone by Barbara Gowdy, published by Flamingo in July 2008, is a poignant narrative that explores the journey of elephants through the lens of survival and memory. This edition spans 352 pages and is presented in English. The story follows Mud, an orphaned infant elephant endowed with visionary abilities, as she navigates the challenges of life in the plains of East Africa, particularly during a severe drought that brings peril from ivory poachers.
Readers will encounter a tale that delves into themes of endurance and sacrifice as Mud, now an adolescent and pregnant, leads a group of traumatized survivors in search of safety and healing. Guided by visions and the powerful sense of smell, the herd embarks on a quest for A Safe Place and the mythical White Bone. The narrative offers a unique perspective on the struggles faced by elephants, blending elements of fantasy and political commentary within a literary framework.
Official synopsis Publisher
A classic, moving quest of elephants, memory and the will to survive.
Mud is an infant elephant, orphaned at birth and blessed with visionary powers. She and her adoptive family roam the plains of east Africa in search of water and food. At a crowded watering hole in a bad drought, ivory poachers find them and kill, or drive off, almost all of the elephant cows and their young. Mud, now an adolescent and pregnant with her first calf, sets out with the wounded and traumatized survivors in search of the injured.
Guided by visions, memories and hallucinations as much as their incredible sense of smell, the ruined herd hears rumours of A Safe Place and the White Bone that can lead them there. The quest becomes one of endurance, sacrifice and, ultimately, transcendence, as the elephants struggle for their own lives and the continuation of their kind.
Strikingly original, The White Bone takes Gowdy’s talent for inspired characterization to new heights, allowing us to see the world afresh through the eyes of a constantly persecuted, and yet infinitely gentle species.
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