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Overview
On India's northeast frontier, a killer elephant is on the rampage, stalking Assam's paddy fields and murdering dozens of farmers. Local forestry officials, powerless to stop the elephant, call in one of India's last licensed elephant hunters and issue a warrant for the rogue's destruction. Reading about the ensuing hunt in a Delhi newspaper, journalist Tarquin Hall flies to Assam to investigate. To the Elephant Graveyard is the compelling account of the search for a killer elephant in the northeast corner of India, and a vivid portrait of the Khasi tribe, who live intimately with the elephants. Though it seems a world of peaceful coexistence between man and beast, Hall begins to see that the elephants are suffering, having lost their natural habitat to the destruction of the forests and modernization. Hungry, confused, and with little forest left to hide in, herds of elephants are slowly adapting to domestication, but many are resolute and furious. Often spellbinding with excitement, like "a page-turning detective tale" (Publishers Weekly), To the Elephant Graveyard is also intimate and moving, as Hall magnificently takes us on a journey to a place whose ancient ways are fast disappearing with the ever-shrinking forest.Synopsis
On India's northeast frontier, a killer elephant is on the rampage, stalking Assam's paddy fields and murdering dozens of farmers. Local forestry officials, powerless to stop the elephant, call in one of India's last licensed elephant hunters and issue a warrant for the rogue's destruction. Reading about the ensuing hunt in a Delhi newspaper, journalist Tarquin Hall flies to Assam to investigate. To the Elephant Graveyard is the compelling account of the search for a killer elephant in the northeast corner of India, and a vivid portrait of the Khasi tribe, who live intimately with the elephants. Though it seems a world of peaceful coexistence between man and beast, Hall begins to see that the elephants are suffering, having lost their natural habitat to the destruction of the forests and modernization. Hungry, confused, and with little forest left to hide in, herds of elephants are slowly adapting to domestication, but many are resolute and furious. Often spellbinding with excitement, like "a page-turning detective tale" (Publishers Weekly), To the Elephant Graveyard is also intimate and moving, as Hall magnificently takes us on a journey to a place whose ancient ways are fast disappearing with the ever-shrinking forest.
Publishers Weekly
Equal parts travel story and adventure tale, this volume leads readers on a meandering journey through the farthest reaching corners of India. Hall, a Gen-X British journalist who published his first book, Mercenaries, Missionaries and Misfits, when he was 23, fills his book with wildlife preserves, rebel factions, farmers, indigent elephant caretakers (mahouts) and British holdovers from the days of the Raj. Working as an AP reporter, the author gets a lead for an article: an elephant is rampaging through Assam, India, inexplicably murdering the inhabitants of small villages. One mahout recounts how sick elephants are led into the forest where the elephants themselves pick herbs. The mahouts then prepare and apply the herbs, and in this way the elephants heal themselves. For Hall, this ritual raises many questions about the elephants: How intelligent are they? How compassionate? How murderous? Much of this book is filled with Hall's mercurial attitudes toward the elephant (he flip-flops between wanting the killer elephant placed on a reserve safe from humans and wanting the beast dead) and the Indian people he meets. His story is a page-turning detective tale that recounts how the motley group of journalists, mahouts and government-employed hunters stalked the killer elephant through the wild territory of India. (Sept.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble Discover Great New WritersFor the journalist Tarquin Hall, elephants evoke images of Babar and Dumbo-kindly, lovable creatures. So when he hears of a drunken elephant on the rampage, stalking human prey with serial killer precision, he's more than a bit skeptical. Picking himself up from his dusty Delhi cubby, Hall heads off to Assam, a sparsely populated state bordering Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Burma, to ferret out the truth-in India, a commodity often in short supply.
Arriving in Assam, Hall meets with the accomplished elephant hunter Dinesh Choudhury, who has been chosen by the Assamese government to rein in the rogue pachyderm. Initially unconvinced that Choudhury is anything more than a bloodthirsty killer, Hall soon learns that the hunter, in fact, loves elephants. Their joint mission to find the errant elephant emerges as a highly nuanced, thrilling adventure, with Choudhury pushing and prodding Hall to more closely examine the world in which he walks. Along the way they find aging tea planters, remnants of the British raj, insurgents waging a separatist war, and elephant trainers schooled in homespun wisdom. Above all, literally, are the elephants: extraordinarily intelligent and emotive animals, capable of human qualities such as love, loyalty, fear, rage, and even vengeance.
While whimsical, playful and a joy to read, Hall's book also imparts a message. But be forewarned: you'll be overcome with an urgent desire to board the next flight to India to experience its mystical, magical world for yourself. Or maybe you'll have to settle for Tarquin Hall's next adventure.
Publishers Weekly -
Equal parts travel story and adventure tale, this volume leads readers on a meandering journey through the farthest reaching corners of India. Hall, a Gen-X British journalist who published his first book, Mercenaries, Missionaries and Misfits, when he was 23, fills his book with wildlife preserves, rebel factions, farmers, indigent elephant caretakers (mahouts) and British holdovers from the days of the Raj. Working as an AP reporter, the author gets a lead for an article: an elephant is rampaging through Assam, India, inexplicably murdering the inhabitants of small villages. One mahout recounts how sick elephants are led into the forest where the elephants themselves pick herbs. The mahouts then prepare and apply the herbs, and in this way the elephants heal themselves. For Hall, this ritual raises many questions about the elephants: How intelligent are they? How compassionate? How murderous? Much of this book is filled with Hall's mercurial attitudes toward the elephant (he flip-flops between wanting the killer elephant placed on a reserve safe from humans and wanting the beast dead) and the Indian people he meets. His story is a page-turning detective tale that recounts how the motley group of journalists, mahouts and government-employed hunters stalked the killer elephant through the wild territory of India. (Sept.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|KLIATT
Elephants are a mysterious yet enchanting species. Most of us know of them only through visits to the zoo. Seldom do we see them in their natural environment in either Africa or India. Hall, a journalist in India, found himself in a position to observe a unique experience. A rogue elephant had been rampaging through the northeast section of India. The elephant had killed over 30 people and was considered a serious threat. A professional elephant hunter was hired to track him down. Hall joined the expedition with mixed feelings. He was very curious about elephants but did not really want to see one die. He became part of a strange group of mahouts (elephant handlers), forest department personnel, and assorted hangers on. They track the elephant, eventually find him and do kill him. In the process we learn about India, the people as well as the cult of the elephant. For anyone interested in elephants this is a fascinating (if a bit sad) look at a truly endangered breed. Category: Nature & Ecology. KLIATT Codes: JSA—Recommended for junior and senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2000, Grove Press, dist. by Publishers Group West, 260p. illus. bibliog., Ages 13 to adult. Reviewer: Robin S. Holab-Abelman; Vice Pres., Lib. Relocation Scvs., Clancy-Cullen,Library Journal
Many elephants, wild and domesticated, are still found on the northeastern frontier of India known as Assam. Their numbers, however, are being significantly reduced by poachers and a shrinking natural environment. Official efforts are made to protect the elephant population, but at times it becomes necessary to kill rogue or rampaging elephants. Hall, a British journalist and the author of Mercenaries, Missionaries and Misfits: Adventures of an Under-Age Journalist, accompanied an authorized hunter to track down and kill one such elephant. Along the way he met a number of colorful characters whom he masterfully depicts in this engaging account. His fine storytelling and skill at handling dialog come through as he pieces together a lively portrait of contemporary Assam, including a considerable amount of elephant fact and lore. He also wrestles with the dilemmas of striking a balance with nature: When is it justified to kill a magnificent specimen of an endangered species? There is something for everyone in this most interesting account. Recommended for public libraries.--Harold M. Otness, formerly with Southern Oregon Univ. Lib., Ashland Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\Robert Carver
[A] lively, engaging, and often exciting Indian travel book in the William Dalrymple tradition.—The Times Literary Supplement