Set in the African bushveld in the late 1950s and early1960s, this side-splitting tale features a delightful array of wacky small-town characters. The three elder Dalton cowpokes are members of a gang dubbed the Messina Dalton Gang, after the infamous Wild West Dalton Gang. The youngest Dalton cowpoke, six year old, David, calls himself Gunslinger and his main ambition in life is to become a recognized member of the gang. Together with his African Pawnee sidekick- Tokoloshie-Two-Feathers, and his three-legged Jack Russell dog, Jock, Gunslinger tries hard to impress, but continually messes up. It is a wonderful, laugh-out-loud tale to the touch hearts of all ages!
“This is a gorgeous, lyrical, hilarious, important book. . . . Read this and you may find yourself instinctively beginning to heal old wounds: in yourself, in others, and just maybe in the cathedral of the wild that is our true home.”—Martha Beck, author of Finding Your Own North Star Boyd Varty had an unconventional upbringing. He grew up on Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa, a place where man and nature strive for balance, where perils exist alongside wonders. Founded more than eighty years ago as a hunting ground, Londolozi was transformed into a nature reserve beginning in 1973 by Varty’s father and uncle, visionaries of the restoration movement. But it wasn’t just a sanctuary for the animals; it was also a place for ravaged land to flourish again and for the human spirit to be restored. When Nelson Mandela was released after twenty-seven years of imprisonment, he came to the reserve to recover. Cathedral of the Wild is Varty’s memoir of his life in this exquisite and vast refuge. At Londolozi, Varty gained the confidence that emerges from living in Africa. “We came out strong and largely unafraid of life,” he writes, “with the full knowledge of its dangers.” It was there that young Boyd and his equally adventurous sister learned to track animals, raised leopard and lion cubs, followed their larger-than-life uncle on his many adventures filming wildlife, and became one with the land. Varty survived a harrowing black mamba encounter, a debilitating bout with malaria, even a vicious crocodile attack, but his biggest challenge was a personal crisis of purpose. An intense spiritual quest takes him across the globe and back again—to reconnect with nature and “rediscover the track.” Cathedral of the Wild is a story of transformation that inspires a great appreciation for the beauty and order of the natural world. With conviction, hope, and humor, Varty makes a passionate claim for the power of the wild to restore the human spirit. Praise for Cathedral of the Wild “Extremely touching . . . a book about growth and hope.”—The New York Times “It made me cry with its hard-won truths about human and animal nature. . . . Both funny and deeply moving, this book belongs on the shelf of everyone who seeks healing in wilderness.”—BookPage
Finding a home as a Girl of the Wild. Girl of the Wild is a true account by wildlife enthusiast, Rosie Miles, who went from being an ordinary girl from England to a not-so-ordinary girl of the wild in Africa. Triggered by an email from her mum, Rosie gave up her comfortable suburban life to pursue a dream of living in the African wilderness. Follow her story as she encounters leopards, elephants and lions, learns to live with cobras in the bathroom, and discovers where the real dangers lie. Heart-stopping, funny and thrilling in equal measure, there is seldom a dull moment in her abundant misadventures. But, completely transforming one's life is not easy. Find out if this office worker makes it as a safari guide and wildlife researcher.Will her stubborn spirit be enough to find her a place amongst the girls of the wild? Rosie Miles is a wildlife conservationist and science communicator based in Southern Africa. Girl of the Wild is her first book.
