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| The Eye of the Elephant: An Epic Adventure in the African Wilderness | 
| Authors: Mark James Owens, Cordelia Dykes Owens
Publisher: Mariner Books
Category: Book
List Price: $16.00
Buy Used: $2.91
You Save: $13.09 (82%)
New (32) Collectible (1) from $6.43
Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 178434
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 306
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6 x 0.8
ISBN: 0395680905
Dewey Decimal Number: 639.97961
UPC: 046442680905
EAN: 9780395680902
ASIN: 0395680905
Publication Date: October 29, 1993
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: EX-LIBRARY; used item may have library binding and show stamps, stickers or other marks. Items not meeting quality expectations may be returned for refund. Buy with confidence - your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics!
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 1-5 of 6 | | NEXT » |
Wonders of the Wild November 3, 2006
2 out of 4 found this review helpful
This book is laden with fascinating information on African Wildlife and how to survive as human and animal in harsh conditions. Excellent read.
A riveting, disturbing story of war with poachers May 31, 2005
13 out of 14 found this review helpful
Wildlife researchers and conservationists Delia and Mark Owens have spent much of their lives since 1974 in the African bush, first in the Kalahari Desert from which came their best seller "Cry of the Kalahari" and then in the North Luangwa Valley in Zambia, the setting of this 1992 book.
The Owens' passion leads them to risk their lives routinely. In searching for a suitable camp in North Luangwa they set out in an ancient truck with no radio and inadequate gear. After a grueling trek that would have sent sane mortals packing for home they separate so Mark can fly his Cessna to a site that "would make Cessna's insurance company shudder" while Delia makes the two-day trip alone with the old truck and a trailer over trackless hilly, bushy, gully-filled flood-plain terrain. Tracking animals they are constantly walking smack into a startled lion or buffalo or cornered elephant.
But the real danger comes from people. "The Eye of the Elephant," while filled with wildlife anecdotes and tidbits of information about elephants and lions, is really about the poaching war the Owens conducted on behalf of the besieged North Luangwa elephants.
The poachers are villagers, many armed with AK47s, backed by the local government and assisted by the corrupt and underequipped local game guards. The Owens' weapons are education, cottage industry projects financed by the Owens Foundation for Wildlife Conservation and the Cessna.
The battle starts genially with children exclaiming over magazine pictures and their parents joining sewing circles and carpentry workshops. But it quickly escalates until Mark drives Delia from him with his obsession for highly dangerous and only modestly effective night flights, and the poachers organize an assassination squad to rid themselves of the Owens once and for all.
The book is organized in alternating first-person chapters between Delia and Mark. The tone is brutally honest, touching when one admits to mistakes which endanger the other, disturbing when their frank discussion of anti-poaching tactics veers from the politically correct. The Owens' care more for the animals and the landscape than the people. But since the people are there, their needs must be faced. Their singlemindedness will outrage some, but their strong personalities and sheer stamina will awe almost everyone.
York County Coast Star
EXCELLENT ADVENTURE! June 26, 2004
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I wish these authors would write more books about their adventures in Africa. Truly riveting page-turners!
Do not miss this wonderful book! August 18, 2002
13 out of 13 found this review helpful
The Eye of the Elephant is a wonderful, adventurous journey into the heart and soul of Africa seen through Mark and Delia's eyes. From the very first page you are caught up in their heroic quests to protect the animals they are there to observe. In spite of the unbelievable odds against them, they persevered and put the safety and security of the highly endangered animals FIRST. The elephants in the Luanga Valley are very fortunate to have had Mark and Delia watch over them and be their heroes. I have loved Africa and the African elephant my entire life and I am so grateful for these two selfless, dedicated people who have become the protectors of our most precious wildlife. This is one of my most treasured African stories.
This Book Was Amazing July 10, 2000
13 out of 15 found this review helpful
You will immediately be drawn into their story! I was so involved reading this book that I missed my train station stop...you'll feel like you're there with them!
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Wildlife, nature and the Environment
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