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Zusatztext "Walters’ depiction of the bond that exists between Sam and her elephants is captivating. The elephants, who are presented as majestic and intelligent creatures with humanlike characteristics and rich emotional lives, will leave readers awestruck."-- School Library Journal "Cliffhangers and elephants will keep readers engaged."-- Kirkus "Walters interweaves his beautiful family story with a thorough description of elephant behavior—their intellect, compassion, and loyalty—and factual scientific possibilities of cloning an extinct species...A must-read for anyone with an interest in elephants and their welfare."-- Booklist "Walters packs in numerous details about these magnificent and highly intelligent creatures while raising complex ethical questions regarding humans’ relationship with animals."-- Publishers Weekly Informationen zum Autor Eric Walters has written nearly 100 children’s books, which have been translated into 13 languages and won over 125 awards. He was named to the Order of Canada in 2014 for his contribution as an author of literature for children and young adults. Walters also runs The Creation of Hope, a charity providing care for orphans in the Mbooni District of Kenya. Visit him at www.ericwalters.net and on Twitter at @EricRWalters. Klappentext We Bought a Zoo meets Jurassic Park in a gripping story featuring the evergreen appeal of human-animal friendships and set in an elephant sanctuary, about a thirteen-year-old girl, a cast of elephants, and a surprising new arrival-a woolly mammoth. Sam was born and raised in an elephant sanctuary. When a beloved elephant dies giving birth, Sam develops a connection with baby Woolly-who isn't actually an elephant but was cloned from woolly mammoth DNA. And the billionaire genius behind the cloning experiment will stop at nothing to protect his investment. Smart, determined, and loving, Sam stands up to this powerful adversary to protect the sanctuary and her herd. In the best tradition of child-animal friendship stories, Elephant Secret explores the strong and complex bond between Sam and her elephants while offering a fascinating, authentic glimpse into elephant-and human-behavior. CHAPTER ONE I lay on my back on the inflatable raft. The warm sun from above and the gentle rocking from below lulled me in and out of sleep. My arms hung down into the water, soothed and cooled. They needed it. Not just because it was a cloudless brilliant sky and the temperature was still above eighty, but because they were sore. I was sore in a lot of places. The tractor had broken down, and I’d pitched enough hay to feed an elephant. . . . Actually, a herd of elephants. I hoped the tractor would be fixed by tomorrow, but there was no guarantee, nor that it wouldn’t be broken again in a week or two. So much of what we needed to run this place seemed to be held together by duct tape, baling wire, and hope. Sometimes it felt like hope alone kept it all going, and sometimes even hope was in short supply. I knew I shouldn’t complain. Things had been going a lot better since we got the—​ I felt something brush against my left hand, and my left arm was wrapped up in a tight grip. “Oh, no!” I gasped. I was dragged off the raft and pulled beneath the water, unable to escape, powerless to fight as I was going down. Mouth closed and eyes wide open, I found myself staring into a gigantic dark eye shining through the murky waters no more than a foot away. As quickly and powerfully as I’d been pulled under, I was thrust toward the surface, shot out of the water, and propelled into the air. “You big stupid—​” I screamed before splashing back down into, and then under, the water. I quickly rose to the surface to the sound of my father’s laughter. He was standing at the edge of the pond, laughing so hard he was pra...
