Melissa Crandall

This is a review of an advanced copy of "Elephant Speak: A Devoted Keeper’s Life Among the Herd” by Melissa Crandall for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

This book is a biography of Roger Henneous, who spent 30 years working at the Oregon Zoo and during almost all of that time he ran the Elephant House and oversaw the maintenance of the Asian elephant herd.

The book starts with an extremely detailed family tree of more than 35 elephants that have resided at the zoo over the years and a one-page map of the Elephant Barn as it was for many decades.

The book then delves into the history of both Henneous’ career and also the life of all the elephants at the Oregon Zoo. The author takes great pains to declare that some outdated elephant management procedures of the era do not occur in the modern age of zoo-keeping.

The book is very readable, with a brisk style to the writing that keeps readers entertained and enthralled. It is fascinating to read about all of the adventures that took place at the zoo, with an elephant keeper’s job essentially being months upon months of back-breaking work, with the occasional moment of ‘abject terror.’

The incredible breeding record of the Oregon Zoo’s elephants is highlighted, along with the astonishing number of elephants kept there over the years. On a regular basis there would be elephants coming and going, with most years seeing around 10-12 elephants at the zoo at any one time.

At times, I was brought to tears because of the love this man had for the elephants. Overall, the reviewer recommends this book as an extremely positive read and rates the book with five out of five stars.… (mais)

A story of a man who spent most of his life taking care of elephants at the Oregon Zoo. In addition to talking about the overall care of the elephants and the individual elephant personalities, this book covers advancements that were made in the care of captive elephants and makes a case for why breeding elephants in captivity helps preserve the species. The author does touch on some of the ethical arguments around captive elephants but seemed to gloss over selling young elephants away from their herd to circuses and other entertainers. Overall a touching story of the bond between the keeper and the elephants.… (mais)