Customer Reviews

The Wilderness Family: At Home with Africa's Wildlife

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You know those books where you dont want the story to end? I have just finished reading Kobie Kruger's 'The Wilderness Family' and it is just such a story. From laughter to tears, I felt all the emotions that Kobie felt, and if you are an animal lover, you will feel them too.

I enjoyed reading this book so much that I am now determined to go to Africa and meet Leo the Lion one day! He has completely taken my imagination to places that I had never even thought of before, the deepest, darkest areas of Africa. And yet, he is so naive for a lion, you could be forgiven for thinking he is a dog!

I was completely spellbound by the family photos included in the book - I cannot take my eyes off this wonderful animal and the obvious bond it has with all the members of its 'human family'.

Read The Wilderness Family. You will not regret it!

Like so many other reviewers, I too loved this book. Refreshing to read a book about animals, how they behave amongst themselves and how they adapt to life with humans. I was amazed and inspired by the Kruger family - their hard work and dedication to exist as harmoniously as they did alongside their animal neighbors. A nice change of pace from so many commercialized novels - this book tells the true story of nature and how a human family can fit into it and still come out with a pleasant ending. Kobie narrates the early years of Leo their adopted lion in a delightful way - I felt I truly came to know him. Interspersed with the details on animal life, is the fine depicting of the settings where all these dramas take place. I came to like Kobie, her husband and her children. There was kindness, common sense and firmness of spirit in the telling of their experiences.

I enjoyed reading "The Wilderness Family" so much that I have read it twice! The story was so inspiring, so moving, and so interesting, that I could not get enough of it!

It is evident that the author passionately loves animals, and can see things from the perspective of her animal charges. The love, trust and bonding that had occurred between a lion and his "foster mother" and human family is evident on every page of the book. Some parts of the book are hilarious, other parts speak of a strong person who is not afraid of adventures that some of us would define as HAIR RAISING. The story shows that humans can get attached to animals and animals will reciprocate and display the same love, caring, and affection towards their human benefactors.

Leo the lion was treated with love and dignity but at the same time he was taught to accept authority and sometimes gentle discipline. He had learned to understand what the word NO meant.

The author's delightful sense of humour adds to the enjoyment of this lovely piece of literature. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves animals, who has compassion for creatures of the wild, who understands that animals just like humans experience the same range of emotions of love, fear, grief, joy, loyalty. I just loved reading about the rapport and bond that had developed between the dog and the lion. Highly unusual for a wild animal to regard a dog as a role model and mentor.

Other great animal-human bonding stories I have read are: "The Bears and I" by Robert Franklin Leslie, Ballantine Books Inc. New York and a more recent book: "Summers with the Bears" by Jack Becklund

This is such a touching story. I've dreamed of Africa as a child and now as an adult I'm still captivated, I felt as though I was watching a movie throughout this whole book.I also have a deep love of animals,so once again I was moved. I would recommend this book to all those who dream of Africa and those who will someday go there.

I read this book in about two days. Having just gotten back from a safari trip to Africa, I could almost hear the hippos grunting and the lions roaring again while reading this book, and could only wish I was Kobie. I hope Leo is doing great. I'm worried about him in Zimbabwe with all the current problems. Anyway, read this one. It was great!

In this facinating tale of Africa's wild life, Kobie Kruger, the wife of a game ranger, gives a vivid account of her experiences as a foster mother to a lion cub named Leo.

Meet the lion cub who loves finger-sucking and fishing, the family dog who becomes best friend and interpreter to the lion cub, and the human family who raises the cub with much love and care. Kruger is an elogent and entertaining story-teller, and this is a delightful and touching story you will want to read over and over again.

Reading this book was just like being onsite Krüger National Park with a family of a game warden. You could experience the emotional highs and lows with the mother of the family and also enjoy the overwhelming nature and wildlife of a remote ranger station. I just could not put the book down. The only thing missing were the experiences of the game warden himself. I'm sure he could have shared many more exiting stories.

The Wilderness Family was a really good book. Kobie Kruger did a great job of painting a picture with her own words. I loved how in every chapter she told a different story. She always loved to write about how Leo, her lion, would always pretend he was a dog. She also would write about her many animals. Some of the animals she owned and fostered were chickens, dogs, lion, badgers, and horses. Overall, I loved this book very much, found it easy to read, and I would reccomend it to people of all ages!

Very sensitive and delicate woman beautifully writes The Wilderness Family story.
It was great and refreshing reading because author does not focus on people; bookstores and libraries are full of stories about humans. This book for a change, tells us almost exclusively about animals, leaving humans as a background.
I highly recommend this title to everybody, adults and children.
This type of book, I can imagine, can be read loudly in front of the fireplace to the large family gathering. Kids will learn how to love all creatures: small, large, wild and domestic.
For those adults having a hard time to comprehend how animals can develop and possess awareness of their own existence, Kobie Kruger delivers powerful lesson.

I devoured this book cover to cover. It's well written and a wonderful story of the author's time at Kruger National Park in South Africa. You'll laugh with her, cry with her, be frightened with her, and be amazed by her experiences. My only complaint was that - when finished - I simply wanted more of this book.