The White Giraffe

Animal Healer #1

by Lauren St. John

When Martine’s home in England burns down, killing her parents, she must go to South Africa to live on a wildlife game preserve, called Sawubona, with the grandmother she didn’t know she had. Almost as soon as she arrives, Martine hears stories about a white giraffe living in the preserve. But her grandmother and others working at Sawubona insist that the giraffe is just a myth. Martine is not so sure, until one stormy night when she looks out her window and locks eyes with Jemmy, a young silvery-white giraffe. Why is everyone keeping Jemmy’s existence a secret? Does it have anything to do with the rash of poaching going on at Sawubona? Martine needs all of the courage and smarts she has, not to mention a little African magic, to find out. First-time children’s author Lauren St. John brings us deep into the African world, where myths become reality and a young girl with a healing gift has the power to save her home and her one true friend.

Genres: Fantasy, Animals, Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens, Africa, Adventure

180 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Lauren St John grew up on a farm and game reserve in Africa, the inspiration for her acclaimed memoir, Rainbow's End, and her award-winning White Giraffe series for children. Dead Man's Cove, the first in her Laura Marlin mystery series, won the Blue Peter Book of the Year Award in 2011. Her bestselling One Dollar Horse trilogy for teenagers was followed by The Glory, a breathtaking YA adventure and romance about a long distance horse race across the American West. Formerly a sports and music journalist, Lauren is the author of Seve and Hardcore Troubador: the Life & Near Death of Steve Earle, a superb, gripping biography of an Americana legend. The Obituary Writer, her first adult novel, was published in 2014 and she is currently at work on her second. Both The White Giraffe and The Glory have been optioned for film.

Reviews

[Heather Adores Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐
Genre ~ children's fiction ages 9-11
Series ~ Animal Healer #1
Setting ~ South Africa
Publication date ~ May 1, 2008
Page Count ~ 181
Audio length ~ 4 hours 46 minutes
Narrator ~ Adjoa Andoh
POV ~ single 3rd

*older read mini review*

I'm almost certain I read this book because giraffe's are my most favorite animal, beside my dog, Arnie, of course.

11 year old, Martine's, life has just been turned upside down when her parents were killed in a house fire, on her birthday no less. Her only surviving relative lives far away in South Africa, so she has to, not only meet and live with someone she never knew about, but do so in a foreign place as well. Raising her granddaughter is something new to Gwyn, too, so they both have some learning to do.

A sad beginning turns into a heartwarming tale of imagination and adventure.

Side personal note ~ I was probably around the same age when my house burned down. We were not home at the time, so luckily my family was safe, but I had some pets that sadly did not make.

Narration notes:
I did not listen to this one, but am just giving the info above for reference.

Connect with me ➡ Blog ~ Facebook ~ Twitter

[Amanda Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had one of my student's randomly select a book from my library one day so I could model how we read and think. The lesson however took a slight turn as instead of giving them the planned for assessment, we continued reading for the rest of the hour. We couldn't put it down and when I told the kiddos we had to stop and go to lunch the glorious whining rang through my classroom, "Noooooo!" My students would rather read than eat. I call that a TEACHER WIN. I plan on using this book in the future to practice many reading skills, but also to share with them the process Lauren St. John took to create this brilliant piece of work. I'm going to use it to teach passionate writing. It is day one of my summer and I cannot wait to get back in the classroom again.

[Erin Reilly-Sanders · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, this tale of a girl reluctantly sent to live with her grandmother on a game preserve in South Africa is a fun adventure with a lot of animals and a tiny bit of culture thrown in. However, I found the inclusion of magic somewhat disturbing, similar to other semi-fantasy books set in Africa. The portrayal of blacks as some sort of shaman always tends to disturb me, as it seems somewhat unlikely that this is an attitude that they would be comfortable with. Most blacks are Christian and while they may incorporate traditional beliefs, magic could be seen as a primitive association. In this book, Martine, a complete foreigner, seems to come and usurp their magic as some sort of savior, which also seems like the wrong message. At least the book has been written by someone with some personal experience in this part of Africa so the viewpoints presented aren’t wholly from an outsider. I guess I’m also not a big fan of unrealistic mixing of animals and people (a la Animorphs) where so many people seem to get the wrong idea from zoos that animals and nice and cuddly and innocent. Instead, I think the recent movie/tv series Earth presents a much more accurate picture of animals as organisms that think but act powerfully to achieve their needs, ignorant of the human needs for love, relationship, conversation, and even letting the underdog win.

[Booksblabbering || Cait❣️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A childhood favourite gifted to me by my Ouma in South Africa way back when.
The nostalgia is real and I just want to be eight years old again and read this. ❤️🥺

[Relyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

10/10/08
Audiobook format
I have been listening to this book for about three days now. It is wonderful. Really great. One of the many wonderful things about it is the audiobook reader. This woman is nothing but incredible. I mean it! She is the best audiobook reader I have ever heard. OK. She ties with the reader of Shadow of the Wind. I'm going to be looking for more books narrated by her.

I love having Sloane come to school with me. It is so wonderful to be in the car together. On the drives we talk and laugh and I really know what is going on with her. The only thing is, I have really missed my time with audiobooks. Before Sloane started school, I used my drive time to listen to books on tape. Talking with her is much better, but she has discovered audiobooks in a big way. She has her own mini iPod and wants to listed to her books. So, one way we talk. The other way, we each stick buds in our ears and listen to our own books. Are we a bookish family or what?

More on The White Giraffe when I finish it.

10/12/08
I finished it, and I must say I was sad to have it end. Fantastic book. Of course, am not feeling very verbose today. So, all I will say now is, "Give it a listen. I think you'll like it."

[Jay Pruitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming childrens book. While bringing to life the wonders of Africa and of exploration, the book also touches on the tragedy of death (her parents) and the horror of wildlife poaching. Blessed with the power of healing, young Martine discovers that it is her purpose and destiny to save an animal which has become her best friend, a rare White Giraffe.

[Isaiah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Actual rating: 1.5/5

While I'm glad I finally read this (it's been on my shelf a solid 8 years at least), and I'm not surprised I didn't like it, I'd had much higher hopes for the plot.

Things that really bothered me:
- the white saviour plot line
- the number of black characters who were just stereotypes
- the sheer lack of characters of colour despite being set in South Africa
- typed accents (why?????)
- the female main character only saved the day thanks to a barely-developed male character
- the fact the main character, a child, seems to have weird, semi-romantic feelings for a giraffe????????

Yeah, I kind of hated this book, it was really unsatisfying. I'm not even sure I can call it a product of its time. I just,,,, kind of hated this book and there's no other way I can put it. I can't even pass it on like I normally do with mid-grade books I haven't enjoyed, because I don't want any young kid to read this imperialist nonsense, and also because a lot of the language used feels too complicated for a MG book, although I could be wrong.

[Brynn · Rating 1 out of 5]

The protagonist in this story is an 11-year-old girl from England who moves to South Africa to live with her grandmother on a game preserve after her parents pass away. I thought what would follow would be a good story for 5th and 6th graders who like animals with a bit of information on a different part of the world. The story, however, is very weak. The language is far too complex for the target age group, the story is boring and often too descriptive, the main character isn't sympathetic and the premise of a fortune telling older south african woman who tells of the coming of this girl to save the animals is frankly a little hokey. I also think that aspect of the story may give a young reader with no knowledge of South Africa an incorrect impression of the country.

[Sarah Sullivan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Listened to this on audio while driving, and it was a definite upgrade in narrator from the last audio book I listened to. I found the story to be pretty compelling, considering that animal narratives are never my favorite genre. BUT, I have some major concerns with the way race is dealt with in this book. Here we have a white girl who moves to Africa and gets to be the long awaited savior of the animals who the mysterious, wise tribal woman assures us is going to save them all. Ugh. It's not just that nearly all of the sympathetic characters in this AFRICAN story are white - it's that nearly all of the CHARACTERS are white. And those that aren't are pretty stereotypical.

[Nanci · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a children's book, but it was delightful to read as an adult too. Children ages 10 and up should be able to read it on their own and children ages 6 and up will love to have it read to them. There are many great themes...being kind, repecting wildlife, love of nature, respect of elders, bravery, anti-bullying and adapting to new situations. I found it especially timely with our upcoming trip to South Africa and going on safaris.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up after having the privilege of patting a giraffe in a nearby safari park. I spoke to one of the many giraffes crowding the barrier in English, and it heard and apparently understood me, as it stayed as close to me as possible, walking up and down the barrier to stay nearby. It was a very hot day, and I expected to find the animal's skin warm and fuzzy. It wasn't; it was cool, and felt as smooth as human skin to the touch. Two years later I returned to the same safari park, and my friendly giraffe seemed to recognise me, and trailed me up and down again, though I wasn't allowed within patting distance this time. So when I ran across this story, I wanted to enjoy it, but the author wouldn't let me. She must have seen Studio Ghibli's "Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind" and later turned it into this: young girl with quasi-magical powers over animals saves the day, the culture, the people and is properly applauded at the end. Of course she has to come from England to do it, don't you know. Ugh.

We are told that St John grew up in Africa on a game reserve like the one in the book, but you could have fooled me. Much as I had hoped for a realistic tale of "young girl uprooted from everything she ever knew adapts to life in the African bush", this reads more like an English kid who never left home's fantasy Africa peopled by cardboard cutouts. The cast includes three whole black Africans, and two of those are stereotypes: the kindly bush tracker and his aunt, the wise woman/healer/fortune teller. The third is one of the "cool kids" at the MC's school and speaks twice in the whole book. The cool kids, like everyone else in the book, are background scribbles for the MC's thoughts and doings. Aside from one scene where they are supposedly going to beat her up or worse, they're just kind of there--which makes the big "let's make peace" scene with forgiveness cookies and all just that much less believable. We won't even go into the way Granny throws up her hands and just lets Little Miss Mary Sue get on with saving the day.

All of that could be forgiven except for the fact that the author, who supposedly grew up in Africa, perpetuates a couple of very stupid myths, the worst being that bats will get "caught in your hair." No, they won't, and a quick websearch reveals it for the old wives' tale that it is. Why drag that in?

[Slawka Scarso · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yes, I do know this is a young adult/children novel but this doesn't mean an adult shouldn't appreciate it all the same. Except in this case the book was extremely disappointing. The storyline is fine, but the characters and the dialogue are so fake at times it is quite irritating.
The fake African accent of Grace, for instance, is annoying but then at least she is a nice and well developed character. The teacher and headmaster are just a concentrate of clichés, same goes for Alex, the game keeper.
Plus that line at the beginning when the father tells Martine «everything happens for a reason». Oh dear, how banal is that? And yes, I was already this cynical when I was 11, Martine's age.
But the most irritating character of all is the grandmother - from now on there's a big SPOILER, beware. The grandmother is cold and distant at first but in the end her reasons for behaving like that make no sense. When she finally starts to demonstrate Martine she cares for her, she leaves her in the port accepting her desire to solve the problem by herself. Oh please, you're eleven! Shut up and just let granny call the police.
And yes, I do understand that for plot reason it would have been a boring end but at least she could have somewhat participated in the granddaughter's great finale. Instead she just goes back home, trusting that the white giraffe will take the child back to the game reserve.

Now, I'm fine with magic, fine with special powers but the story needs to be credible all the same and this one simply was not.

[Jesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ik wilde zo graag een giraffe, hier heb ik een boekbespreking over gehouden...

[Buchdoktor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Als Martine Allens Eltern bei einem Brand ums Leben kommen, erfährt sie zu ihrer Verblüffung, dass sie eine Großmutter in Südafrika hat, von der ihre Mutter ihr kein Wort verraten hat. Obwohl Lehrer und Nachbarn sich rührend um die Elfjährige kümmern, sieht sie sich abrupt in die Nähe von Kapstadt verpflanzt, wo Großmutter Gwyn das Wildreservat Sawubona betreibt. Gwyn Thomas war von Martines Mutter lange zuvor als Vormund eingesetzt worden. Gwyn wirkt auf das Mädchen streng und schroff, kein Wunder, dass Martine sich von ihr abgelehnt fühlt. Bei Gwyn gibt es kein Shoppen, kein Herumrennen im Haus und selbstverständlich soll Martine bei der Hausarbeit helfen, stellt die Großmutter klar. Eine Atempause ist nicht vorgesehen, der Unterricht an einer offenbar privaten Junior High School beginnt praktisch sofort.

Am Flughafen wurde Martine von Tendai abgeholt, einem großen, freundlichen Zulu der bei Gwyn als Ranger arbeitet. Tendai macht die fremde junge Engländerin mit seiner Tante Grace bekannt und stellt gleich klar, dass man im südlichen Afrika nicht alles wörtlich nehmen sollte, weil allerlei Legenden erzählt würden. Gwyn wiederum betont, dass sie keinen Kontakt zwischen Grace und ihrer Enkelin dulden wird. Warum Martine nichts über ihre Herkunft weiß, darüber wird im Haus Thomas ein Mantel des Schweigens gebreitet. Ihre Einführung ins Leben im Busch und in ihre Familiengeschichte erhält Martine u. a. von Tendai, der aus den nahegelegenen Drakensbergen stammt.

In ihrer neuen Schule entdeckt Martine, dass eine tonangebende Clique den Mitschüler Ben mobbt und dass ihre Britishness ebenfalls Ziel des Spotts sein wird. Dass weiße Südafrikaner innerhalb des Vielvölkerstaats Südafrika nur einen Teil ausmachen und britischstämmige Weiße davon wiederum nur einen Bruchteil, wird Martine bald lernen müssen. Tante Graces Andeutung, dass Martine über besondere Fähigkeiten verfügt, die mit dem Auftreten einer weißen Giraffe zusammenhängen, erweisen sich schon bald als Tatsache. Martine entdeckt ihre tiefe Verbundenheit zum jungen Giraffenbullen Jemmy, den sie schließlich gegen Wilderer verteidigen muss, die das Tier ins Ausland verschachern wollen.

In einem Kinderbuch müssen Zusammenhänge gestrafft werden, so dass die Handlung sich auf die Beziehung Martine/Jemmy, das Familiengeheimnis, die Schulsituation und die Bedrohung des Tiers durch Wilderer konzentriert. Vieles, das vor Ort offensichtlich wäre, entfällt, so dass die Konzentration auf so wenige Personen im Haus Thomas auf mich für das südliche Afrika teils unrealistisch wirkt.

Martines afrikanisches Abenteuer wird von einer allwissenden Erzählerstimme vermittelt, der Wissenstransfer, woher die von ihrer Herkunft völlig überrumpelte Martine ihr plötzliches Wissen über Afrika hat, war für mich nicht immer nachvollziehbar. Die Übersetzung ins Deutsche hat mich anfangs verwirrt, als der tiefschwarze, große, kräftige Tendai sich als Buschmann (= vom Volk der San) bezeichnete, ein Volk, dessen Vertreter ich als klein, schlank und zurückhaltend erlebt habe. Tendai juxte zu Anfang der Geschichte darüber, dass er sich natürlich auf dem Weg zum Flughafen verfahren hätte. Im Englischen wird er sich „man of the bush“ genannt haben, nicht bushman.

„Die weiße Giraffe“ ist auf Englisch 2006 erschienen, die erste deutsche Auflage 2008 bei Freies Geistesleben, 2010 die Taschenbuch-Ausgabe bei Gulliver/Beltz und Gelberg. Damals waren Ansprüche an Sensibilität gegenüber anderen Kulturen vermutlich noch geringer als heute. Dem Text mit einer Zielgruppe ab 12 würde ein kritischer Blick auf Übersetzung, die Beschreibung der farbigen Volksgruppen und den lokalen Wortschatz guttun. Ich würde mich im südlichen Afrika z. B. hüten, Jeep und Landrover synonym zu verwenden …

Als Einstiegsband einer Serie, die in mehreren Ländern des südlichen Afrika spielt, spricht mich die Thematik an, auch wenn ich die Darstellung für die Zielgruppe etwas zu kindlich finde.

[Jacqueline Kärcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Toller Anfang einer spannenden Reise eines jungen Mädchens auf der Suche nach Ihrer Bestimmung. Als ich jünger war habe ich die Geschichte von meiner Mama vorgelesen bekommen und mitgefiebert. Jetzt an dem schönen Schreibstil und einem Ausflug in die Magie der Tierliebe erfreut. Angenehm zu lesen und mitzuerleben, selbst für Einundzwanzigjährige.

[•Abby• · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book back when I was in sixth grade thanks to my wonderful teacher who had recommended it to me. I absolutely fell in love with this book and went on to read the second book and almost went through the third book. For some reason, I was just thinking back to all of my books I had read about three or four years ago and this one really stood out...now I am really wanting to reread this series 🤞😊

[Cherie · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I had read this book first, I may not have read the 2nd. I doubt if I will read the other two books in the series.

[Hailey Younger · Rating 5 out of 5]

For summer reading I read The White Giraffe by Lauren St. John. After a tragedy at her home in England which caused Martine is forced to move with her grandmother Gwyn Thomas who lives on a South African game reserve and whom she's never met before. Martine discovers a whole different living situation and almost a completely different world. When Martine arrives in Africa Tendi who is a worker in the dame reserve with Gwyn brings her to meet his aunt. While Martine and Tendi's aunt are talking Tendi's aunt tells Martine that she has a gift but ,Martine had no idea what she was talking about. When Martine is getting settled in and starting school she hears a village legend about the white giraffe which is said to leave footprints at night. When Martine asks her grandmother about the legend Gywn insists its nothing but a silly rumor. One night before going to bed Martine believes she sees the white giraffe and goes out into the game reserve to go look. While in the reserve Martine is almost bitten by a cobra and next finds herself with the white giraffe and she decides she will call it Jemmy. Later in the book Martine goes back to into the game reserve to find Jemmy while there she meets grace who is gifted at heeling. Martine find Jemmy hurt from the poachers and heels him with the medicine that Grace gave to her and Jemmy gives Martine and ride back home and you will have to read this book to found if they catch the poachers or not.

[krwawiśnia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jestem bardzo zaskoczona dojrzałością tej książki. Niesie ona ze sobą mnóstwo wartościowej treści, skłania do przemyśleń, które się zmieniają w zależności od wieku czytelnika. Bardzo się wciągnęłam i cieszę się, że ponownie na nią trafiłam. Mam wrażenie, że byłam na nią trochę zbyt wrażliwa w dzieciństwie, gdyż nie byłam w stanie wtedy przez nią przebrnąć. Teraz utożsamiam się z główną bohaterką bardziej niż kiedykolwiek i staram się ją traktować jako symbol przełamywania moich barier.

[Kayla Zabcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

85%

"People like to say that things come in threes, but the way Martine looked at it, that all depends on when you start counting and when you stop."

- frames the South African landscape beautifully, and lightly touches on Bushman culture. the author grew up in Zimbabwe, which definitely comes through in her writing as authenticity; the setting felt very alive and real

- it's the first in a series, but it stands alone just fine. I don't particularly enjoy series, so I appreciate that the story felt complete on its own with an open ending instead of a full-blown cliffhanger

"It was almost as if certain people in certain eras made their mark on a place so thoroughly that their spirit never left."

[NaDell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Martine's home burns down and she is sent to live in South Africa with her grandmother on a game reserve. Her grandma appears to not be excited to see her. Martine didn't even know she had a grandmother and especially not one who lived in Africa. She starts school there and tries to find friends. Her closest friend for a little while is the man who tends the animals in the game reserve who fills her in on some of the dangers there. There's a rumor that there is a white giraffe and she begins to see if she can find it and the adventure really gets going!
Good for ages 10+.

[Manar · Rating 4 out of 5]

القصة جميلة و مشوقه و لكنها تحتوي على كمية من الكأبه و الكثير من الحزن و الالم
و من ما جعلني ان اقول انها تحتوي على الكأبه و الالم فراق مارتين عن ابويها و الايام الاولى لها في افريقا (ساوبونا تحديداً ) ،و تعامل جدتها الصارمة ،و حارس المحميه ،و التهديد ،و الزرافة البيضاء
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
فالنتحدث عن الايجابيات من ما اعجبني في الكتاب علاقة مارتين مع بن و كيف كانت تدافع عنه عند تهجم عصابة النجوم الخمسه عليه ، و ايضاً المغامرات التي خاضتها مارتين مع اني كنت اشعر بالتوتر حيال ذلك و لكن مغامراتها تحتوي على المخاطرة و الحماس و الذي يدفعها لهذه المغامرات حبها الى الزرافة البيضاء ، و هناك اسرار فما هي الاسرار هل هي تتعلق بمارتن ؟ ام بالزرافه البيضاء ؟ ام بكلامها ؟
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
نهاية الكتاب سعيده جداً و تم اكتشاف الاسرار 😁

[T · Rating 5 out of 5]

Als Kind habe ich dieses Buch gelesen und viele Jahre immer wieder darüber nachgedacht & das Buch gesucht. Jetzt letztens habe ich es wieder gefunden und die Geschichte berührt und fesselt mich noch heute. Schöön

[Debbie Battaglino · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read. Beginning of what is sure to be a series that will keep kids reading. Interesting characters, quick paced storyline, African adventure, and a rare and mystical animal in peril. What could be more compelling!

[Becky Loader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah. We all need a White Giraffe in our lives.

[Erin Chappell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book as a kid so, when I saw it yesterday at a car boot sale, (along with the other books in the series that I didn’t get round to when I was younger) I thought it’d be nice to relive a small part of my childhood. I enjoyed it just as much as when I read it the first time. Can’t wait to read the next one

[Imogen Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite an alarming start but another fun book in the series!

[Dniemuth04 · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started out like a very uninteresting and quite depressing book just like my last book,"Rash." The first scene that I was introduced to was in Martine's dream which plays a vital role in what happened later in the book when she found out her healing powers. Her dream described her touching a goose with her hands; they were lighting up in a glow as she healed the goose to perfect health. When she awakened she was greeted by a heat wave from her house being on fire. Fortunately, she managed to escape out her window and her neighbors were there to help her through this rough time. She eventually finds out that she had a grandmother name Gwyn Thomas. When Martine heard that name for the first time she had a bad feeling. She was right when she saw her grandmother, she was bossy and laid down the rules. Gwyn never bought clothes unless absolutely necessary; she didn't waste money on really anything. Years past and Martine was a young woman and she was slowly getting promoted to be on the safari team. Her grandmother new the codes to the gate and Martine overheard the numbers, memorized them, and stealthily got through the main gates to search for the mystical white giraffe. Martine had her first glimpse of the white giraffe from her window on clear evening with a full moon. There were many poachers that wanted what's in the reserve, but luckily the patrol kept most out. While deep into her voyage she came across wounded animals that had been the result of poachers, and just as it was in her dream her hands burst out with a bright yellow light. After a bright harmless explosion of light the animals were healed. Martine believed that no one can see this creature except her. This was the result of the mystical bond her and the giraffe have. One evening after Jemmy, the giraffe, and Martine were comfortable with each others presences a few poachers spotted the white giraffe. They began chasing after her and Jemmy, she jumped on his back and became the first known ever human to ride a white giraffe. The stealthiness of the giraffe evaded the poachers. After they had returned to the secret cave she was introduced to Sangoma, a healer, she gave her a mixture of medicines that could be used to heal special problems. Poachers captured Jemmy and the race is on to save him at the docks. After meeting a boy her age named Ben they both went off looking for Jemmy. Ben discovered him injured in a cargo ship. Martine used her ability and healing medicine to get Jemmy to full strength. Then they rode back to game reserve safely.

There were many minor characters, the people that lived in the village, along with a few major characters. A few of the major characters were Martine and her parents. Later in the story there was a whole new set of characters that are joining the story. There is Gwyn Martine, new guardian, also her grandmother. More semi major characters were the game reserve workers which didn't know about Martine breaking through the front gates. Another huge character was the White Giraffe itself. Jemmy helped Martine find her inner strength and powers.

Most of the settings that took place was in the safari the south end of Africa where her grandmother lived. A short portion of the book took place in Martine's bedroom along with the sheriff's office, where she was held for a short while till they found her legal guardians. Jemmies secret cave, that can only be found In the dark by Jemmy, where another woman lived that helped heal wounded animals was a smaller portion of the book. This was the reason that she had not found out that their was a secret cave until later on in the book. The book took place during Martines early years of life, eight years old, to sixteen. The most influential time of her life.

Within this story the main theme was when things were going bad and you think everything was in the dumps, just remember that everything gets better in time. In this predicament a horrible tragedy happened to Martine's parents, but in return she had been sent away and discovered her true meaning in life. Without this tragedy she never would of found out her powers. She realized that even though she had lost her parents, she still had good meaning in the world and things to accomplish that not many can't say they can do.

I enjoyed reading the book because of the correct morals that are taught and how good always comes to those in need, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone our age. To me it is too predictable and childish in the sense of the events that take place.

[Andy Verschoyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lively adventure with an element of fantasy, language at right level, credible relationships and story well told. Only criticism is the slightly less credible rendering of the final stages - the story is rushed at the end but still a fun read.

[Garrett W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Garrett White p5-7

The White Giraffe August 18, 2012
By Lauren St.John
Fiction
181 pages

The White Giraffe is about a girl named Martine. She lives a happy life in England with her Mom and Dad. But one night everything is changed. Martine escapes a threatening house fire that takes the life of her parents. Now Martine has a big decision to make. Does she stay in England at an orphanage or go live in South Africa with her Grandmother she has never met? Martine decides to go live with her grandmother in South Africa. So Martine is shipped over seas to her new life. When she arrives in Africa, Martine is a little surprised. She never really new that Africa had many cities. Martine is transported to her final destination and her key to a fresh start. After living in Africa for some time, Martine is told about the White Giraffe. It is a mystical creature that wanders the game reserve. Martine quickly makes friends with the giraffe and one night the White Giraffe saves Martine from a large Cobra. Martine also saves the White Giraffe from poachers and after that they end with a nice easy life….. or not.


My thinking about the book: The White Giraffe is very positive. For one thing I give it four **** because it is a good book throughout the whole story. Ok, sure it is a little sad when the parents die. It’s also boring when all it talks about is Martine’s choice for a few pages, but overall it is a very interesting and fun book. When Martine’s house catches on fire, I felt scared. Martine was scared, but she was also very brave. Martine used her sheets and covers from her bed and tied them together to make a rope to slide down. I for one would be so scared that I would have probably just jumped out the window! If I survived and I found out that my parents were dead I would just be too sad and I probably wouldn’t be able to move on. I do not know how Martine did that. How did she move on in life? Another thing I wonder about is that how Martine did not freak out when she saw the White Giraffe for the first time. Ok yeah, I would be a little scared at first but I think I would be less scared when it didn’t hurt me. I really like this book and I strongly recommend it; so get reading!