Elephant Run Book

In 1941, bombs drop from the night skies of London, demolishing the apartment Nick Freestone lives in with his mother. Deciding the situation in England is too unstable, Nick's mother sends him to live with his father in Burma, hoping he will be safer living on the family's teak plantation.

But as soon as Nick arrives, trouble erupts in this remote Burmese elephant village. Japanese soldiers invade, and Nick's father is taken prisoner. Nick is stranded on the plantation, forced to work as a servant to the new rulers. As life in the village grows more dangerous for Nick and his young friend, Mya, they plan their daring escape. Setting off on elephant back, they will risk their lives to save Nick's father and Mya's brother from a Japanese POW camp.

In this thrilling journey through the jungles of Burma, Roland Smith explores the far-reaching effects of World War II, while introducing readers to the fascinating world of wild timber elephants and their mahouts.

Children's Literature

Fourteen-year-old Nick Freestone is sent from London in 1941 by his mother to protect him from the German air raids. As he arrives in Burma to live with his father on the family teak plantation, he is thrust from one theatre of war directly into another. Though Nick had been eagerly anticipating the opportunity to reconnect with his father and learn about the management of the family plantation, particularly the elephants used to harvest the teak, this is not to be. Now safe from the German army, he and his father are taken prisoner by the Japanese army. Nick is kept on as slave labor at the plantation while his father is sent to a POW camp nearby. Maya, the beautiful sister of one the plantation elephant handlers is imprisoned at the plantation as well. Her beauty draws her unwanted attention and puts her in danger. As one of her captors escalates his advances towards her, Nicks father is becoming sicker and sicker in the POW camp. Nick and Maya decide they must escape. With the help of a local monk and one of the plantation elephants, Nick and Maya attempt to escape, taking Nicks father with them. This book provides a moving story of a boy s journey into manhood as well as an action-packed adventure that keeps the pages turning. It also provides a look at the innocent victims of war, the animals. The interactions between man and elephant in this book are fascinating. This is a great book to draw boys or reluctant readers into the realms of historical fiction. Reviewer: Caroline B. Hopenwasser