The Mourning Parade

The Mourning Parade by Dawn Reno Langley   350 pages

I was lucky enough to win a copy if this heartbreaking and hopeful novel in a contest from Amberjack Publishing. I entered based on its title and cover art without knowing what it was really about.

Set in contemporary time, Natalie has thriving veterinarian clinic in North Carolina, specializing in horses. Life’s been rough. Real rough. Although it’s not a major plot point, it’s important that the reader know that her husband, Parker, walked out on her and their two sons. No more contact; only silence.

Then the crushing blow hits. Both, yes both, of Natalie’s sons are killed in a school shooting. Hats off to author Langely for not going into gory details about the event. Natalie can’t eat, can’t sleep, can barely function. Parker didn’t even bother to come to his sons’ funeral. The first-year anniversary is swiftly approaching. Natalie isn’t sure that she can handle it.

At a veterinarian conference, Natalie hears Andrew Graham talk about his work at an elephant sanctuary in Thailand. Against her parents’ advice, Natalie volunteers to spend a year at the sanctuary.

Trouble begins almost the moment she arrives. The head vet, Dr. Peter Hatcher, hates her the moment he lays eyes on her. Although she suffers from PTSD, Natalie stays strong and pushes forward. As she is learning her way around she is drawn to a large female, Sophie.

Sophie also suffers from PTSD and has a nasty, nasty leg wound that won’t seem to heal. When Sophie injures one of the compounds many dogs, Hatcher wants to put her down. But Natalie interferes, talking with Andrew about some rehab methods she has used back in the States.

Hatcher tries to sabotage her efforts, but Natalie refuses to buckle under. Instead the Natalie and Sophie become BFFs. But grab a hankie, if the ending wasn’t so hopeful, it would be too hard.

I learned a lot about elephants: their spines aren’t designed to carry a lot of weight, their foot pads are super sensitive, and their eating habits. Sophie does love to eat!

I loved The Mourning Parade, and it receives 6 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Last Chain On Billie

Last Chain on Billie: How One Extraordinary Elephant Escaped the Big Top by Carol Bradley
320 Pages

Summary

"Against the backdrop of a glittering but brutal circus world, Carol Bradley's Last Chain on Billie charts the history of elephants in America, the inspiring story of the Elephant Sanctuary and the spellbinding tale of a resilient elephant who defied the system even as she struggled to conquer her past, who never lost sight of the life she was meant to have. Left in the wild, Billie the elephant would have spent her days surrounded by family, free to wander the jungles of Asia. Instead, traders captured her as a baby and shipped her to America, where she learned to carry humans, stand on a tub and balance on one leg - the full repertoire of elephant tricks. For decades, Billie crisscrossed the country, dazzling audiences as she performed breathtaking stunts. But behind the scenes she lived a life of misery: traveling in trucks, chained for hours on end, barely able to move, giving eight-minute performances under harsh lights and to the sounds of blaring music. And worse. Finally, she got a lucky break. As part of the largest elephant rescue in American history, Billie wound up at a sanctuary for performing elephants in Tennessee, able once more to roam through open meadows and share her days with a herd. She would never be beaten again. But, overcome with anxiety, she withdrew from the rest of the elephants and refused to let anyone remove a chain still clamped around her leg. Her caregivers began to wonder if Billie could ever escape her emotional wounds. The compelling story of Billie's battle to reclaim her old self is a testament to the intelligence, emotional complexity and remarkable strength of all elephants, captive or free."

The book is less about Billie and more about all elephants in captivity both in circuses and in zoos.  Each chapter tells the story of Billie followed by a section recounting the history of elephants in America and in circuses.  The book was actually hard to read at times because of the sheer cruelty places upon elephants which studies have shown to have complex and long-reaching family structures.  

Leaving Time

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult, 405 pages

This story is told from several different points of view, but mostly from Jenna, a thirteen year old girl, who has been living with her grandmother for the past decade.  When Jenna was three, a terrible accident happened on the elephant sanctuary where her parents worked and they all lived.  One of their colleagues was killed, Jenna’s mom, Alice, went missing, and Jenna’s father ended up in psychiatric facility.  Jenna enlists the help of the detective from the original case and a psychic to find her mom.  She has never wanted to believe that her mom willingly abandoned her but also doesn’t want to believe that her mom is dead.  We hear Alice’s story prior to that night from Alice’s point of view and we also get some of the story from the detective and the psychic.  Although there is not a lot of action, this is a compelling story with an ending that completely surprised me.  I would highly recommend this to people who like mysteries or family stories with a little paranormal thrown in.