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BETWEEN THE SUNLIGHT AND THE THUNDER: The Wild Life of Kenya by Noel Simon

BETWEEN THE SUNLIGHT AND THE THUNDER: The Wild Life of Kenya

By

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin

Following close upon Joy Adamson's most recent plea (Forever Free, p. 76, 1963), for wild life conservation in East Africa, this eloquently bolsters her argument. Noel Simon sees such conservation as a world problem, not a local one. The Africans themselves are doing away with animals as fast as possible, because the animals remind them of their past while they are now on the verge of civilized self-government. It does no good to point out the cultural, esthetic and tourist values of the wild animals--the Africans see them quite differently. They want to revamp their land as a suitable place for domestic livestock, since they cannot find mineral deposits anywhere. Closely related to declining wild life are soil deterioration, water shortage and forest destruction, all sticks in the same bundle. ""The concept of preservation is a fading ideal...no longer in tune with events...wild animals can be considered useful only if they can be used..."" The establishment of national preserves is suggested, with large buffer zones, and research into conservation of the habitat. Noel Simon conveys the wonder of wild nature and his love of the creatures he writes of is a marvelous hinge that opens new doors of insight. Even without Elsa, the appeal is effective.