Bad Elephant Far Stream - Paperback

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by Samuel Hawley (Author)

Bad Elephant Far Stream is an elephant's life story, told from her own perspective, through her own eyes. Inspired by the true story of the elephant Topsy, it begins in the forests of Ceylon in the late 1860s with the capture of a baby elephant known to her own kind as Far Stream. She is taken to America in a ship and sent to the Adam Forepaugh Circus in Philadelphia. There, Far Stream embarks on a new life under the big top, appearing first as "Baby Annie," then, when she grows bigger, as "Topsy." She crisscrosses North America for thirty years with the circus, experiencing hardships, kidnapping, escapes and adventure. But when she comes to outweigh her keepers by a factor of forty-it's hard not to hurt somebody. It's hard not to be labeled as "bad."

What is it like to be an elephant in the circus? What does it think? What does it feel? What does it yearn for? Bad Elephant Far Stream takes the reader on a voyage of discovery to find out.

Praise for Bad Elephant Far Stream:
"This book has haunted me since I read it...Samuel Hawley really displays the magnificent brains, emotional depth (yes, emotional depth), and stunning strength of these amazing creatures." (Pamela Fagan Hutchins, author of the What Doesn't Kill You series)

"Meticulously researched and well told...an important story...One of the strengths of the Hawley's book is that it avoids a too-emotional approach, letting the facts of these elephants' lives speak for themselves. Another strength is the feel for the period described. One actually gets a sense of the language and values of the late 19th century....I urge people to read this book." (Stewart McFarlane, author of Of Mice and Zen: Animal Encounters in the Life of a Wandering Buddhist)

"Intriguing and haunting...Moving and thought-provoking...an intense and emotional novel. A highly recommended read." (Shalini's Book Reviews)

"Well researched, well written and compelling...gripping, heart felt, and filled with compassion." (Lynelle Clark, Aspired Writer)

"Far Stream captured my heart immediately...I enjoyed this book so much that I had to research the story further." (The Writers Lounge)

"This historically significant novel is one that will stick with me for a long while. It's a must read for those who enjoy this genre." (Pure Jonel: Bibliographic Ramblings of a Bookworm)

"I found myself having a hard time putting down the book as I wanted to find out what would happen next. Topsy's story was just that engrossing." (If It Has Words)

Author Biography

Samuel Hawley was born and grew up in South Korea, the son of missionary parents. After earning BA and MA degrees in history from Queen's University, he returned to East Asia to teach English for a year and ended up staying there for nearly two decades before retiring in Kingston, Ontario to become a full-time writer. He is the author of the nonfiction books Speed Duel: The Inside Story of the Land Speed Record in the Sixties, which received starred reviews in both Publishers Weekly and Library Journal; I Just Ran: Percy Williams, World's Fastest Human, named one of the five "Best Sports Books of 2011" by the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation); and the monumental The Imjin War, the most comprehensive account in English of Japan's sixteenth-century invasion of Korea and attempted conquest of China, hailed as "magnificent" by the South China Morning Post. Bad Elephant Far Stream is his first novel.

Number of Pages: 270

Dimensions: 0.61 x 9 x 6 IN

Publication Date: October 25, 2013