When
putting books on hold at my library, I often choose them on a whim. The cover,
the title, even the font on the spine may induce me to put a book on hold. It’s
an adventurous feeling, not really knowing much about a book before reading it.
And
it makes for some odd “Why did I put this on hold, again?” reactions when the
book finally comes in (often months later) and my confused expression makes the
desk librarian wonder whether she gave me the right thing.
Some
libraries sponsor an event called a “blind date with a book” where they cover
random books with brown paper so you can’t tell anything about them (apart from
the size) until you check them out and start reading.
My method is more
like internet dating. I saw the book’s profile pic and name and decided I’d
like to meet it in person.
No Beast So
Fierce
by Dane Huckelbridge was just such a book. The cover has a cool tiger photo,
and the title intrigued me. I don’t think I saw the smaller words under the
title (they were too small to see on the thumbnail in the library’s online
catalog), so I didn’t know until I had the book in my hands that I saw the
book was subtitled The Terrifying True
Story of the Champawat Tiger, the Deadliest Animal in History.
Wow.
What
had I gotten myself into?
Admittedly
it took me awhile to work up the courage to start reading this book. When I
did, however, I was totally riveted by the dramatic story of a tiger that,
against its natural instincts, began to routinely hunt human prey. After nearly
ten years and over 400 estimated victims, an unlikely hunter is commissioned to
stop the menace in the person of Jim Corbett. Ranging from the Himalayas to the
British Raj, and incorporating fascinating information from researchers and
historians as well as commentary on the plight of this beautiful and endangered
animal, Huckelbridge’s book is a consistent thrill.
Years
ago, when I was teaching a children’s class at my church, a boy raised his hand
as we were gathering prayer requests. He wanted us to pray for the endangered
tigers to find lots of villagers to eat. When I explained to him that humans
are not tigers’ natural prey—maybe some nice deer or antelope or something?—he
looked downright disappointed.
I
have the feeling he would like this book immensely.
Hi- I just came across your blog! I think I would like this book- I have read two written by Jim Corbett himself, Man-Eaters of Kumaon and The Man-Eating Leopard of Rudraprayag. I'm pretty sure he has written an account about the tiger of Champawat also, but I haven't found it yet. His writing is kind of dry, though. This is probably a more engaging read.
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