There are things within us beyond our understanding which have been and still are forces of nature. There are active parts of our brain working yet no one really knows why and what they are doing. We know that the body compensates in its own way for a loss of sense. Blindness can sometimes be offset by enhanced hearing, touch, taste or smell. Autistic people who often find it hard to socialise and relate to others have produced some startling abilities. How do we explain photographic memory, total recall and speed-reading, not forgetting a whole range of psychic aptitude? Does science end as we know it, or does it? This is a story about such a person who has an ability to communicate with animals and the awakening of special gifts that we may all have inside us.
Nic Carey was born in Wokingham, Berkshire, in 1952 but spent his formative years in Paignton, Devon, before going to Manchester University and qualifying as an architect. Having spent 12 years in Canada, he is now retired and lives in Gozo with his wife, Dolores, and their three dogs. He is a member of the Rotary Club of Gozo and active in the community, particularly with the elderly and disabled. Nic has a daughter who is an interior designer and a nephew who is an author in Bogota, Colombia.
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Reviews
6 reviews
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What an amazing book. Great story; great characters by a wonderful storyteller. I could not put it down and all done with humour.
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Bought this for a Xmas present. Made a mistake; started reading it and could not stop. Keeping it. Going to buy her something else.
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We really enjoyed the story, however such a sad ending. The characters and scenes were well described and peppered with Nic's humour throughout. One can hear Nic's voice reading the book to us.
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I read swiftly through chapters 1, 2 and 3 keen to go on to 4 but the synopsis in my e copy was too full and as I knew the ending from it although enjoyable I was not compelled to read on.
The story is undoubtedly a good one and the prose allow an easy and fluid read but why give so much away in the front of the book?
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Far from being a book for children, this novel is an absorbing adult tale of what happened when a large zoo is infiltrated by a boy who, although he cannot speak to humans, is able to communicate perfectly with all the animals, who clearly love him, and obey his requests. We are also fascinated by the large cast of different characters on the staff of the zoo who not only have to come to terms with this amazing character, but also have to interact with each other. The tale is spiced with jealousy, romance, sexual attraction and moments of suspense.
Eventually, the title character is abducted by some weird moor-dwellers and searched for by people with astonishing psychic abilities.
I finished reading this book, somehow feeling enriched, and moved by a heightened awareness that there are things within us beyond our understanding which are indeed forces of nature.
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Melissa Espenschied - Night Reader Reviews
The Boy Who Talks To Animals by Nic Carey is a hard book to describe. The best way I can come up with is to offer a quote from the book:
“Where does legend end and reality begin? Perhaps all reality has root in legend and the two are intertwined.” - Professor Lofthouse page 140
Ben has worked at the zoo for years and had always wanted to be a zookeeper ever since he was a child. He loves animals and has dedicated his life to their care and happiness. Sometimes this means going into work super early and at times staying all night long. One night he started to notice strange things happening at the zoo restaurant, making him believe someone is breaking in and getting into the food. Concerned about the security of the zoo and the safety of not only the animals but also for the person breaking in, Ben sets a trap and waits to see who it is.
Much to Ben’s surprise, the culprit is a young boy about twelve years old. This boy appears to be a runaway and has been getting his food from the zoo for quite a while now. Slowly Ben befriends the boy and discovers something odd and wondrous about him. While this boy either can’t or won’t talk to people, he can talk to animals. All the animals in the zoo love this boy, even the most dangerous ones consider him to be one of their own. The people that spend a lot of time around the boy also start to notice some changes within themselves. Now all Be can hope for is that the zoo can offer this special boy the shelter, protection, love, and life that he deserves.
What I liked best was the Professor's description of hidden skills and his explanation of Autism was one of the best I have ever heard. He suggests that our ancestors had abilities like the boy in the story but since we lost our connection with the planet we lost those abilities. At times that extra chromosome shows up, giving a person access to these ancient abilities, but they must give up something else such as the ability to speak in order to access it.
Content-wise this book is safe for just about anyone to read.
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