An Elephant in the Garden

by Michael Morpurgo

Overview

Lizzie and Karl's mother is a zoo keeper; the family has become attached to an orphaned elephant named Marlene, who will be destroyed as a precautionary measure so she and the other animals don't run wild should the zoo be hit by bombs. The family persuades the zoo director to let Marlene stay in their garden instead. When the city is bombed, the family flees with thousands of others, but how can they walk the same route when they have an elephant in tow, and keep themselves safe? Along the way, they meet Peter, a Canadian navigator who risks his own capture to save the family.

As Michael Morpurgo writes in an author's note, An Elephant in the Garden is inspired by historical truths, and by his admiration for elephants, "the noblest and wisest and most sensitive of all creatures." Here is a story that brings together an unlikely group of survivors whose faith in kindness and love proves the best weapon of all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781466804456
Publisher:	Feiwel & Friends
Publication date:	10/25/2011
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	95,446
Lexile:	890L (what's this?)
File size:	165 KB
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Sir Michael Morpurgo, Order of the British Empire, is one of the world's most acclaimed authors for children. His middle grade novel, War Horse, debuted on Broadway in 2011, and is being adapted for film by Stephen Spielberg.

Michael Morpurgo is the author of more than fifty books for children, including An Elephant in the Garden, Shadow, A Medal for Leroy, and Listen to the Moon. He is also the author of the New York Times bestseller War Horse, which debuted on Broadway and also became a film by Steven Spielberg. He has had several of his novels adapted for film and television.

Editorial Reviews

Inspired by a true story about an elephant rescued from a Belfast zoo during WWII, acclaimed British author Morpurgo (War Horse) pens a historical novel about a German family's struggle to survive as their country is torn apart. The story within a story begins with Lizzie, an aging woman in a Canadian nursing home, telling her nurse and her nurse's nine-year-old son, Karl, that she had an elephant in her garden when she was a child. In 1945 Dresden, 16-year-old Lizzie's father is serving in the war, and her zookeeper mother decides to save an elephant named Marlene from the mercy killings exacted on other animals prior to the anticipated bombings. Marlene lives in their garden, walks on leashes, and stuns neighbors until the devastating bombing of Dresden forces Lizzie, her mother, and brother on an even more surprising journey across Germany seeking safety. Morpurgo crafts a thought-provoking and perilous encounter with an enemy combatant who joins their party and eventually forges a believable romance with Lizzie. The novel's clean prose delivers a gripping and unconventional perspective on the tumultuous era. Ages 10–14. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Young Lizzie's story (differentiated from the framing tale by typeface change) is quick-paced and moving, and her teenage viewpoint is believable…” —BCCB

“Morpurgo crafts a thought-provoking and perilous encounter with an enemy combatant who joins their party and eventually forges a believable romance with Lizzie.” —Publishers Weekly

“Readers . . . can't help but be drawn into the tale of survival told in An Elephant in the Garden, which is loosely based on a real event from World War II.” —BookPage

“The calm, steady tone is engaging, appropriate, and will appeal to a wide range of readers.” —VOYA

“The occasional interruptions to the story build suspense and add a layer of resonance to Morpurgo's poignant and thoughtful exploration of the terrible impact of war on both sides of the fighting.” —Booklist

“This well-paced, heartwarming narrative by a master storyteller will appeal to readers on several levels…” —School Library Journal

“Morpurgo's (Kensuke's Kingdom) suspenseful, ultimately tragic novel opens as 18-year-old Tommo Peaceful stays up all night ‘to try to remember everything.' ... This is a moving depiction of a loving relationship between two brothers, their lives so linked that readers may wonder until the end whose fate lies in the balance. All in all, a powerful story about war's costs, and who pays the price.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review of Private Peaceful

“This searing World War I novel reveals the unspeakable slaughter of soldiers on all sides fighting against people who are just like them...the viewpoint brings close the fury of the thundering guns, the confusion, and the kindness of enemies who come together in No Man's Land to save the wounded horse.... and the terse details speak eloquently about peace.” —Booklist for War Horse

From the Publisher

Gr 5–9—The poignant recollections of 82-year-old Lizzie capture the imaginations of her listeners, a nurse and her young son, who sit in rapt attention by her nursing-home bedside. Lizzie's engaging story is seamlessly laced with historical facts about the February 1945 bombing of Dresden, zoo directives to euthanize the animals during bombings, and the desperate plight of defeated Germans caught between advancing Russian and Allied forces. Lizzie's family included her exuberant younger brother; her compassionate mother, a zookeeper for elephants; and her absentee father, who was conscripted into the German army. When the Allied forces began the infamous firebombing of Dresden, the family and her mother's beloved elephant, Marlene, fled. Joining a wave of fellow refugees, they survived, thanks to chance encounters with a downed Allied navigator whom they secretly "adopted" as a family member, and with a countess who provided a safe house for anyone in need. After the war Lizzie's parents and Lizzie and her beloved navigator were reunited. Twenty years later, Lizzie "found" Marlene performing in a traveling French circus. The elephant had not forgotten her wartime companion. This well-paced, heartwarming narrative by a master storyteller will appeal to readers on several levels-as a tale of adventure and suspense, as a commentary on human trauma and animal welfare during war, as a perspective on the hardships facing the German people in the final months of World War II, and as a tribute to the rich memories and experiences of an older generation.—Gerry Larson, Durham School of the Arts, NC

School Library Journal