Deborah Thomas

This story was well written, and intriguing, with its setting in Dresden, Germany during World War II. To read of the relationship of the elephant ot her caretaker and what happened after she was brought home to live in the backyard garden, at night, was fascinating. Then when the Allies bombed Dresden, their only recourse was to run for their lives, with the elephant in tow. Seeing how they kept under cover, and made their way through farmlands and off the main road, after their food was gone was amazing. The author is outstanding in his ability to create interest, pace the story and make the story real and rich by supplying details about that time in history and the surrounding setting. It was too short; I wanted him to include narrative about what happened to Marlene, the elephant after she ran for her life as the tanks arrived, rumbling the ground. So the ending was a letdown, although Michael did tell us in his author's notes.