Martine has lost both her parents in a tragic fire and is sent to live with her grandmother on a wildlife reserve in Africa. Life is much different than it was in England and Martine feels lonely and afraid, especially since her grandmother has made it clear she isn't pleased Martine is living with her.
Late one night she sees the impossible: a white giraffe. She sneaks out to meet the animal and becomes friends with him. Encounters with injured animals show Martine that she has a special power to heal those animals, a gift. When her classmates see her gift, they suspect her of being a witch.
I thought this was a neat story, and the illustrations are beautiful. As a mother, the amount of sneaking out and danger that 11-year-old Martine encounters bothered me, but I don't think it would be too scary for kids. There's also a woman that reads bones to predict the future, so that might bother some people.
The book is recommended for ages 8-12, and I think that's pretty spot on. For a kid's book, this was a decent length, 180 pages. Some of the animals mentioned I'm not sure that age group would be able to identify, but it's a well written book. There are 3 other books in the series: Dolphin Song, The Last Leopard and The Elephant's Tale.
For my first book recommended by my kids, this one is a thumb's up!
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