Title: The Last Leopard
Author: Lauren St. John
Type: Fiction
Page Count/Review Word Count: 208
Rating: 8/10
Lauren St. John – The Last Leopard
At first, I wasn’t too sure what to make of this – I almost wanted to dislike it, but it rose through the ranks from a rating of 6/10 to a rating of 8/10 by the time I finished, and now I’m tempted to check out more of Lauren’s work.
See, Lauren’s books follow a young girl called Martine who lives on a wildlife resort in South Africa, a girl who has a special gift with animals and who rides around on the back of a white giraffe called Jemmy. At first, I could only pick up on the clichés that are sprinkled throughout the manuscript, as well as the occasional unlikely plot elements that made me unsuspend my disbelief.
But then I got drawn in by the characterisation and the rollicking story-line that doesn’t stop for a heartbeat. It turns out, this young adult novel has a lot to say on the subject of wildlife and animal rights, and I can get on-board with anything from an author like that, who’s changing the world for the better by showing our children how beautiful the natural world is.
Lauren St. John
