The Bushbabies
Cover of The Bushbabies
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| Author | William Stevenson |
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| Illustrator | Victor Ambrus |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Houghton Mifflin Co. |
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Publication date
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1965 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover) |
| Pages | 278 pp (first edition) |
| OCLC | 230064 |
| LC Class | PZ7.S84853 Bu FT MEADE |
The Bushbabies is a children's novel by Canadian author William Stevenson published in 1965. The book was inspired by Stevenson's own life in Kenya, where his daughter Jackie, to whom the book is dedicated, kept a bushbaby named Kamau as a pet. The fictional aspects of the novel involve Jacqueline "Jackie" Rhodes and her father's African servant Tembo escaping across the wilderness from a pack of man-hunters who have been led to believe that Tembo has kidnapped Jackie. The book features illustrations by Victor Ambrus.
The novel has had two major adaptations, a theatrical motion picture from MGM in 1969 and an animated series from Japan's Nippon Animation in 1992.
Jackie Rhodes is the daughter of a respected gamekeeper, known as "Trapper" Rhodes, in Kenya. She has lived there all of her life, so she is astounded and saddened when she learns from Tembo, her father's African servant, that her family will soon be abandoning the continent. Her biggest concern immediately becomes her pet bushbaby Kamau, which had been a Christmas gift from her father; she fears the creature is too young to fend for itself and will perish if left behind. During a family picnic, Trapper Rhodes comforts Jackie by assuring her that he'll obtain an official export permit that will allow her to take the bushbaby along.
When the time comes for their departure, Jackie realizes that she has lost the export permit and grows very concerned. She learns from a steward that the ship's captain is not fond of animals, which makes matters worse. She realizes she cannot possibly hide Kamau as a stowaway or face export officials upon arrival. As her family sleeps, she abandons the ship hoping to set Kamau lose in the docks of Mombasa. Thoughts of the bushbaby's many natural predators immediately make Jackie have a change of heart and decide that Kamau must be returned to his natural habitat if he's to have a chance at survival. Jackie is horror-stricken when she realizes the ship has set sail leaving her and Kamau behind. She is comforted by the sound of a harmonica, realizing that it is being played by Tembo. She explains the situation to him and asks for his help. The African, moved by his loyalty to the Rhodes and a desire to be of service, unenthusiastically agrees to do so.
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