Rise of the Lioness: Restoring a Habitat and its Pride on the Liuwa Plains by Bradley Hague [Review & Giveaway]

ISBN13: 9781426325328

About the book: Poaching and war damaged an isolated wilderness in West Zambia, reducing its lion population to just one: Lady, the last lioness. Witness Lady's fight for survival in this evocative narrative on the decline, fall, and rebirth of the Liuwa Plains. Follow Lady as she grapples with a landscape altered by human hands and discover how both Lady and humankind restore balance to the environment.

More than a story about one brave lion, The Lioness offers a great introduction to life science by looking at the workings of an ecosystem, the methods of scientists and environmentalists, and explaining the interconnection between the plant, animal, and human systems.

My thoughts: National Geographic has always been on the cutting edge of presenting quality, beautifully professional articles brimming with easily readable information about the world in which we live. A thriving, beautiful, rich and glorious world and yet a world endangered by a variety of threats to that which makes it so wonderful. In Rise of the Lioness National Geographic focuses on the loss of the thriving ecosystem of the Liuwa Plains in the southern part of Africa and how the Lion population had been reduced to one lioness.

I found it interesting that as early as the 1800s the African ruler of the area had protective rules in place to preserve the land and the animals. I also found it interesting that the blame for the decline of this area was not relegated solely to wealthy safari hunters. Grass burning, grazing farm animals competing with wild herds, war, and hunting all played a part in wrecking the land and toppling the ecological balance. So that leads us to the star of the book...... "Lady" the sole surviving lioness.

The reintroduction of lions (top of the chain of ecological balance) into the area began the restoration process and today the system is recovering nicely. This took a great amount of effort, cooperation, and diligence to make it work.

The text of Rise of the Lioness is very well written and easily understandable by school age children yet also contains information that makes for fascinating reading for adults as well. At the back of the book there are several pages with bits of information that really add to the research and educational value of the book: "Animals of the Liuwa Plaisn," a Glossary, and an Index.

I highly recommend this book for school and public libraries, home schools, and classroom shelves. A truely valuable teaching tool.

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DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy to facilitate this review. Opinions are my own alone and I was not compensated.