Wildlife, Murram and Bush: A Family Adventure

Wildlife, Murram and Bush is the story of Brian Dawtrey and his wife, Jo, both farm managers, and their three children, Caroline, Richard and Philip, who in 1962 leave their comfortable life in Norfolk for Tanganyika in the Dark Continent of Africa. His dream is to teach the Africans how to improve and maximise their natural resources. The government of Tanganyika accepts his request to work on the promotion of African food production and wildlife conservation schemes. It's a wonderful dream, but how could he prepare himself for such a daunting task? He takes us on an amazing adventure that is the start of 25 years' service. This is, above all, a family story, which is told with great compassion. The family have left behind a comfortable life in Norfolk for a precarious and uncertain one in Tanganyika. Everything is strange; nothing is easy and Brian is often overwhelmed by the many risks he is exposing his family to. At times the difficulties seem insurmountable. We empathise with the children too as they try to adapt to a different lifestyle. But despite the difficulties we are left with their feeling of excitement for all the new things that they are experiencing; a different culture, different people, animals and wildlife. Brian's light-hearted narrative which exudes enthusiasm and wit drives the story forward and shows how the family's excitement for their new life transcends the difficulties. He takes us on a roller-coaster ride to a part of the world that we hear little about firsthand. We empathise with the family's challenges and joys from the start, together with their genuine affection towards the African people and their real desire to improve their living. Wildlife, Murram and Bush is the true story of a loving family who sacrifice their own stability to help the people of Tanganyika create a better future for themselves. It shows how love, whether within the family or in the world at large, creates u