Under the Camelthorn Tree cover art

Under the Camelthorn Tree

The Impact of Trauma on One Family

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Under the Camelthorn Tree

By: Kate Nicholls
Narrated by: Kate Nicholls
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About this listen

Kate Nicholls left England to raise her five children in Botswana: an experience that would change each of their lives. Living on a shoestring in a lion conservation camp, Kate home-schools her family while they also learn at firsthand about the individual lives of wild lions. Their deep attachment to these magnificent animals is palpable.

The setting is exotic, but it is also precarious. When the author is subjected to a brutal attack by three men, it threatens to destroy her and her family: post-traumatic stress turns a good mother into a woman who is fragmented and out of control.

In this powerfully written, raw and often warmly funny memoir, we witness the devastation of living with a mother whose resilience is almost broken and how familial structures shift as the children mature and roles change. Under the Camelthorn Tree addresses head-on the many issues surrounding motherhood, education, independence and the natural world and highlights the long-lasting effect of gender violence on secondary victims. Above all, it is an inspiring account of family love and a powerful beacon of hope for life after trauma.

©2019 Kate Nicholls (P)2019 Orion Publishing Group Africa Environmentalists & Naturalists Professionals & Academics Women Funny Memoir

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Critic reviews

"A wonderfully rich and honest memoir of an extraordinary life by an extraordinary person. A book that somehow manages to be both charming and challenging, a bit like Africa herself. The writing is as light as a sonnet but it is the honesty that anchors it to reality - a special book." (Tim Butcher)

"Under the Camelthorn Tree is remarkable, wild as a pride of lions - heartbreaking, relentlessly truthful, funny. Kate Nicholls steps into life's beauties and hardships with a rare and extraordinary courage: you will love this book, and love Kate too." (Erica Wagner, Harper's Bazaar)

"This book deserves great success." (Richard Dawkins)
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This is a compelling listen. There’s difficult bits made more difficult by the unflinching honesty of the author/narrator. WHAT a woman though, WHAT a mother, a teacher, an enthusiast, a free thinker. So much character she intimidates us all, I fear.

The story of her adored kids is one thread, a few generations of lions is another, her careers as NGO counsellor/activist volunteer, home teacher, biologist, mother and lover, are all richly drawn.

I heard her interviewed and worried I wouldn’t warm to her and her projects, but I did. And with robust support for her integrity, honesty, fallability and courage.

Kate you are a leg end - I’ve LOVED the journey you’ve taken me on and you’ve enthused me with all you enthusiasms!

Fascinating. A total home schooling & independent thinking African family adventure advert.

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An amazing personal dissection of self criticism and self appraisal within a beautiful story of family, deep love, risk, intellect, motherhood, adventure, tragedy and subsequent survival…and an intuitive connection to our animal selves. I felt a really interesting, slightly shocking parallel between some of the lion studies and the first horrific personal tragedy…I hope that that doesn’t sound offensive, it doesn’t to me because my main fascination in life is our inherent animal instincts and behaviour but would apologise to anyone that might be offended…

If you love Africa and courage, and family and lions and perhaps struggle with inner demons, listen to this wonderful book…particularly as it is wonderfully personally narrated

a beautiful story of deep love…

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We couldn't finish this book. Having read glowing reviews of the paper version, we were expecting something special but it was really awful. The author chose to narrate it herself - which was a big mistake. Her voice was scratchy with very repetetive speech patterns. The whole story is about someone so selfish, self centred and self absorbed, that she seems to have no realisation that how she treats her family and friends is appalling. Writing it may have been cathartic for her, but personally I'd have been too ashamed to reveal it to the world.

A dreary, miserable book.

Dreary, miserable story of a self absorbed mother

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