Manzovo, Place of the Elephants
A beautiful, astonishing 107-verse poem …
Nestled like a rare jewel in the inhospitable but alluring Zambezi Valley, Mana Pools provides the early setting for the episodic story of Manzovo - place of the elephants.
Thandi, now at the height of her prime, is the astute and respected matriarchal head of a herd of elephants. She gives birth to Lesedi - the last of her five calves - and thus begins their sweeping journey through the bushveld and across the open vistas of southern Africa.
While the herd has to deal with their brushes with predators, farmers, poachers and culling gangs alike, their odyssey across southern Africa also embraces some of the cultures, natural wonders and landmarks that give character to this region. So too are described encounters with some of the floral and faunal species unique to this part of the continent.
The story portrays their epic travels through these parts at a time in our past when elephants were able to range, with relative ease, across the timeless plains of Africa. Both subtle and compelling, the story weaves in the arcane rhythm that pounds like a tribal drum deep in Africa’s chest.
Gary Albyn was born in the old Rhodesia in 1960 and grew up in Umtali on the eastern border with Mozambique. An avid outdoorsman, he quickly developed a keen appreciation for the beauty and allure of the African bush - a passion that endures to this day. Upon leaving school he managed to satisfy one of his other passions - aviation - by gaining admission onto one of the Air Force’s exacting trainee pilot programmes. With the advent of Zimbabwe, and bigger prospects beckoning, he adopted South Africa as his new home in the early 1980s. Soon after graduating in civil engineering he moved into the corporate sphere and so began a successful career in the industrial sector. With a personal philosophy that values life balance - and an adventurous spirit in constant need of assuagement - Gary shares his time between family, career, staying fit, private flying, travelling, responsible 4x4 off-roading, research, sketching and writing.
The International Library of Poets® has honoured some of Gary’s previous poems, one of which was recently featured in a published anthology, Forever Spoken.
He lives in Johannesburg with his wife Paula and two children, Adam and Paige.
Craig Bone was born in Salisbury, Rhodesia in 1955, where he grew up. He joined the Rhodesian Light Infantry in 1977. He was critically wounded in Frelimo mortar attack while on operations in Mozambique and it was only because of some desperate flying from the casualty-evacuation helicopter pilot that saved his life. While recuperating he started painting, initially military-themed works, and in a short time he was to be recognized as an artist of some repute. With his passion for wildlife, and the Zambezi Valley, he was to become an internationally acclaimed artist with his paintings being sold worldwide. A painting of his was recently auctioned on behalf of the Vietnam Veterans’ Association and fetched $106,000 - it now hangs in the Pentagon. He lives in Florida, USA but still manages to spend several months of the year in the Zambezi Valley. www.craigbone.com
Selling points:
• Includes a DVD of the recited poem by John Whiteley, a South African Shakespearian actor.
• Unique, beautiful coffee-table book - rarely do such books include poetry
• Artwork by world-renowned artist Craig Bone
• Ideal gift book to adorn any living room or corporate reception
• Manzovo will bring attention to the plight of Africa’s diminishing herds.
• Author invited by the International Society of Poets to their annual convention in Las Vegas from 24th July 2008. He was recently advised that their forthcoming anthology, The Best Poems and Poets of 2007, will feature one of my poems, Father Time. He will get an opportunity to recite this poem and, along with the other contestants, will have my work adjudicated by a panel of experts led by a Pulitzer prize winning poet.
Market:
• Lovers of wildlife and Africa
• Tourists and travellers - hotels, airports, travel expos
• Corporates, NGOs, relevant civil departments
Manzovo
Place of the Elephants
~Awakening~
Veiled through the mists of a new born day
A fiery disc in the east arising
Birds astir in the branches above
Greet the sun as it strikes the horizon
A river runs her ancient course
As Africa sheds its cape
The filtered rays dig through the gloom
Filmy outlines taking shape
It’s a grueling day for predator and prey
In this unfolding African drama
As the land awakens ‘tween river and scarp
In the valley of Zambezi’s Mana
Great Zambezi – serpent of jade
Flowing east through Mana Pools
Hollows swell when the river floods
Like quilts with embroidered jewels
Echoing faintly off distant cliffs
A fish eagle’s cry is trilled
The morn is cleaved by his strident call
Africa’s essence distilled
The sight of a leopard’s sinuous blur
Spreads gossip amongst resting vervets
She pays no heed to the chattering troop
Restoring calm amidst the nervous
MANZOVO - Place of the Elephants
Gary Albyn with Craig Bone
(includes audio CD of the recited poem)
9781920143220
Coffee-table: Hard back (with dustjacket)
210 x 297mm (landscape)
192 pages
Approx 200 colour paintings & illustrations, maps
R395.00
Poetry / Wildlife /Art
August 2008
Kerrin Cocks
30° South Publishers
Tel: 011 673 2218
Fax: 011 673 6452
www.30degreessouth.co.za
Article at: http://www.artzone.co.za/template_level2.asp?parentseq=5622
