West with Giraffes: A Novel

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars | 99,901 ratings

Price: 21.88

Last update: 12-24-2024


About this item

An emotional, rousing novel inspired by the incredible true story of two giraffes who made headlines and won the hearts of Depression-era America.

“Few true friends have I known and two were giraffes…”

Woodrow Wilson Nickel, age 105, feels his life ebbing away. But when he learns giraffes are going extinct, he finds himself recalling the unforgettable experience he cannot take to his grave.

It’s 1938. The Great Depression lingers. Hitler is threatening Europe, and world-weary Americans long for wonder. They find it in two giraffes who miraculously survive a hurricane while crossing the Atlantic. What follows is a twelve-day road trip in a custom truck to deliver Southern California’s first giraffes to the San Diego Zoo. Behind the wheel is the young Dust Bowl rowdy Woodrow. Inspired by true events, the tale weaves real-life figures with fictional ones, including the world’s first female zoo director, a crusty old man with a past, a young female photographer with a secret, and assorted reprobates as spotty as the giraffes.

Part adventure, part historical saga, and part coming-of-age love story, West with Giraffes explores what it means to be changed by the grace of animals, the kindness of strangers, the passing of time, and a story told before it’s too late.


Top reviews from the United States

  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous adventure, well told.
    Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2024
    I truly loved this book with its quirky style and high adventure with giraffes who became more and more lovable, page by page. This great travel adventure held my rapt attention and filled me with wonder. Such vivid images and great story telling.
  • Billy Bowlegs
    5.0 out of 5 stars What a Story!
    Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2024
    In 1938, New York was hit by a rare hurricane of the size that wasn’t seen again until Hurricane Sandy not long ago. But in 1938 weather forecasting was almost non-existent and it took the city by surprise.  Also taken by surprise was a ship entering the harbor with two massive crates on deck, crates too large to fit in the hold, crates that each held a young giraffe. Miraculously, the giraffes survived even as their crates were partially shattered and one received a severe leg wound. The giraffes were to be trucked across America to the San Diego Zoo, at a time long before any Interstate system was even dreamed of and when highways were relatively primitive and road trips were still an adventure. It was also a time when giraffes were a rare sight outside of Africa and little was even known about how to raise and care for them in captivity. After a time of quarantine, followed by a 2-week journey across the continent on a makeshift rig built on the bed of a flatbed truck, the giraffes were delivered to San Diego, one of the most progressive zoos in the world at the time, and directed by a woman, Belle Benchley, though she was not given the title until shortly before her retirement in 1953 because, who ever heard of a woman zoo director? Those are the historical facts. This book is a novel expanding on those facts and what an enjoyable story it is. 

    It starts out in the year 2025 with a healthcare worker at a long-term Veterans Administration elderly care center gathering up the possessions of a recently deceased man. Woodrow Wilson Nickel had lived to the ripe old age of 105, a century and a nickel. In his belongings was a porcelain giraffe  from the San Diego Zoo’s gift shop and stack of notebooks and though the notebooks should be considered private, the first lines of the first notebook caught her eye. “Few true friends have I known and two were giraffes . . .” With those lines, she was ensnared and continued to read. And, if you read this book, you will be reading what she read. 

    From the author’s nickname, Woody Nickel, you can guess that while this book is a dramatic story, there is also a touch of whimsy as well. Woody was a young boy living in the Texas panhandle during the Dust Bowl years and watched as the “dust pneumonia” slowly took the lives of his neighbors and his family. As an orphan, he bummed his way to New York to find the only relative that he knew, a cousin working on the docks, but he arrived only a month before the hurricane which also killed his cousin. And yet, as the wind died down and the rain stopped, he was fascinated to see two smashed crates being unloaded which contained the most majestic animal he had ever seen. When he heard that they were going to be taken to California, he knew that he had to follow. 

    Author Lynda Rutledge has crafted a road trip like nothing you have ever imagined. There are dangers around every turn from the winding roads with steep dropoffs across the Shenandoah mountains, the crossing of the Mississippe on a plank “add-on” to a railroad bridge, long stretches across the desert, run-ins with sleazy circus directors who try to “kidnap” the giraffes, and more. There is a bit of romance thrown in with a young woman, Augusta Red, following them in a Packard, trying to get photos to sell to “Life” magazine. And there is the crusty “Old Man” who is tasked with delivering the giraffes. 

    Is this how the journey really happened? I’m sure it is not. It is fictionalized and much is placed in there to make it a good story. And yet, that trip must have truly been an adventure back in 1938, with the Dust Bowl weather system still in force, with the rudimentary roads, with the lack of services for travelers, and with two animals on the back of a truck who are not going to just stand still, who need to be fed and watered, who have very long necks that had to stick out of the top for air. But what this book provides is just a really good story with the ring of truth and where at least the outline is true. It would be hard not to enjoy this book.
  • Bonnie Navin
    4.0 out of 5 stars This is a marvelous book! Based on real event, but definitely fictionalized.
    Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2024
    It’s well written and, while based on something that actually happened, it is enriched by the perspective of the fiction writer.
  • Pugmom
    5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing!
    Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2024
    This book has SO many good things about it! One of the best books I’ve EVER read. It is not only adventurous and exciting , but is also very emotional, both very sad and very sweet, and based on a true story.
    It makes you reflect on your life-your memories and what your experiences have made you what you are today, and the importance of sharing your life memories with others before you die. Read this book! You won’t regret it!
  • M. McGinty
    5.0 out of 5 stars Pretty much perfect
    Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2024
    What a wonderful surprise to enjoy a book so very much. Well-written, great characters, a really great plot, action that moves things along, and life-affirming insights that tie it all together in a beautiful bow. Could make a terrific movie in the hands of the right director. The author has really done her research in a way that transports the reader into the story. Brava!
  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
    Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2024
    I grew up in northern Virginia. As they begin their journey west, trekking along Lee Highway it took me back to my childhood, long before the Interstate. I bought the hardback for a friend because of her love for giraffes. When I saw it was based on a true story, I loaded to my Kindle. A true page turner, character development, and a slice of history. Thanks for the memories. ❤
  • Cheryl
    5.0 out of 5 stars Imaginative but historically accurate..
    Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2024
    Such an interesting topic. The author used accurate detail about the geography, culture, and attitudes for the time to impart true authenticity. I've been to/thru most all locations and it's all spot on. One of the best recent novels I've read. And then there is the emotional depth.
  • kmk
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
    Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2024
    Historical fiction based on a true story about the transportation of 2 Giraffes from New York to the San Diego Zoo who would be the first of their kind to be on display. Beyond that there are relationships being built along the way and a few “hold your breath” moments too. Expect to learn things you never knew about Giraffes. A Heartwarming Fun adventure!

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