Book Captures Essence of Africa

James D. Watts Jr. - Tulsa World

May 08, 2008

For those who might think writing a children's book has to be a breeze, consider this: It took Tulsa artist and author Kim Doner four years, more than 8,500 miles and the help of a great many friends to create "On a Road in Africa."

Doner's book, published by Tricycle Press, was inspired by the month-long visit she made to the Nairobi Animal Orphanage in Kenya, a rehabilitation facility for African wildlife founded and run by Tulsa native Chryssee Perry Martin.

"We have some mutual friends who kept telling the two of us that we had to meet," said Doner, who also rehabilitates animals that have been injured or abandoned.

Currently a blue jay called Picasso and some baby raccoons are under her care.

"Chryssee was in Tulsa on a visit, and our friends arranged a lunch," Doner said, "and we immediately hit it off. Three hours later, she was inviting me to come to Africa and stay with her for a month. She wanted to create a book that would help the animals at the orphanage."

But once Doner got to Kenya six months later, her idea of what the book should be quickly changed.

"Chryssee wanted to do a series of children's books that told the stories of some of the animals she and the staff at the orphanage had rescued, and we still may do that," Doner said. "But I realized I wanted to write about Chryssee's amazing life -- that story needed to be told first.

"Once I got back home, there were two things that kept insistently knocking around my brain," Doner said. "One was the rhythms of Africa -- of bouncing along the roads, the drums at celebrations and how various tribes have distinct rhythms to play, even the rhythms of how people spoke."

"The other thing was my not being able to believe I had been able to spend a month working with animals in Africa," she said, laughing. "I kept saying, 'I couldn't believe I was traveling down a road in Africa,' or 'Here I was petting a cheetah in Africa.' I kept adding the words 'in Africa' to just about everything, and my publicist said, 'There's your book.' "

"On a Road in Africa" tells the story of a day's journey made by "Mama O," as Martin is affectionately known (in 1991, the Kenya Wildlife Service gave her the special title of "Mama Orphanage" in honor of her work).

It allows Doner to translate a lot of her experiences into words and pictures: the people she met, the bustle and activity of daily life, the variety of animals, the loving attention of the orphanage's staff to the creatures in their care, and Martin's own tireless efforts to provide whatever is needed for the animals -- from bags of peanuts to baskets of poop.

Those rhythms also run through the poem that is the book's text -- something that Doner emphasizes in her public presentations at schools around the country.

As images from the book are projected on a screen, Doner will recite the book's text, patting out the rhythm on a djembe -- an African drum.

"A friend of mine told me about the drumming circle at Living Arts of Tulsa, and I went forthe first time last fall," she said. "And I remember thinking, 'What took me so long to get here?' It is so much fun."

"On a Road in Africa" has received mostly glowing reviews since its publication, although some reviewers have complained that Doner's title isn't specific enough.

"They think it should be 'On a Road in Kenya' or 'On a Road in Nairobi,' "

Doner said. "But this book wasn't written for adults. I've started asking the students I visit if they know the names Kenya or Nairobi, and no one raises a hand.

"But say the word 'Africa,' and everyone knows what that means," she said. "Africa means lions and cheetahs and chimps and gazelles and all sorts of wonderful, exotic animals. "So having 'Africa' in the title is important," Doner said.

"Maybe children will pick this book up because of the word 'Africa,' and will come away with the idea that one person really can make a huge difference in the world, just as Chryssee Perry Martin has."

"ON A ROAD IN AFRICA"

By Kim Doner (Tricycle Press, $15.95)

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