The White Giraffe: Book 1 (The White Giraffe Series)

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Devastated by her parents' death, Maxine is sent to South Africa and a grandmother she didn't know existed. Grieving, and puzzled by her decidedly cool welcome, Maxine instinctively loves the landscape and animals in the wildlife reserve her grandmother manages. She's curious about the legendary white giraffe and when Maxine glimpses it one night, the connection between them is instantaneous.

Another legacy of the South Africa World Cup that is much harder to quantify is its impact on the country’s power system. Indeed, this system has deteriorated over the past 15 years to the extent that scheduled power cuts took place on 91 of the first 243 days this year. Depending on the situation at the country’s power stations, power cuts can occasionally last for most of the day.

In nature, with no interference from man, a male giraffe (called a bull) will live approximately twenty five years, while a female (called a cow) usually lives a little longer. The spotless giraffe calf is certainly an interesting case,” and that type of coloring has never been seen in the wild, says Sara Ferguson, a wildlife veterinarian and conservation health coordinator at the Giraffe Conservation Foundation.

These years have been described as an energy ‘Ponzi scheme’ –in other words, South Africa kept the lights on and things looked good at the time, but the underlying damage eventually caught up with the country.The story was inspired by the author's childhood in Zimbabwe, where she had a pet giraffe, as well as numerous dogs, horses and warthogs. The posture of a giraffe can also be telling and communicate a message. For example, a dominant male will hold its head high and walk erect, displaying his side, while the non-dominant male will walk with its head, ears, and chin held low, and even run away. Super Size One lonely night, Martine looks out of her window and sees a young giraffe, its white and silver coat tinged with cinnamon in the moonlight. In that moment she knows she is prepared to risk everything for it. The giraffe looks at her as if it is waiting for her…