I laughed so hard I cried. I really enjoyed reading this book. I can't wait to read more by Mr. Slater ( )

I laughed so hard I cried. I really enjoyed reading this book. I can't wait to read more by Mr. Slater ( )

This was probably one of the funniest books I have read. In fact, if I didn't have so many other books I want to read and enjoy, I'd probably go back to the beginning and read it all over again. But beware, it really is laugh-out-loud material. I would go so far as to say that I would recommend NOT reading this book whilst eating or drinking - snorting coffee and spraying your lunch around the place is most definitely not a good look and I would certainly not read this in a public place - trying to hide your hysterical laughter will probably result in those around you reaching for their phones and calling the men in white coats.

You can guess I really enjoyed this.

At a point in his early twenties, Tony was in limboland trying to decide what to do in his life that would provide him with some purpose: a few previous attempts hadn't quite provided him with the answers he was looking for. In pursuit of that lightbulb moment, he stumbled across a volunteer programme at an animal rescue centre in Ecuador: a refuge for animals rescued from cruelty. Without thinking twice about it, he signed up. What followed was for him a life-changing experience.

Tony Slater is very gifted at writing comically and laughter accompanied every page I read at the account of his daily routine looking after animals, birds and reptiles of all shapes and sizes and degrees of ferocity. Despite the tomfoolery of the writing, Tony never forgets the seriousness of the work carried out by the rescue centre, he never forgets to inform us of the beauty and uniqueness of Ecuador, and more importantly, never forgets to reveal not only how much the animals came to mean to him in the short time he was there, but also how much the whole experience touched him.

This is one I will read again if I ever need cheering up. It's a guaranteed tonic. ( )

Reading this book is a bit like trying to look away from a train wreck that is a very funny train wreck indeed. Slater volunteers to help at a wildlife rescue place on a remote farm in Ecuador, and the whole book is filled with him describing things I never want to do but loved reading about. Would I want to be bitten by a crocodile? Nearly electrocuted when touching electric fencing, on purpose? Slashed by an angry ocelet? Well, no, but Slater has a knack for comedic writing. A good feature of the kindle version is you can see photos of all the animals he writes about, photos available on his website too. As he reflects when heading back to London “I’d been bitten, clawed and mauled by more species of life than most people can name. Blinded, electrocuted and nearly shot.” Armed bandits on the farm, descriptions of his fellow volunteers and the enigmatic Johnny who owns the farm and has a passion for rescuing captive wildlife, and Slater’s lovely Ecuadorian girl friend named Lady round out the story. ( )

Kudos to Tony James Slater for, first having the initiative to work in an animal sanctuary in Ecuador, and second, making the effort to write about it. It's definitely not a bad book. But it could have been better if the author had tried a bit less hard to be funny, and talked more about the animals (about which he clearly cares), the country he was visiting, and the surroundings.

That said, for anyone who is thinking of making the sort of trip he did, this is well worth a read (and good value for Kindle).

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