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Wikipedia Page The Soul of the Rhino

Revised Sandbox Version of Article

This story by Hemanta Mishra, a native of Nepal, is the culmination of three decades of conservation work in the Royal Chitwan National Park in the Terai region, the lowland jungle area along the southern border of Nepal. It is also a memoir of a conservationist's childhood, education, conservation work with the government, and appointment as a Member Secretary of Nepal's King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation.

The Soul of the Rhino is a personal history of Indian Rhino conservation in Nepal--from near extinction in the 1960s to population growth through 2000, and the rise of poaching and population decline as the political unrest in Nepal resulted in the fall of the monarchy. Mishra's story incorporates his spiritual beliefs and Eastern superstitions with his scientific training and Western education. The book traces the successes of attempts to save the Indian Rhino from extinction in Nepal, including the author's contributions to a program in the 1980s to release rhinos from Chitwan into Bardia National Park.

Mishra's account foregrounds the fragility of conservation successes as wide-scale poaching, civil conflicts, and political events shape the fate of the rhino. In the epilogue to the book, Mishra confesses that after three decades of work in wildlife conservation in developing countries he remains an optimist about the fate of the rhino as well as the people of Nepal whose lives are interlinked with the blessings of the soul of the rhino.

Heinen, Joel (2009-07-01). "The Soul of the Rhino: A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists, and the Indian Rhinoceros". ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment. 16 (3): 655–656. doi:10.1093/isle/isp039. ISSN 1076-0962.

Press, Michelle. Scientific American. Jan2008, Vol. 298 Issue 1, p108-108. 1/6p. 1 Color Photograph. Abstract: This article reviews the book "The Soul of the Rhino: A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists, and the Indian Rhinoceros," by Hermanta Mishra. DOI: 10.1038/scientificamerican0108-108. (AN: 27818316)

Goldbeck, Kyrille. Library Journal. 12/15/2007, Vol. 132 Issue 20, p149-149. 1/6p. Abstract: The article reviews the book "The Soul of the Rhino: A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists..." by Hemanta R. Mishra and Jim Ottaway Jr. (AN: 27943612)

Seaman, Donna. Booklist. 12/1/2007, Vol. 104 Issue 7, p18. 1p. Abstract: Reviews the book "A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists, and the Indian Rhinoceros: The Soul of Rhino" by Hemanta Mishra (AN: 27969073)

Peterson, Kim. Magill Book Reviews. 05/01/2009. Abstract: Hemanta Mishra, a native of Nepal, recalls encounters with the greater one-horned Asian rhinoceros. (AN: 41883356)

EDITORIAL NOTES AND EARLIER VERSIONS

Wikipedia Page The Soul of the Rhino

My working editorial on this contribution (exported from User:Thefarfield/be bold)

1) issue flagged by maintenance template


 * "This article relies too much on references to primary sources. Please improve this by adding secondary or tertiary sources. (January 2008) "

2) changes


 * Added secondary source to what is essentially a plot summary of The Soul of the Rhino, by Hemanta Mishra (with Jim Ottaway Jr.; With forewords by Bruce Babbitt and Jim Fowler).


 * added link to Hemanta Mishra page on wikipedia

3) to do


 * edit the entry to be less a plot summary and more a descriptive commentary of the content of the book with time references for historical accuracy

4) Sandbox Version of Article

In early 2006, National Public Radio reported that "A promising conservation effort to save one of Nepal's signature endangered species is now in serious trouble, due primarily to poachers taking advantage of fighting between government forces and Maoist insurgents." This was devastating news indeed to author and scientist Hemanta Mishra, who has spent the better part of his adult life struggling to save the Indian Rhino from extinction in his native Nepal.

The Soul of the Rhino is the spirited yet humble account of Mishra's unique personal journey. Fresh out of university in the 1970s, Mishra embarks on his conservation work with the help of an ornery but steadfast elephant driver, the Nepalese royal family, and handfuls of like-minded scientists whose aim is to protect the animal in the foothills of the Himalayas. Yet, in spite of decades spent creating nature reserves and moving rhinos to protected areas, arm-wrestling politicians, and raising awareness for the cause, Mishra is still fearful about the future of the Indian Rhino. To this day, Nepal is overrun by armed insurgents, political violence, and poachers who could kill off this magnificent creature for good.

Filled with candor and bittersweet humor, Mishra re-creates his journey on behalf of the rhino, an ugly yet enchanting, terrifying yet delicate creature. The first book of its kind to delve into the multilayered political labyrinths of South Asian wildlife conservation, and one man's endurance in the face of it all, The Soul of the Rhino is sure to win over your heart and soul.


 * 1) ^ Heinen, Joel (2009-07-01). "The Soul of the Rhino: A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists, and the Indian Rhinoceros". ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment. 16 (3): 655–656. doi:10.1093/isle/isp039. ISSN 1076-0962.

Other reviews

By: Press, Michelle. Scientific American. Jan2008, Vol. 298 Issue 1, p108-108. 1/6p. 1 Color Photograph. Abstract: This article reviews the book "The Soul of the Rhino: A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists, and the Indian Rhinoceros," by Hermanta Mishra. DOI: 10.1038/scientificamerican0108-108. (AN: 27818316)

By: Goldbeck, Kyrille. Library Journal. 12/15/2007, Vol. 132 Issue 20, p149-149. 1/6p. Abstract: The article reviews the book "The Soul of the Rhino: A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists..." by Hemanta R. Mishra and Jim Ottaway Jr. (AN: 27943612)

By: Seaman, Donna. Booklist. 12/1/2007, Vol. 104 Issue 7, p18. 1p. Abstract: Reviews the book "A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists, and the Indian Rhinoceros: The Soul of Rhino" by Hemanta Mishra (AN: 27969073)

By: Peterson, Kim. Magill Book Reviews. 05/01/2009. Abstract: Hemanta Mishra, a native of Nepal, recalls encounters with the greater one-horned Asian rhinoceros. (AN: 41883356)

New Version