There are as many books on the Asian Elephant, its place in folklore, manuals in choosing and looking after elephants as there have been elephant experts down the centuries. These four books have been chosen as they are all non-scientific tales of outsiders who have gone to live amongst elephants and the people that care for them in their native ranges. The tales of intelligence, loyalty and immense strength would seem fantastic until you live and work with elephants and mahouts. Their, centuries old, way of life is changing beyond measure and I, like these authors, feel tremendously honoured to have seen the tail end of it.

Elephant Bill; Lt. Col. J.H. Williams; Heinemann Educational Secondary Division; ISBN 0435120344

The elephant enthusiast’s bible, the story of an Englishman sent to Burma to work in the teak forests. His growing appreciation and love of elephants and the people that work with them, the book includes the amazing story of an elephant back evacuation from the advancing Japanese army during WWII ­ a true story worthy of any Boy’s Own Adventure.

An Englishman buys an elephant and rides her across Northern India, falling in love with her on the way. What starts out as a quest to do something book worthy turns into a campaign to save elephants and a life long love affair with the species and his own, named Tara, in particular.

The same Englishman returns to India to learn to be a mahout from a Maharaja’s daughter and the world’s only female mahout. Much to Tara’s relief he uses another elephant ­ there’s no jealousy when a well fed retirement is at stake.

To the Elephant Graveyard; Tarquin Hall; Grove Press; ISBN 0802138357

A skeptical Indian based journalist learns of an elephant hunt about to take place in Assam and rushes to report on the state sponsored bloodshed. What he discovers is a tale of elephant human conflict, a warm hearted and reluctant hunter willing to give a murderous rogue elephant every chance to reform rather than kill him; and a crack squad of mahouts and elephants struggling to come to find a place in the modern world.

A book containing the impressions, anecdotes and stories of a ‘Teak Wallah’ in the forests of Northern Thailand in the 1950’s. A time when the forests were managed and sustainable forestry was still being practiced; the forests themselves were seemingly endless and timeless. Elephants were still heavily used as the only practical means of moving the logs to the rivers ­ entertaining and enlightening descriptions of scientifically managed logging practice, elephant care and a jungle existence.

Told from the perspective of a wild elephant growing up in the forests of Assam and Burma in the early part of the 20^th Century, this short story, written by an ardent conservationist, manages to capture the spirit of a tusker and the rapid changes in the forests and grasslands that occurred during that time. Suitable for adults or children it contains some valuable thoughts on the lives of wild elephants and the need for the protection of their habitat.

Web Resources for Elephant Status and Care

A number of Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and Forest Industry Organisation together with Thailand's National Elephant Institute researched publications are available in full on-line - they all make excellent deeper reading and though some time has past since the studies were made they remain amongst the most up-to-date scientifically researched work available..

Gone Astray - The Care and Management of the Asian Elephant in Domesticity; Richard C Lair; FAO; ISBN 974-89472-3-8

http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/DOCREP/005/AC774E/ac774e03.htm 

Giants on Our Hands: Proceedings of the International Workshop on the Domesticated Asian Elephant; Edited by: Iljas Baker and Masakazu Kashio; FAO; ISBN: 974-90757-1-4  

http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/DOCREP/005/AD031E/ad031e0b.htm

Elephant Care Manual for Mahouts and Camp Managers; Preecha Phuangkum, Richard C Lair and Taweepoke Angkawanith; FIO, MNRE, FAO; ISBN: 974-7946-71-8.

http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=/docrep/008/ae943e/ae943e00.htm

NB.  These links appear to go to random pages within the massive documents, the front page can be reached by clicking on the title once on the FAO website.