When fifteen-year-old Hemit breaks family tradition by learning the mysterious soother's gentler ways of training elephants, he unleashes his own mystical powers—powers his parents have tried to conceal, and which are capable of destroying his entire family.
WINNER: Pinnacle Book Achievement Award, Summer 2019 - Best Historical Fiction
"Rather like the man-eating tiger (perhaps a man-tiger) who insidiously patrols the opening chapters of Pam Laughlin's novel, Soul of the Elephant, this book excels at sneaking up on its reader, solely intent on devouring him whole. Which, piece by piece, chapter by chapter, increasingly ravenous, it does... Within an intensely engaging, dramatic, compelling narrative, choreographed meticulously well by Ms. Laughlin, many delicious morsels are provided for meditative savoring. These include the formidability of the natural world, how humans relate to their parental world (and each other, and their animal brothers), and, wondrously, how our relationship to spirit flavors each of these interactions. ...a well-told, truly captivating story." ~ Readers' Favorite Book Reviews, Joel R. Dennstedt (5 STARS)
South India, 1870s. At the family elephant camp, Hemit's father insists on quashing their elephants' spirits to gain complete domination, but Hemit believes the relationship between an elephant and mahout should be based on trust and love, not fear. When he stands up for the elephants, he and his father clash with devastating consequences.
Hemit ignores his father's warnings about the mysterious elephant trainer rumored to use black magic to soothe rogue elephants. In secret, he befriends the elusive mystical, and learns the secret language and ways of the pachyderms. When he unleashes his own mystical powers to mend the broken soul of an abused elephant, a magical bond among healer, boy, and elephant develops.
Will his father embrace his son's newly roused abilities, or try to quash his spirit, too?
EVOLVED PUBLISHING PRESENTS an adventure back in time, to exotic South India and the majestic elephant, and the long-storied trainers of the great beasts.
Books by Pam Laughlin
- Soul of the Elephant (The Kind Mahout – Book 1)
- Taming the Tiger (The Kind Mahout – Book 2) [Coming Spring 2020]
- Unity (The Kind Mahout – Book 3) [Coming Spring 2021]
More Great Historical Fiction from Evolved Publishing
- The Colonel and the Bee by Patrick Canning
- The "Shining Light's Saga" Series by Ruby Standing Deer
- Invisible by Day by Teri Fink
- "The Journey of Cornelia Rose" Series by J.F. Collen
AUTHOR: Yup, I was one of those kids. Call me an avid reader or a book nerd, but my head was buried in books as I walked down the halls. The librarian knew me by first name and favorite genre, and I thought the March sisters were way cooler than the girls in school. Things haven't changed much. I still love the way a great book can transport me to a different place and time, and I continue to bond with imaginary characters and fantastic stories. I was born and raised in New Jersey but don't hold that against me. Believe it or not, New Jersey has some beautiful spots and I'm lucky enough to live in one of them with a pack load of males (my husband, 3 sons and 2 Havenese furry boys). I've been a writer most of my life, starting in 3rd grade when my short story won the school writing competition. It was about a family that lived in a freckle, so I guess I've suffered from FPP (fantasy prone personality) from an early age. Thank God!
EDITOR: I have loved books since I was too young to remember, my love of books a folktale itself, one told by my mother at family gatherings. I have dim impressions of my mother recounting the stories of The Iliad and The Odyssey, spinning them from memory like a classical orator, and my dad reading me Treasure Island. My mother was an English teacher, and so inevitably she supported my desire to read. I graduated from Whitman College with a degree in English, and graduated from Portland State University with a degree in Book Publishing. At Whitman I worked as a writing tutor, and at PSU I focused on editing. My goal as an editor is to help clarify the writer's vision and polish their story into the best version of itself. Above all, my goal as an editor is communication: helping a writer to translate their thoughts into a form that others can understand.
