Caring for Cheetahs: My African Adventure (review)

In this photoessay, author Hansen describes her visit to Namibia's Cheetah Conservation Fund and her interactions with the animals there. Brief titled sections cover topics such as feeding the animals, cheetahs' hunting methods, exercising the animals with "cheetah-racing," and the organization's work with local farmers, while sidebars offer tidbits about cheetah anatomy and multiple photographs (some taken by the author) decorate each page. This is more suited to browsing than reading, since the sections jump around disconnectedly; it's also a little short on key explanations, failing to articulate the difference between "tame" and "habituated to humans" and never explaining how the facility is staffed (only the author and the organization's director are identified in photos). Garish layout, involving multiple borders in multiple colors (one of them photographed cheetah fur), detracts from the visual impact of the cheetahs themselves, though the multitude of pictures show a magnificent cast of highly photogenic cats that will still absorb reader attention. Turner's Gorilla Doctors (BCCB 6/05) is a superior look at attempts to aid African wildlife, but big-cat aficionados may still enjoy pawing through the pages here. End matter includes a glossary and a brief list of websites for conservation organizations.