Modoc: The True Story Of The Greatest Elephant That Ever Lived (1998) - Plot & Excerpts
Story Description:Modoc is the joint biography of a man and an elephant born in a small German circus town on the same day in 1896. Bram was the son of an elephant trainer, Modoc the daughter of his prize performer. The boy and animal grew up devoted to each other. When the Wunderzircus was sold to an American, with no provision to take along the human staff, Bram stowed away on the ship to prevent being separated from his beloved Modoc. A shipwreck off the Indian coast and a sojourn with a maharajah were only the beginning of the pair's incredible adventures. They battled bandits, armed revolutionaries, cruel animal trainers, and greedy circus owners in their quest to stay together. They triumphed against the odds and thrilled American circus audiences with Modoc's dazzling solo performances, only to be torn apart with brutal suddenness, seemingly never to meet again. Hollywood animal trainer Ralph Helfer rescued Modoc from ill-treatment and learned her astonishing story when Bram rediscovered her at Helfer's company. His emotional retelling of this true-life adventure epic will make pulses race and bring tears to readers' eyes. My Review:“Modoc is a love story, a gut-wrenching afternoon kind of love story that should not be attempted without a full box if tissues within easy reach.” –Detroit Free Free“…sweeping across the timber land into the gray, misty valleys of the Black Forest…baby sounds! Below the fog layer, the insistent waits a baby could be heard, their temerity as if from Mother Earth herself.And then another voice arose. Deeper, brassy, trumpety, but still a…baby sound.”Thus begins the true story of Modoc. Bram, borne to Josef and Katrina Gutterstein, and named after Josef’s father, was a beautiful baby boy with blonde hair. Bram’s blonde hair and features came from the strong Nordic ide of Katrina’s family, and the sweet and gentle warmth radiated so strongly from Josef’s heritage. They lived in Hangendorf Valley, Germany and Josef just knew that Bram would be would become: “a fine elephant trainer.Josef himself is an elelphant trainer working for a small circus in the nearby town of Hassengross. Emma, had just given birth to her elephant up, “Modoc” and Josef was determined to make Emma’s baby the best trained elephant the world has even seen. If anyone could do it, he could as his whole family was circus and the last three generations were all elephant trainers when Josef’s own son Bram, was old enough, he would be turned over to him from training and he’d follow in his father’s footsteps.I immediately fell in love in love with “Modoc’ and “Bram”. This large mammal and young boy had a bond like no other I’ve ever seen. The closeness, the love, the depth of the relationship was beyond anything I had ever encountered. A most mesmerizing story not to be missed!
Generally, it takes me a good two or three weeks for me to read a book for pleasure, but with a head full of mucus and the undeniable desire to do nothing but lie on the couch and read, Modoc by Ralph Helfer was devoured in two consecutive afternoons. I wanted something that was more heartwarming and entertaining then cerebral, and that is certainly what I got. This is a true story that is recorded by an animal trainer who came in contact with Modoc and his handler, Bram, in the very latest portions of their lives. He used the incredible tales told by Bram to synthesize a novel that chronicles the life of a very brave boy and the elephant that he was determined to care for, even at the cost of death.The boy/elephant duo survived a shipwreck, traversed the country of India on foot while pursued by a rich circus owner, and ultimately find themselves in the United States as circus performers. On their death beds, they were in California at Gentle Jungle Animal Rentals.The stories were sensational, but not 100% believable due to basic considerations of logistics and common sense. This is not, however, meant to be a history book, so I suppose that is a mute point. If you just sit back and let the text whisk you away to the in the early 1900s where language barriers were not as plentiful as one would expect, you are sure to love your journey. I found myself getting incredibly emotionally invested in the story, no matter how outlandish or impossible it seemed. Once I turned off the hyper-analytical switch in my brain, I felt a bit like a kid in a candy store. I laughed, I cried, I fumed. I really got lost in the story.I love coming-of-age stories that talk about themes that are universal to the human condition, and this is one of them. As someone who is ape-shit-bananas-crazy about her pet, I can totally see validity in the foolishness that Bram goes to in order to follow and protect Modoc. In synch with the protagonist, I fell in love with multiple women and held one of them while she bled from multiple gunshot wounds. I buried both of my parents, a handful of comrades, and one of my wives. I wish that this was 100% real. The best part is: as far as I am concerned, it is. Ralph is a story teller. If even 30% of this is true, then Bram had an amazing life, a story worth telling. This is sort of like Life of Pi, but real. In fact ,this book makes me want to re-read LoP... it's been more than half a decade since I last encountered the story, so maybe that's what I'll do.
What do You think about Modoc: The True Story Of The Greatest Elephant That Ever Lived (1998)?
Modoc. The True Story of the Greatest Elephant That Ever Lived by Ralph Helfer is about love and friendship on a grand scale, an elephant-sized scale. Modoc is an elephant who was born into a German circus family. The story seems almost too fantastic to be true. Both Modoc and Bram, the elephant trainer’s son, are born on the same day. They grow up together until tragically the circus is sold to a man who decides to uproot the whole show and take it across the world. Bram is heartbroken. He can’t leave his friend and decides to stow away on the ship. Off the coast of India, a giant storm sinks the ship with animals and people struggling to grab onto something for dear life. Incredibly, with over dozens of people clinging on to him, Modoc valiantly swims for days until they are rescued. Modoc and Bram form a life in India. After many years they eventually go to America where Modoc becomes a star. At one point there’s a fire and Modoc barely makes it. I’m not sure how much of the book was exaggerated for the audience, but it is a captivating read. I got lost in their adventures and the heartwarming bond that kept them together. My niece recommended this book to me and I’m glad I read it. Animal lover or not, it’s a book worth checking out. Read other reviews at http://readinginthegarden.blogspot.com
—Annette
i think maybe i have read too many books in my life to be able to like this book. or maybe i am too jaded. but overall, i felt like the book metronomed between insultingly childlike language, unbelieveably gooey and ridonkulous "love" scenes, and near-constant celestine-prophesy-eque new-ageyness. i honestly wished the author would shut up, stop trying to make the story impressive and just talk to me about the damned elephant, who seemed pretty cool.sometimes i was able to set aside the issues i had with the book, and get into a scene.... but then the problems always came back again. yeah, i still got choked up at some of the animal abuse scenes.... i'm not a total robot. i just felt like the story was conflated and done a disservice.and then i researched it to figure out how much was true, and it all made sense. of COURSE it sounds like the celestine prophecy. of COURSE it seems like the story was somehow corrupted. the "true story of the greatest elephant that ever lived" seems to be almost entirely false. thanks for not only wasting my time, dear author, but for not even having the balls to do so honestly.
—Mishka Ferguson
I borrowed this book from the library because I remember someone at work saying that it's the best book. They were wrong. This is the worst book. It is so insanely poorly written that I cannot believe it was published. The moment I started reading it I was wincing at how bad the writing was. However, I thought to myself, surely the story will get better and that will carry me through. The story did not get better. The only reason that I finished this book was that when I went to return the book to the library and take another out before my trip I found the library closed. Otherwise, I wouldn't have bothered wasting my time reading it.
—Daphne
