Into That Forest

By: Louis Nowra

Narrated by: Lisbeth Kennelly

Length: 6 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

Two girls. Two tigers. Four years in the wild.

Two girls survive a terrible flood in the Tasmanian bush and are rescued by a pair of Tasmanian tigers who raise them in the wild. Their story of survival is remarkable, as they adapt to the life of the tiger, learning to hunt and to communicate without the use of human language. When they are discovered and returned to civilization, neither can adapt to being fully human after their extraordinary experience. Totally believable, their story will both shock and captivate listeners as it explores the animal instincts that lie beneath our civilized veneer.

©2013 Louis Norwa (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Fascinating story

For some reason, the narrator speaks at a slightly slow pace, but once you increase the pace to about 1.2 or 1.25 the normal speed, it sounds like a normal narration. This book is an excellent read. The story is very visual, easy to understand, and the characters are written in a very empathetic manner despite the extreme conditions they experience.

Unforgettable Experience

This was an unexpected find that I took a chance on and I am so glad I did. A strange and compelling story, it is beautifully written with excellent narration. Described by some as a children’s book, I, as an adult, found it fascinating. I so fully believed the story that I found it hard to except that, alas, it is fiction.

A very interesting story

The performance by reader was very well done. Told as an old women recalling her life. A life with tigers and a friend. This is a story so well told I feel it could be non fiction. How the girls learn to survive with the Tigers is told so well. I hope you enjoy as much as I did.

Fascinating tale

Fascinating tale which reveals the amazing ability of humans to be flexible and adapt in order to survive and even find happiness in any situation.
Living with wild beasts became A simple existence different from the human existence and yet one in which happiness was available.
It was actually sad when the girls were found. They were not able to obtain the same sense of happiness in the world of humans.
This story was deep on so many levels. It stimulates a great deal of thought and contemplation about humans, animals, relationship, will to survive, love between humans and animals, the way humans view and treat animals who have as much right to live as we do, and many more philosophical and ethical questions.
The voice and language of the character was appropriate and brought the character to life.

Don't miss this one!

This book was a "daily special" and it looked interesting- Tasmania and the (now extinct but fascinating) Tasmanian Tiger - a canine- like marsupial- are the topics.

It was GREAT! The reader caught the spirit of the narrator and the story is fantastic. What a surprise and I have ordered other books by this author- Sadly no more available at Audible.

I couldn't get past the narrator

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Some of my friends might like it.

What did you like best about this story?

It was a unique story. I enjoyed the perspective of the old woman looking back over her life.

What didn’t you like about Lisbeth Kennelly’s performance?

Her voice was way too annoying. I realize that she was an old woman who had never learned to speak English properly, but I couldn't get past the narration the entire book.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Definitely.

Any additional comments?

I bought this on a whim when it was the sale of the day. The story was interesting but so sad. I felt like the ending got wrapped up a bit too quickly and I felt like some of the things that Hannah talked about regarding Becky's story when they weren't together were a bit far fetched as to how she would have really been able to know about them. Overall, I did enjoy the book but now I feel like I need to go listen to a comedy. With a GREAT narrator!

Wow! Moving, lovely, & heart-wrenching.

This book was so much more than I even expected, & after some of the glowing reviews, I expected a LOT. It is not a book to read when you need something light & humorous; this has many levels, one deeper than the other, but written in such a way that one never feels bogged down. At least this "one" never did; during the times I had to do things where listening was either impossible or impolitic, I kept thinking about how I couldn't wait to get back to it.

"The story of two girls, surviving a tragedy & then prospering because of the care of a duo of Tasmanian Tigers (a dog/wolf-like animal now sadly extinct, the "why" of their extinction deftly portrayed throughout the story), being 'rescued' again, & the aftermath of said "rescue", or however else one might sum up this book, just can't begin to reach its essence. If you are anything like me, you will laugh, you will tear up, you will feel bereft, you will scream at characters, & you will want to run away back to the bush with the two girls. You will not, however, find yourself bored or mired down in superfluous narrative. This is an excellent story, & one I've already recommended to just about everyone I know.

The narrator: At first, I didn't know if I was going to be able to listen to this woman for long. She has a rather screechy voice, & that can be wearing...but by an hour or so in, I'd forgotten my misgivings & the narrator became Hannah as an old woman, telling her story to me. An appropriate voice.

SPOILER ALERT!
When Becky's father killed Tasmanian tigers "just because", I was sickened to the core. When he killed Dave, the male of the girls' adoptive parents, I was so full of fury & loathing that I actually screamed at him! That's how real it all was to me!😶 Good thing I was in my house, w/only the dogs to hear.😆 It is gripping to see, laid out through the portrayal of the tiger hunters, farmers, & whalers, why they did what they did to the tigers & whales, & how far we've come in our husbandry & conservation of animals around the world. Some would say this has gone almost too far because we've anthropomorphized dogs/animals. I would say it's because we've put our prejudices to the side & allowed ourselves to see/take in the wonderment of animals. I don't agree that's anthropomorphizing, but potatoes-potahtoes...☺️ No, I am most definitely not a member of PETA, & I am decidedly a carnivore (treat animals we eat with care, & harvest them with thanks & respect), but I do wonder how anyone can know a dog or other animal & not see an extraordinary soul.

makes me happy

while reading thus book i looked up the extinct Tasmanian Tiger... and as of April 2017 there is some question as to whether there are still tigers out there. i do hope we didnt kill them all.. i hope they are there - running free and raising pups... no confirmation yet (April 2018) but perhaps their story will end up like the Ivory Woodpecker and they will be proven to have survived us.
this us a great book - well told and well read... definitely worth the time

When tigers are better parents than your own ...

Would you listen to Into That Forest again? Why?

Even though audiobooks are a huge time commitment, I would probably listen to this one again.

This is told from Hanna's perspective. But Hannah is telling the story during her twilight years (maybe she's like 70 years old). And, being raised in the wild, her English isnt wonderful. But that really adds to the believability of what's going on. I feel like the narrator IS Hanna. This is more of storytelling than an audiobook!

And this type of a story is not one that comes along too often. Definitely a unique listen.

I'm not usually the type to speed up audiobooks, but you can comfortably speed this one up to 1.5x if you're in a time crunch (like me and I had just 40 minutes left and a 25 minute drive to work ....).

What was one of the most memorable moments of Into That Forest?

Hanna is a little spitfire. And Becky seems to prefer dresses over mud. So when the girls get lost from Hanna's parents during the storm (they're young when this happens, like 6 years old), they get adopted by these tigers (and not real tigers but tasmanian tigers). Hanna seems to be the first to lose her clothes and her speech but Becky seems to hold on to those human parts of her. So the most memorable part of the book to me is their relationship. Even though these two kids are complete opposites, they've been bound by this experience.

Have you listened to any of Lisbeth Kennelly’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to any of the narrator's previous works. But she sounds like a grandma that has had one too many martinis. But she makes listening to this audiobook absolutely wonderful! She's very expressive and convincing.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Who are the real animals?

Any additional comments?

There are so many ideas to explore in this book!
- Brutality and nurturing nature of Nature
- Civilization versus the wild/Man vs Wild
- Taming wild things
- What's necessary?
- What makes a family?

There's not that many characters in the book. Hanna and Becky, who get lost in the woods. Dave and Corrina, the tigers that take them in. Mr. Carson and Ernie show up the last 1/3 of the book, they are searching for the girls.

This book has closure, so you find out what happens to everyone! No loose ends, I hate that!

Also, I'm not sure what age group this book is intended for. It's definitely graphic at times and there are some heavy topics. I wouldn't pass this out to elementary school kids but maybe appropriate for mature middle schoolers?

a kids' book that had me gripped me by the throat

The perfect narration of this story of an elderly Aussie woman, in her quavery voice and old regional speech patterns, as she recalls incidents of her childhood, is what raises this simple adventure story to a book with a lasting presence. For young adults, it will start discussions about what makes us civilized, what is a family, the nature of love, interspecies communication, and our responsibility to other species on the planet. As an adult, I was mesmerized by the performance of the reader. Her depiction of a child's experience of loss, and fighting fiercely to keep hold of the next thing, and lifelong regret and sadness, is so real and wrenching. A slow start, but then exciting and haunting.