Don't Shake the Mango Tree - Tales of a Scottish Maasai – Author Graeme Forbes-Smith

At age fifty, Graeme and Candy have a mid-life crisis! They abandon their comfortable Edinburgh life and move to Tanzania where they rent a cottage on a deserted beach near the abode of an old friend whom they find themselves burying when he tragically dies. Out of the blue they accept a job to manage a luxury safari lodge in the middle of the wild African bush. Surrounded by witch doctors and an array of eccentric and exotic friends, they set out on a new career while surviving bouts of malaria, scorpion stings and encounters with lions. As the years pass, their life becomes an exciting rollercoaster of emotions and madcap adventures as they are submerged into the local culture and gradually become respected members of the Maasai community. Floating on the surface like swans, they paddle furiously below water as they cater to their international guests' every whim. Life is not dull. Each tale is told with a touching blend of humour, tragedy, gratitude and joy. Graeme and Candy fell in love with Africa. Reading this book, it is impossible not to do the same.

www.dontshakethemangotree.com

Voted best book to read on holiday for 2023/ 2024 by Justonefortheroad.com International travel website.

Amazon reviews :

Nancy – USA This book is a must read for anyone going on safari or looking for an insiders experience living and working in the bush……

SMC – USA- I read a few pages a night; it was like word candy. I savored every page, every phrase, every image. The book gave me a mental framework for what I felt in my heart in visiting east Africa: the delightful wonderful people — Maasai and others— an homage to the layered soul of Africa that resonates in all of us………

Amanda – Australia Such a great read of someone falling in love with the African bush, it’s people and culture.

I thoroughly enjoyed Graeme’s honest, direct storytelling that perfectly created a mind picture of all the characters and hilarious situations he and Candy experienced as newcomers to this incredible continent..

Anne E – USA This book is so densely packed with extraordinary tales and an array of emotions from joy to hilarity to tragedy I want to read it again, word for word, to experience it even more fully. It's a book that will make you laugh out loud at times and at other times it will take your breath away with poignancy.

Libby –UK Some books are a slow burn - this is not one of them!

Right from the off Graeme had me entranced and I don’t think I’ve ever felt so many emotions in the first chapter of a book …. it was a rollercoaster that had me laughing one minute, sobbing the next.

Beautifully written, with humour, compassion and a deep rooted love for East Africa.