This story is set in the forests of India, and the scenes described have actually been witnessed by me, firsthand, in my more than thirty years of “wildlifing.” Of all the denizens in the forests, the most visible by their sheer size are elephants.

Elephant herds in the wild consume a huge quantity of fodder, and they keep on moving through well delineated and familiar migration paths. This migration allows for regrowth of vegetation in exhausted grazing areas. The leader of the herd is the matriarch or dominant female. Another female brings up the rear with the young in the middle for protection.

The Malabar Giant Squirrel mentioned in the story is endemic to South and Central India. It is one of the most colorful of the canopy wildlife, with the face of a rabbit and a very large, luxuriant tail.

All the facts and animal behaviors in the narration are scientifically accurate with just an occasional fictional digression, to hold the interest of young readers and help them to relate to the story line.