An Amazon Best Book of the Month: Biographies & Memoirs
“The Puma Years is a fascinating glimpse into the lives of the animals rescued by a sanctuary, Comunidad Inti Wara Yassi, in Bolivia. And it is the heartwarming story of the relationship that grew up between Laura Coleman and a puma, a relationship that only deepened over the years. I visited the sanctuary years ago—what a wonderful place, dedicated staff and passionate volunteers. Engaging and inspiring—you will love this book.” —Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE, Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute & UN Messenger of Peace
“Coleman’s adrenaline rush–inducing debut transports readers along on her 2007 adventure to the Amazon jungle of Bolivia…Coleman’s purpose-finding journey also offers a call to action for addressing the heartbreaking circumstances of wild animals in peril.” —Publishers Weekly
“Readers will be hooked by Coleman’s compelling storytelling right from the opening pages…There are poignant breakthroughs, unsettling setbacks, terrifying dangers, narrow escapes, heartbreaking separations and reunions, and hookups and relationships, all channeled through Coleman’s honest, wry, self-effacing, and always entertaining narrative…This is an amazing tale, one that readers will remember.” —Booklist (starred review)
“A funny and compelling true story of courage, endurance, and self-discovery. The Puma Years is a hymn to the sorrows and joys of finding kinship with the animal world.” —Gregory Norminton, author and environmentalist
“Impassioned, honest, unexpected and often very funny. A book about being consumed by the wild, in all its difficulty and damage, with a vivid cast of humans and animals.” —Nick Hunt, author of Where The Wild Winds Are
“The Puma Years is an utterly wonderful book. It is a memoir, a love letter to a puma, and through that love comes the utter heartbreak of the forests. It is not just astonishingly good as a book, but it brings to life the full earthy reality of the forests, its swamps and iridescence, its wild beauty and rottingness, while so poignantly articulating its destruction. It is quite brilliant.” —Jay Griffiths, author of Wild: An Elemental Journey and Why Rebel
“Wow. The Puma Years is one of my favourite books of recent years. It is a stunning, moving love story told in such vivid, alive, and poetic prose you can smell the mud of the jungle and hear the symphony of animals coming off the page. I couldn’t put it down but didn’t want it to end. Coleman is a brilliant story-teller who generously invites us into her relationship with Wayra and in so doing tells us something profound about respectful kinship between species. This book will stay with me.” —Lucy Jones, author of Losing Eden
“Laura Coleman has given us a wise and wonderful and deeply moving book. After reading it, I now find myself even more in love and awe at the furred and flippered and feathered things with which we share this glorious and fragile planet.” —Niall Griffths, author of Sheep Shagger
“Brave, tender, thrilling, and inspiring. Coleman is a fresh, vital, and powerful voice.” —Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast
