Locked in their cages, the zoo animals hear the song of the Maasai Man--an African herdsman in native dress--and their spirits roam free with him as they remember their wild natural homes. For most of the animals, home is the African savannah, but somehow the Maasai Man also calls to the tiger about India and to the polar bear about the Arctic. This is another romanticized stereotype of primitive Africa. Berkeley says she's always been fascinated by the images of the "scenery and animals" in this land of "mystery," and clearly, the people are a generic part of that scenery. What will hold kids is the contrast between captivity and freedom in each double-page spread. On the left there's a closeup of a suffering animal in a cage--a lion, an elephant, a gorilla, a python, imprisoned in too small a space; opposite is a view of the animal roaming free in its natural habitat.
