A Training School For Elephants

"Luminous… Reflective, watchful, calm, Roberts is such a vivid travel writer that you forget what a brilliant historian she is. She has the water-diviner’s gift for stories in unlikely places. And then, through research in archives as well as on the ground, for uncovering sparky details that bring the story to life." — The Guardian

"Compulsive... absorbing... rarely has an elegy been so suffused with drama and pathos." — Financial Times

"A Training School for Elephants works precisely because it is so evocative, and because many of the characters within are more complex – in all their greed and prejudice, but also courage and misguided idealism – than might be fashionable to admit in our censorious times." — TLS

"In Roberts’s artful telling, the folly and brute madness of subjugating the African elephant serves as a searing symbol for the conquest of the continent itself. It’s a tour de force." — Publishers Weekly, starred review

"An elegant mixture of history, reportage and travel writing – she has a light touch and never slips into righteous didacticism.  Rather, following in the elephants’ footsteps, she discovers that they left an indelible folk memory behind them." — New Statesman

Much has been written about the history of Leopold’s misadventures in Congo, which took place, in a sense, at one remove, since he never visited. Good starting points include Adam Hochschild’s King Leopold’s Ghost (1998) and David van Reybrouck’s Congo (2015). In A Training School for Elephants, Sophy Roberts’ focus is narrower but no less illuminating... she is an excellent reporter, gleaning important details from descendants of people named in or adjacent to the historical record… her prose is replete with novelistic turns of phrase." — Engelsberg Ideas

"Roberts writes elegantly and empathetically… part of the book’s power is seeing through  her astute eyes the bleak and strange fate of so many magnificent elephants." — The Independent

"Fascinating… a tragic tale and Roberts tells it beautifully… Roberts has produced another wonderful book – a compelling blend of travelogue and history – that marks her out as a singular literary talent." — Literary Review

"Grimly compelling… Roberts tells the story with panache." — Mail on Sunday

"An intriuging tale" — Sydney Morning Herald

 "Superb and sobering. Sophy Roberts' restless curiosity and thoughtful probing makes her a superlative companion in this quest into the heart of Africa in search of colonial folly. An atmospheric travel narrative of the highest order." — Cal Flynn, Islands of Abandonment

"Roberts tackles difficult, sensitive subjects with careful, exquisite prose. Unputdownable."— Mary Harper, Getting Somalia Wrong?

"Such an all encompassing and unclassifiable book. It bridges history, travel writing, natura history with stunning prose. Sophy Roberts has found a tiny story in colonial history and used it to write a masterpiece. She writes about human tragedy, past and present, with such delicacy." — Jaffe & Neale

"An incredible and illuminating tale, wonderfully told, as ever." — Ben Rawlence, Radio Congo

"A Training School for Elephants is a compelling and poignant book that — alongside her first book, The Lost Pianos of Siberia — signals the rise of an important new voice in non-fiction writing." — Foyles

"An outstanding book with the level of self-reflection, historical depth and breadth, and nuance that we are always in need of. Do yourself a favour and give it a read." — Tessimo Mahuta, Goodreads

"This is more than an account, it’s a deep dive into the avarice and complexity of colonialism, skilfully guided by a narrator whose words brings to life people, places and actions that have been set aside or glossed over... Few write as compellingly as Roberts, this is her as only she can write." — Amal Chatterjee, Across the Lakes

"A brave and searching book, rich in history and fierce in spirit. The best sort of travel writing: handsome prose, teeming with humanity and an unwavering sense of wonder." — Justin Marozzi, Baghdad: City of Peace, City of Blood