Tiger (eBook)

It's December 1997, and a man-eating tiger is on the prowl outside a remote village in Russia's Far East. The tiger isn't just killing people, it's annihilating them, and a team of men and their dogs must hunt it on foot through the forest in the brutal cold. As the trackers sift through the gruesome remains of the victims, they discover that these attacks aren't random: the tiger is apparently engaged in a vendetta. Injured, starving, and extremely dangerous, the tiger must be found before it strikes again. As he re-creates these extraordinary events, John Vaillant gives us an unforgettable portrait of this spectacularly beautiful and mysterious region. We meet the native tribes who for centuries have worshipped and lived alongside tigers, even sharing their kills with them. We witness the arrival of Russian settlers in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, soldiers and hunters who greatly diminished the tiger populations. And we come to know their descendants, who, crushed by poverty, have turned to poaching and further upset the natural balance of the region. This ancient, tenuous relationship between man and predator is at the very heart of this remarkable book. Throughout we encounter surprising theories of how humans and tigers may have evolved to coexist, how we may have developed as scavengers rather than hunters, and how early Homo sapiens may have fit seamlessly into the tiger's ecosystem. Above all, we come to understand the endangered Siberian tiger, a highly intelligent super-predator that can grow to ten feet long, weigh more than six hundred pounds, and range daily over vast territories of forest and mountain. Beautifully written and deeply informative, The Tiger circles around three main characters: Vladimir Markov, a poacher killed by the tiger, Yuri Trush, the lead tracker, and the tiger himself. It is an absolutely gripping tale of man and nature that leads inexorably to a final showdown in a clearing deep in the taiga.

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**From the author of the 2023 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction winning Fire Weather**'An unbelievable tale, expertly told' Patrick Radden Keefe, author of Empire of Pain'A superb book ' Daily Mail 'Masterful . . . mesmerising, rangy and relentless' Sunday TelegraphA man-eating tiger is hunting villagers in the snowy forests of Far Eastern Russia.A small team of men and their dogs must hunt the tiger in turn. As evidence mounts, it becomes clear that the tiger's attacks aren't random: it is seeking revenge. Injured, starving and extremely dangerous, the tiger must be found before it strikes again.As he tracks the tiger's deadly progress, John Vaillant draws an unforgettable portrait of a distant and brutal region, over 5,000 miles from Moscow. In the harsh depths of winter in Primorye, a gripping tale of man and nature unfolds.'Exciting, memorable - and perfectly, impeccably right . . . a tale of astonishing power and vigour' Simon Winchester, author of The Surgeon of Crowthorne'Extraordinary . . . a brilliantly told tale of man and nature' New York Review of Books