The provided excerpts offer an extensive look into Kim Echlin’s novel, Elephant Winter, a story about Sophie Walker, who returns to rural southern Ontario to care for her dying mother and unexpectedly finds connection with Jo Mann, the elephant keeper at a nearby safari zoo. The text includes numerous blurbs praising the novel’s emotional depth, graceful writing, and exploration of themes like life, death, and communication; furthermore, biographical details about Echlin and the book's publishing history are present. A significant feature is the inclusion of several chapters and sections from the book, featuring Sophie’s first-person narrative about her complex relationship with her mother, her growing bond with Jo, and her work creating an Elephant-English Dictionary by recording the animals’ infrasonic language and social behaviors, particularly among the matriarchal herd. This narrative tension is heightened by the introduction of Alecto Rikes, a disruptive, mute scientist whose actions lead to tragedy and a violent encounter with Sophie, further explored in the interview and discussion questions that contextualize the novel's themes of isolation, empathy, and captivity.

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.