The Elusive Baboon A Ugandan Odyssey

"The Elusive Baboon is a stellar memoir about Uganda in the mid-1960s, when the author, as well as the country, was in transition. Jolly paints a story of discovery, new beginnings, and overcoming adversity. Written with humor, insight, and honesty, the book is an enlightening read."
– John McCaffrey, author of The Book of Ash and Two Syllable Men

"Whether they remember Uganda in the 1960s or not, readers will resonate to Jennifer Jolly's charming memoir of life in a beautiful, exotic country in turbulent times. Writing with disarming frankness and an eye for the telling detail, she weaves together a fascinating portrait of a nation about to disintegrate, and of a new science – primatology – being born."
– Ian Tattersall, author of The Strange Case of the Rickety Cossack: And Other Cautionary Tales from Human Evolution

"With formidable wit and vivid powers of observation, Jennifer Jolly's style is a cross between Monty Python and Michael Palin. She writes about the perils of travel in up-country Uganda in the 1960s against a background of ever-increasing political unrest and a chronic shortage of money. Family life takes place in a tent in the wilds of nowhere. Pregnancy makes no difference. By day, her husband Cliff abandons her to go in search of baboons. By night, elephants and buffaloes come visiting. A must-read for those who love travel and adventure."
– Vernon Reynolds, author of The Chimpanzees of the Budongo Forest: Ecology, Behavior and Conservation