Lion Song

‘Brian Jackman is a passionate but unsentimental conservationist. He writes with relish for the experience... and the language.’ The Sunday Times


FOREWORD BY SABA DOUGLAS-HAMILTON, Conservationist and TV Presenter


For five decades, Brian Jackman, Britain’s foremost safari writer, has witnessed Africa’s wildlife drama unfold like no other journalist. From his transformative first encounter with a roaring lion in Kenya’s Maasai Mara in 1974 to documenting the famous Marsh Lions that captivated millions through BBC’s Big Cat Diary, Jackman chronicles both the majesty and fragility of Africa’s last wilderness.


This beautiful and expansive memoir reveals the evolution of African conservation, from the days when elephants numbered over a million to today’s urgent battle for survival, where living elephants are worth $1.6 million each to tourism but face extinction from poaching. Through vivid encounters with legendary conservationists like George Adamson and firsthand accounts of anti-poaching wars, Jackman weaves an unforgettable portrait of a continent where lions still greet the dawn – but may not for much longer.


A portion of proceeds supports the Tusk Trust wildlife conservation charity.