I picked this book up from a library discard pile. Sato and the elephants was published in 1993 and the library copy was purchased in 1995 which means it has been in the library for over thirty years. I hope in that time the world has become a safer place for elephants.
Sato watches his father carving ivory. He really wants to become as skilled as his father. He does know ivory comes from elephant but it takes a terrible experience to really give him an understanding of this.
He buys a large piece of scarce ivory from a trader for a very high price. As he works over many days on his carving he sees something lodged inside the ivory itself - it is a bullet. Sato's dreams are then filled with the real scene - elephants living in on the wild plains of Africa. When he wakes up he makes a vow to never use ivory again. Marble will now be his new medium for carving.
I don't imagine this book will be easy to find but if I were to share it in my library I would read it to a Grade five or six group as a discussion starter about animal rights, animal exploitation, and the continuing issues of poaching. You might be able to access this BTN (Behind the News ABC TV) program from 2016. Here are a couple of companion books to explore the topic of animal rights:
Jean and Mou-Sien were classmates at the Fine Art Department of the National Normal University in Taiwan. After graduation, they married and worked as teachers, designers, and illustrators. They also worked for a UNICEF Project in Taiwan, editing and designing 165 picture books-thirty of which they illustrated themselves. Their book Lovely Toys won the 1971 Golden Book Award for the best picture book illustration. Mou-Sien also won the Golden Goblet Award for Excellent Achievement at Chinese Painting in 1990. Here is one of their books which is by Margaret Mahy:
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