Inspired to Following the Footsteps of a Fossil Hunter in Africa
By Penny Haw
Where do ideas come from? What motivates an artist to paint landscapes, not portraits? What compels a writer to pen prose, not poetry? What inspires an author to create romance, not crime? Why are some people compelling, and others not? There are countless ways of responding to these questions. However, I can keep it short because know exactly what drew me to archaeologist and paleoanthropologist, Dr Mary Leakey. She’s intriguing and I relate to her. The result? My third work of historical fiction, Follow Me to Africa.
Intriguing
Mary Leakey is one of the world’s great scientists. She and her husband, Louis led research into human evolution in Africa. They were the first to challenge the belief that our ancestors originated in Europe or Asia. How wonderful that two young and, at the time, inexperienced archaeologists were brave enough to interrogate the status quo. It wasn’t easy. They had very little money and limited support. Their patience and perseverance paid off. Not only did Mary’s discoveries in East Africa provide unprecedented evidence of our species’ African origins, but her meticulous, organized methods set the standards for others to aspire to.
It wasn’t only the depth and scope of her work that intrigued me. I was fascinated to discover Mary had just two years of traditional schooling. She was a child when her father took her to the caves at Pech Merle in Dordogne, France and to a nearby archaeological site. It was there that her interest prehistoric stone tools, bones and fossils began. In this regard, Mary reminded me of Aleen Cust, who I wrote about in The Invincible Miss Cust. She too, was very young when she recognised what interested her and, from there on, followed her passion.
Mary and Louis didn’t have an easy relationship. I was moved by the way she quietly shifted out of his shadow by remaining focussed and passionate about her work. Her curiosity and commitment to her research never faltered.
Relatable
It might not be essential to every author that their main character is relatable. Some say they’re satisfied with writing about people who are simply interesting. However, I’m happiest immersing myself in the lives of people I can identify with when I write. That doesn’t mean I must share all their characteristics. I don’t mind sometimes disagreeing with them and their choices, but I do want to understand them.
I relate to Mary Leakey on several levels. I was born and raised in South Africa and haven’t lived elsewhere. Mary loved Africa, as do I. We share an enjoyment of open spaces, where the sky is immense, the surroundings wild and the bush promises unplanned encounters. Mary’s experiences of Olduvai Gorge, the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Kenya and Tanzania fill me with joy. Her devotion to her dogs and her fascination with wild animals inspires me. When I read about how she’d rescued a thirsty, famished cheetah called Lisa, I knew the cat would play an important role in my book.
The pleasure Mary derived from living remotely and focusing on her work sits comfortably with me. I love the tranquillity of the wilderness and the sense of connection I feel with nature when I’m there. Nature is unpredictable and yet there’s something calming and safe about being in the wild.
Mary’s curiosity and enjoyment of continually learning are other characteristics I responded too. One of the reasons I love being a writer is how one never stops learning how to improve and do things differently. I like to think Mary and I might’ve been friends had we known one another. But I am in awe of her and perhaps I would’ve been intimidated by her presence. Either way, I’m grateful to her for having inspired me to write Follow Me to Africa. Thank you, Dr Leakey!
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Penny Haw was a journalist and columnist before turning to fiction. Her books feature remarkable women, illustrate her love for nature and animals, and explore the interconnectedness of all living things. Penny’s works of biographical historical fiction are published by Sourcebooks Landmark and include Follow Me to Africa, The Invincible Miss Cust, and The Woman at the Wheel. Her other books include The Wilderness Between Us, which is contemporary fiction while Nicko is a children’s book. She was the recipient of the 2024 Philida Literary Award for her “oeuvre of literary excellence”. Penny lives in Hout Bay near Cape Town, South Africa with her husband and three dogs, all of whom are well-walked. Read more about her at https://pennyhaw.com/.
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Follow Me to Africa
Historical fiction inspired by the story of groundbreaking paleoanthropologist Mary Leakey, Follow Me to Africa is a sweeping, dual-timeline story of intergenerational friendship, a meditation on the beauty of the natural world, and a celebration of the women who pave the way for those to come.
It’s 1983 and seventeen-year-old Grace Clark has just lost her mother when she begrudgingly accompanies her estranged father to an archaeological dig at Olduvai Gorge on the Serengeti plains of Tanzania. Here, seventy-year-old Mary Leakey enlists Grace to sort and pack her fifty years of work and memories.
Their interaction reminds Mary how she pursued her ambitions of becoming an archaeologist in the 1930s by sneaking into lectures and working on excavations. When well-known paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey commissions her to illustrate a book, she’s not expecting to fall in love with the older married man. Mary then follows Louis to East Africa, where she falls in love again, this time with Olduvai Gorge, where her work defines her as a great scientist and allows her to step out of Louis’s shadow.
In time, Mary and Grace learn they are more alike than they thought, which eventually leads them to the secret that connects them. They also discover a mutual deep love for animals, and when Lisa, an injured cheetah, appears at camp, Mary and Grace work together to save her. On the morning Grace is due to leave, the girl—and the cheetah—are nowhere to be found, and it becomes a race against time to rescue Grace before the African bush claims her.
From the acclaimed author of The Invincible Miss Cust and The Woman at the Wheel comes an adventurous, dual timeline tale that explores the consequences of our choices, wisdom that comes with retrospection, and relationships that make us who we are, based on the extraordinary real life of Mary Leakey.
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Category: On Writing
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