Part 1
My name is Bo Marven. You might have heard of my Dad, Nigel Marven. He’s a famous scientist and has had a lot of experience with dangerous and crazy animals. He’s good with prehistoric animals like dinosaurs. When I was six my dad showed me a fossil of a baby dinosaur and since then I’ve been interested in them. He also told me and my Mum about his dream to open a park with real prehistoric animals somehow. That dream he was finally able to make come true with help from some powerful scientists, zoo people, builders and my Mum who is a vet. She likes animals too but thought my Dad was crazy for trying to do this. It did mean he had to leave for a few years until it was built and everything was ready for my Dad to go get the animals. I was sad and cried a little when he left but he visited a few times a year. I still had my Mum who always told me when I would miss my Dad that the park would be amazing and like no other in the world and also that we would be able to live together again soon. She was right too. On my 8th birthday, my Dad came home to us and said that the park was finally finished! He said he was living there and he wanted us to go and live there with him. So, we left our small home in London to live in the wild of South Africa. We all went out there to live in the park! The flight to Africa was very long. My tummy felt sick, my legs were wobbly and I wanted to sleep forever. Mum had to carry me to the jeep that was going to take us to the park. In the jeep, there was a man in the driver’s seat that was slightly chubby with a fuzzy moustache and a bald head. He had a joyful smile on his face and when my Dad chuckled.
“Hello mate.” Dad began shaking the man’s hand.
“So this is the family Nigel?” He asked opening the passenger door for my Dad who got in with a nod.
“Yep, you remember Susan don’t you?” He asked the man who nodded and shook hands with my Mum as she finished strapping me in the back seat.
“Lovely to see you again,” Mum said as she shook his hand. The man then turned to me with a smile.
“And you must be Bo!” he said pointing a finger at me.
“Are going to take us to the park?” I asked and he nodded.
“That’s right, I’m the head keeper at the park, my name’s Bob,” he said and held out his big hand.
“Nice to meet you,” I said grabbing a couple of his fingers with my tiny hand and shook his hand.
“Let’s get going!” he said and started the jeep up. The drive to the park was almost as long as the flight, but much bumpier. My Mum made a point of telling me when we got out in the wild and told me to look out into the sandy land that had some trees and bushes that looked nothing like the ones in London. In the distance were a few herds of different animals like gazelles, zebras and wildebeest. Bob even pointed out a rhino under the shade of a tree with a few birds on its back! The drive was an hour according to my Dad and when we got to the park I looked out the jeep window to see a large mountain with a light blue river running down it and through the park that had a tall boundary wall surrounding it. The large entry gate opened for us with the words ‘prehistoric park’ on it. I frowned at this and tapped my Dad on the arm.
“Dad, why does it say prehistoric park?” I asked and he smiled at me.
“I’d thought you or your mother would ask me that,” he began turning his head to face the way we were going. “It is the name of the park!” He added and I said it to myself quietly. It had a ring to it! When we entered the park there was another drive along a grassy path to a group of wooden huts and a large building that looked like the centre of the park. Bob drove us right to the centre of the buildings then he got out.
“Welcome to the park vets!” he said gesturing with his hand to the impressive building. My Mum got out the jeep and looked with her mouth opened and eyes wide at the building blown away by it. I jumped out after her hearing the passenger’s door of the jeep open and slam shut as my Dad got out of the jeep and walked around it to my mum.
“Advanced medicine, specialist technology and some of the best in the world here on the team. All under the orders of head vet Susan.” Dad explained gesturing as he spoke and finishing with his hands on my Mum’s shoulders and standing behind her. My mum shook her head and turned to him.
“Nigel, where on earth did you get the money?” She asked turning to look back at him.
“It’s funded by the research and governments of the world, to give animals a second chance,” he replied to her.
“Prehistoric animals Dad?!” I asked tilting my head up at him. My Dad smiled and knelt down to my level and spoke to me with a smile.
“That’s right Bo. Prehistoric animals,” he said and I grinned excitedly.
