Based on real events, The Rhino Keeper follows Clara, an Indian rhinoceros, and her handlers, a sea captain and his charge whom he loves as a son, Douwe, and Zubin, while they traveled Europe in the 18th century to show the world this miraculous animal.

The story is a dual timeline starting in the present time when a college student, named Andrea who is studying history stumbles upon documents hidden in a secret drawer inside a desk in her dorm room about a rhinoceros. We are transported back to 1740 where we begin the journey with Clara.

The audiobook, narrated by Caroline Hewitt, weaves together nicely. The vivid descriptions helped paint the picture of the landscapes, clothing, and Clara. Her use of different accents helped pull together the story and give it a worldly and emotional experience. This one checked multiple boxes for me. I absolutely enjoy based on real event books. In addition to that, the book also had a mysterious feel and had you wondering what would happen next. If you enjoyed West With Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge then I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, History Through Fiction, and as always Jillian Forsberg for the opportunity to enjoy this audiobook before its release on February 14, 2025. All thoughts and opinions are my own

I picked this book for the cover, knowing I'm not much into historical novels. Halfway through, I was recommending it and now can't wait for the opportunity to see a rhino! I fell in love with Clara and all of those who loved her. What a tangled web that was so beautifully presented!

Okay, that was a bit of a disappointment. Firstly, the book follows two storylines, and both of them feel like they could have been developed into a book of each own. There are some problems involving characters. All the characters felt really underdeveloped, especially the secondary ones.

For example the historical storyline introduces us to a woman posing as a male sailor, who is set up as this adventurous woman who wants independence from the shackles of society and would risk potentially being court martialed for that goal. But after heronly a couple of scenes of this characterization it all goes down the drain and she's reduced to being the male protagonist's barely present love interest.

Another problem with character was the presence of big bad villains in both the contemporary and historical narratives. Those characters were completely unnecessary for the story and underline one of the other major issues I have with it - the black and white thinking present in the characters' thinking and the story's messaging.

In this narrative there is no in-between - you're either a selfish evildoer who doesn't care about animals, or you absolutely love them. This is also an extreme example of how some animals rights activism reduces views they consider as opposing animal rights to caricatures (on a side tangent, hunting, if done observing legislation, is absolutely necessary for nature conservation, because human activity leads to overpopulation of some species, and I'm not taking any shit on this). Especially the fact that Adnrea was against trophy hunting (which I'm also opposed to) but had little to say against zoos (some of which are far from ethical, with that being an major issue fought by animal rights activists) is the best example I have for that.

Basically, the only reason I'm not giving this one star is that Clara was adorable.

The story starts off with a girl being terrified of taxidermy animals. She is so afraid that she rejects her rich boyfriend's marriage proposal and runs screaming from the house. That is the most interesting part of the story. I was so bored. I got 20% into the book and just never felt compelled to turn it back on. The narrator's fake Indian accent was distracting and I just can't. I love rhinos and I'm sure Clara was a cutie, but no thank you.

Based on a true story, this book tells of a 18th century man, Douewmout, as he cares for and transports a rhino by cart and boat. In an additional timeline about 300 years later, Andrea is an intern assisting in the preservation of graves and comes across the grave of Douew. This book was heartfelt seeing the love and devotion that Douew had for his beloved rhino, Clara. While it was interesting to have the alternate timeline with Andrea, I would have been just fine without it as well. The story of Douew and Clara traveling from India to Europe is the star of this book. Editing down the fiction and following more of the history would have held my attention more. On audiobook, it seems to drag out and gets a bit repetitive.

Thank you to NetGalley and History Through Fiction for the audiobook for review.

This dual timeline narrative goes between present day and the 18th century. Andrea is studying in the Netherlands where she accidentally finds a document about a rhino. This allows her too study the archives and she's more and more curious about the story of the rhino.

The other timeline follows the life of the baby rhino, Clara, and how it ended up in Europe. Clara is owned by a ships Captain. This is based on a true story of a rhino brought to Europe.

The narrator does a great job. The book is interesting but a bit long at parts.

3.75 stars

Okay, so as an Indian, who loves animals, and historic fiction, I was really glad to receive the approval for its ARC from Netgalley! And there's no ounce of regret I feel for reading it.

It was beautiful, sweet, with ups and downs, a great balance of light-hearted happy moments and the serious tense ones. The journey of Clara and Douwe and Zubin (yes, I know he's fictional, but in my heart, he was real.) was portrayed in such a charming manner that it was hard not to feel an ounce of affection every time Douwe called Zubin his 'son', that was my favourite part of the story for sure.
I also loved the chapters with Andrea's journey of discovering the history, and all that drama on the side. The short chapters of present time in between the longer ones of the medieval era (not sure if that's the right term for it) felt like a refreshing break ngl.

I really liked the narrator's style and voice while narrating, it was certainly riveting. But I wish a little effort was made in the pronunciation of the Indian words by the Indian characters. I have heard many audiobooks, where the pronunciation of French, Spanish, German words are all done really aptly with the accents and all, and was expecting at least the correct pronunciation, if not the accent. But the accent and pronunciations being so incorrect BY the Indian character (Zubin) just felt like a dismissal to me.

I loved this story... I found it charming, and really enjoyed both the historical and contemporary timeline. I thought either timeline would have been great on its own, and was a true bonus that we got two great stories in one!

I loved Clara. Jillian Forsberg did such an excellent job describing her sweetness, her natural playful self, and her connection with her humans. She had some tense moments of understandable fear, and the end was heartbreaking, but written with such respect and reverence.

I really enjoyed the aspect of animal rights (I love my fur babies), and loved that Andrea stood her ground.

All in all, I was engaged, entertained, and uplifted by this great book - thank you for all the time it must have taken to research this story!

Title: The Rhino Keeper
Author: Jillian Forsberg
Format: 🎧
Narrator: Caroline Hewitt
Publisher: History Through Fiction
Genre: Historical Fiction
Audiobook Pub Date February 14, 2025
My Rating: 3.4 Stars
Pages: 272

Based on the true story of a Dutch sea captain who traveled with an Indian rhinoceros called Clara across 18th century Europe,
This historical based story is told about rhino being taken from India to Europe in the 18th century.
Story is told in two timelines: 1740 –
In 1740 by Ship captain Douwemout van der.
And in 2022 – by College student Andrea Clarkson
This historical plot based on a rhino being taken from India to Europe in the 18th century.
Although not my typical read- I was surprised how much I enjoyed it.

Thank you NetGalley and History Through Fiction. (Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members’ Audiobooks for this audiobook. Audiobook Publishing Date February 14, 2025.

To say the least this was a pretty boring read.

I was hopeful as the premise sounded great, however it just wasn’t for me I think. There was an awful lot of telling opposed to showing in this slower paced story - which is never what I enjoy.

The Rhino information was interesting and at first I quite liked Andrea. But then her character just didn’t seem consistent as the story went on.

My interest also waned when it felt like there wasn’t rhyme or reason to why we would get the time flash back and forth. It didn’t feel succinct for me.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.

An interesting story based on the true story of Clara the rhino who toured Europe in the 1700s. The historical events are fascinating, and led me to do some more research into Clara. However, this is an overly simplistic and romanticized book. The characters were very flat, there was a lot of telling instead of showing, events happened too fast and in random, unrealistic ways and I found the romantic storylines too forced and awkward. However, readers may not care about these points and enjoy the story for what it is.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced audiobook. All opinions are my own.

This one I thoroughly enjoyed, and I really adored the voice reading it to me. Might have especially enjoyed it because I'm Dutch, and it always delights me to hear stories that have my own country as a part of it (Leiden is also where my brother studied).

What an incredibly well-researched, captivating, and heart-warming story about the magnificent Clara the rhino!

I went into this book with zero expectations and was pleasantly surprised. The amount of historical detail is astounding and truly made this book an enjoyable read, especially coming from someone who is an avid historical fiction reader.

The dual timeline was drove the plot forward and kept me engaged with the story; I especially enjoyed the opening scene and actually LOL’d from shock.

Personally, the writing style was more direct with much more “tell” rather than “show” which hindered me a bit from fully connecting emotionally with the characters. However, by the end Douwe and Clara fully stole my heart and I may have even shed a tear or two.

The audiobook, narrated by Caroline Hewitt, was engaging and flowed very well. I appreciated the nuance and detail she provided for each character’s unique voice.

Brava, Jillian Forsberg for a phenomenal read! I will be recommending this book to all my animal-lover reader friends.

Thank you to Netgalley for the audiobook ARC.

This was "Water for Elephants" set in the late 1600s with a rhino. I loved the story and the characters, both past and present, though I was definitely more taken with the characters of the past. It seems the author was too as they are written more like fully rounded people and not black or white like Andrea. I loved Clara and Zubin and their relationship as well as the relationship that developed between Zubin and the Captain. However I think this is an overly- romanticized version of history, the history we would like to be true instead of the one that actually existed: sexism, racism, colonizers who decimated the lands they conquered.
Thank you to NetGalley, the author Jillian Forsburg, and History Through Fiction for my advance copy of this audiobook.

The Rhino Keeper is an easy read with a lot of heart, and a few flaws. This dual timeline historical fiction offers up much to think about – human rights, animal rights, women’s rights – all while telling the fascinating tale of the first rhinoceros to travel Europe. Despite the volume of research the author did, some of the cultural representations are inaccurate, though clearly not intentionally, as she obviously aspires to a commendable degree of inclusivity. I also wish the author had focused more on character development than the unnecessary romance elements of the plot. However, I still found myself rooting for the protagonists in both timelines and thoroughly charmed by Clara the rhinoceros.
Thank you, History Through Fiction, for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

THE RHINO KEEPER by Jillian Forsberg

Thank you to NetGalley and History Through Fiction, LLC for the audiobook of this story.
Narration by, Caroline Hewitt, was done very well.

This delightful book is based on the true story of a Dutch sea captain who toured Europe with an Indian rhinoceros named, Clara, in the 18th century, along with Zubin, the young caretaker for, Clara. A young college student, Andrea, makes a life-changing discovery while studying abroad in the Netherlands in 2022.

If you liked the book, West With Giraffes, I think you might enjoy this book, as well. Dual timelines creates this endearing tale spanning continents and centuries. I was pulled in right from the beginning of this enchanting journey of Clara and her companions along with the story of the aspiring historian, Andrea.

From a modern viewpoint, traveling continents with a wild animal in the 18th century and not having the knowledge to fully understand and properly care for the needs of Clara was a tad disturbing. I enjoyed this book and the unique story of Clara. I look forward to more from this author.

This book was a beautiful listen and the fact that it is a part of history I knew nothing about was so special. Clara sounds like a lovely animal full of fun and warmth - what happened to her horn was horrible and I can't believe that still happens to this day. The relationship between the owner and the keeper was so great. Thank you to netgalley for letting me listen and review.

A book based on a true story of a Dutch sea captain who traveled with an Indian rhinoceros called Clara across 18th century Europe.

It was a beautiful and lovely book to read. I was captivated by the relationship of Douwe and Clara. I thoroughly enjoyed the historical timeline of the book.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the audiobook/DRC.

The Rhino Keeper is a captivating historical fiction, dual timeline tale about the life, travels, and adventures of an 18th century, 5000 pound Rhino named Clara and the Dutch sea captain and the boy who bonded with her for life. It’s always such a delight to stumble upon a historical fiction book that tells a unique and beautiful story, AND teaches you something new. The author skillfully integrated fact with fiction to bring to the reader history, suspense, found family, and mystery. I love the emphasis on the timeless theme of how animals impact humans and humans impact animals. This author did a tremendous amount of research!

Thank you to NetGalley, History Through Fiction, and Jillian Forsberg for the free audio version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

2.5 stars rounded up. This book was incredibly inconsistent. I enjoyed parts and couldn’t stop rolling my eyes at others. I don’t mind dual timelines but I don’t understand the point of the modern day story. It was so unnecessary and I truly disliked the main character. Her “trauma” (which she mentions constantly) made zero sense to me and, while clearly meant to be significant , did nothing to drive the plot. I wish the author had scrapped that storyline (as well as the silly romance) or, better yet, focused solely on Clara’s story.