Karen Paolillo was born in Hertfordshire, UK, but has been living in the African bush for the last two decades. She is the Founder of the Turgwe Hippo Trust in the south east Lowveld of Zimbabwe. She shares her bush home with her French husband, Jean-Roger, six cats and one slender mongoose named Squiggle. Her principal neighbours are the Turgwe Hippos which inspire her passion and dedication. Having watched them daily for the last twenty years, she has become known as "the Lady who talks to Hippos", or "The River-Horse Whisperer". Karen's first book, about life with the hippos, will be published in 2014 by Penguin South Africa.
