The Backyard Tribe
by Neil B. Shulman M.D.

Hardback - The story of a doctor on a mission in Africa who finds a little Maasai girl who needs heart surgery. The doctor hands over his credit card so that she and her family can come to the US for her surgery. When he meets the plane, the entire tribe has come. They set up an African village in his back yard. Walt Disney has developed a screenplay.

$16.95

Hardcover (March 1994)
St. Martin's Press; ISBN: 0312105134

Excerpt:
The three Maasai warriors stood motionless in the terraced backyard a few blocks away from the Paynes' house. The afternoon sun glinted off the long steel blades of their spears. In their other hands, they gripped the handles of their buffalo-hide shields. Beneath their towering ostrich-feather and lion-mane headdresses, their faces were expressionless as they watched the swimmer splash furiously back and forth in his single-lap pool.

Ten minutes later they caused quite a stir at little Carol Martin's sixth birthday party. Her little friends stood with gaping mouths as blond-haired Carol, blindfolded and staggering forward with the donkey tail, headed straight toward the warriors, who stood by the hedge watching the party in fascination.

After that, the warriors continued to forge ahead through the subdivision until they reached a hill. In the distance, a long clearing sloped toward a white-columned mansion. From the ridge, they enjoyed a view of the ten or so dairy cows grazing in the lush grass.

A sign on the rail fence read HAWK FARM, HOME OF BABS THE COW.