My Wild and Precious Life: A Memoir of Africa

From walking with lions in the bush to dodging bombs in Tanzania’s largest city, psychologist Susanne Rheault recounts with candor and humility the hard lessons learned during a life working to help impoverished communities in Africa. The daughter of a Green Beret, Susie has lived a transient life ever since she was a young girl. In her engaging memoir, we come to discover her fierce spirit as she seeks out a life of purpose, never shying away from adventures that often carry unseen dangers.

After grieving the sudden death of her first husband, Susie begins to explore Africa, quickly falling in love with the continent, where she starts by running AIDS prevention programs for the Clinton Foundation. Ultimately, she focuses on her last ten years transforming a small two-room orphanage in rural Tanzania into an NGO that boasts a home, an organic farm, and a primary school for 350 children. Throughout her journey Susie forges lifelong connections with her African partners who teach her about local culture and traditions.

With raw authenticity, My Wild and Precious Life shares the tough realities of living alongside families in desperate poverty, while also highlighting the extraordinary warmth of the African people Susie and her colleagues have come to know. This is a story of people working together as they strive for a common goal, always persisting with hope.