The ‘true story of a young Giraffe’s travels to France in 1826’ byline in the Sydney Puppet Theatre’s flyer for their show Z for Giraffe piqued my curiousity. Amazon lists four books telling the story of the giraffe, who was called Zafara. Two are picture books for 4 to 8 year olds: The King’s Giraffe by Mary Jo Collier and Peter Colier, and The Giraffe that Walked to Paris by Nancy Milton. (Incidentally, I wonder why the latter is commanding prices between US$100 and US$200?). A Giraffe for France by Leith Hillard, is for children a little older, 9 to 12.

Zarafa: A Giraffe’s True Story, from Deep in Africa to the Heart of Paris by Michael Allin seems to be the most complete account of how Zafara (a present from the Ottoman viceroy of Egypt intended to distract King Charles X while Egyptian forces invaded Greece) took France by storm, causing Zafaramania, as this review of Allin’s book by Leonard Gill relates:

‘Parisians, being Parisians, immediately saw spots, on textiles, wallpaper, crockery, soap, even furniture, and went to extended lengths to capture her profile in everything from topiary to coiffure. With hair piled fashionably high a la Girafe, women took to the floor to fit themselves and their towering creations inside carriages, and men took to learning the intricacies of tying the “giraffique” cravat to go with their “giraffique” hats. “Belly of Giraffe,” “Giraffe in love,” and “Giraffe in exile” were the season’s colors. And that winter, a new strain of influenza, “Giraffe flu,” hit the city.’

(The price for copies of this one starts at US$0.95 …)