After a failed revolutionary attempt leads Abel, a young European explorer, to seek refuge in the primeval forests of Venezuela, the curious call of an unseen bird lures him deeper and deeper into the jungle, where he encounters the source of the siren song—a lovely, half-wild girl with mysterious powers. Thus, in the “green mansions” of the forest, begins the romance between Abel and Rima, who speaks the languages of birds and longs to return to the land of her birth to be reunited with others of her kind. But the love that flowers between them is soon overshadowed by cruelty and sorrow …

Written by a British naturalist with a deep love and knowledge of wilderness areas, the richly colored tale transports listeners to the lush atmosphere of the Amazonian outback. Originally published in 1904, this haunting classic offers a narrative of lyric beauty as well as a fascinating link between nineteenth-century Romanticism and modern environmentalism.