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Mijbil the Otter Summary Analysis and Explanation By Gavin Maxwell
About the Poet Gavin Maxwell
| Poet Name | Gavin Maxwell |
| Born | 15 July 1914, Elrig, United Kingdom |
| Died | 7 September 1969, Inverness, United Kingdom |
| Education | Stowe School, Hertford College |
| Movies | Ring of Bright Water |
Mijbil the Otter Summary of the Lesson
Gavin Maxwell lives in a cottage in Camusfeama in the West Highlands in Scotland. He had a pet dog Jonnie.
When Jonnie died, he was too sad to think of keeping a dog again. But life without a pet was lonely. So he decided to have another pet. He didn’t want to have a dog. He thought that he would have an otter instead of a dog. He shared this idea with his friend who immediately supported him and suggested to get one in the Tigris marshes.
The author received a sack from two Arabs at his residence in southern Iraq. In the sack there was an otter.
It was a small creature like a small dragon. It was covered with mud from head to tail. The author named it ‘Mijbil’. For the first twenty-four hours it was neither hostile nor friendly. He was simply aloof and indifferent.
On the first night it slept on the floor but the second night it slept on the author’s bed. Mijbil started taking interest in its surroundings. When Mijbil was taken to the bathroom, he enjoyed his bath. The author knew that the otters are fond of water.
Now Mijbil used to go to the water, opened the tap himself and enjoyed his bath. Soon it became habitual of being called as ‘Mij’. It spent most of its time in playing with a rubber ball and marbles were his favourite toys for pastime.
The days passed peacefully at Basra. The author had to come back. He dreaded the prospect of transporting Mij to England and to Camusfeama. He had to book a flight in another airline as the British Airline would not fly animals to London.
The airline advised that Mij should be packed in a box. The author had a box made, put Mij into it an hour before he started for the airport so that Mij would become accustomed to it and went for a meal. When he returned there was silence in the box.
He noticed blood from the airholes. He opened it and the blood-spattered. Mij whimpered and caught his leg. There was no time so the author put it back in the box and hurried for the airport.
In the plane, one of the air hostesses cooperated with the author and advised him to keep the pet on his knee.
But soon there was chaos in the plane. Otter disappeared at high speed down the aircraft. There were squawks and shrieks all around. The author tried to look for him. The air hostess helped him in the search. Otter was back with the author.
The author remained in London for nearly a month. Mij used to play for hours with different toys. The author used to take otter out for exercise and walk. Both walked through the streets. In London, people did not recognise an otter. They guessed what kind of animal it was. The author faced a stream of questions filled with guesses.