ti-coyo and his shark a book by the French author clement richer and translated into English by Gerard Hopkins. published by Rupert hart-davids, London 1951.
the book is set in the carribean on the island of Martinique before and after the eruption of mount pelee. ti-coyo as a boy, rescues an injured baby shark which he names manidou. in time ti-coyo becomes the sharks handler. and with manidou's help he is able to corner the lucrative coin diving market which tourists to st.pierre made so profitable. not without some scandal though, as diving boy after diving boy goes down into the sharks maw and only Ti-Coyo is unharmed. ti-coyo becomes rich and falls in love with the flaxen-haired princess of his dreams.in return ti-coyo saves manidou from hunters. the shark saves Ti-Coyo,his parents, and his sweetheart when Mount Pelée erupts and pours destruction over St. Pierre . manidou helps them escape by taking them through a tidal wave that follows to a neighboring island, eventually bringing Ti-Coyo home again in a cyclone.
in 1962 a film version of the book was made called Tiki and the shark. a rare cinema poster advertising the film is available on wildfolk.
