Duma plot
"Some friendships are wilder than others"
In South Africa, Xan and his father Peter encounter a young cheetah. They take the cub home and name him Duma. Soon Duma becomes a member of the family. When the animal is almost fully grown, Xan and Peter make plans to return it to its natural habitat. But before they get around to it, Peter suddenly becomes ill and Xan moves to Johannesburg with his mother. Here the cheetah manages to escape and throw things upside down at Xan's school. To keep Duma free, Xan decides to flee with the animal. He still wants to return Duma to his natural environment and that turns out to be quite an adventure.