Ape House

Sara Gruen wrote Ape House and Water for Elephants.  Both books explore the human/animal relationship.  In Ape House the animal is a bonobo, one of the great apes.  I had never heard of bonobos before but they are real.  Similar in size to a chimpanzee, bonobos are more peaceful and more sexually active.  One of the main characters is Isabel Duncan, a scientist, who works in a language lab with a family of bonobos.  The bonobos have learned sign language.  They understand spoken English and will communicate to scientists and to each other with signs. Another main character is John Thigpen, a struggling journalist who is assigned to write a story about the bonobos and the language lab.  Just as in Water for Elephants, Isabel and John struggle against other humans who want to exploit the animals for profit and personal gain.  Isabel and John want to make sure the bonobos are treated decently.  Unlike the other book, Ape House has some slapstick comedy written into it. Some of the comedy is predictable and a little over the top.  Also unlike the other book, Ape House points the shaming finger at reality television instead of circuses.  I liked the character development, the respect for animal life, and the pacing of the book.