The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

Book: The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

Publishing date: January 17th 201

Publisher: HarperCollins

Pages: 307

Goodreads: Link

Synopsis: 

Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.

Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line.

Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better.

Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create Ivan’s unforgettable first-person narration in a story of friendship, art, and hope.

Review:

I have no idea what made me pick up this book. Was it the adorable cover that kept staring at me at the bookstore, or perhaps some unknown cosmic power, but I am glad I ended-up reading it. It was cute. It was funny. It was sad. To be truly honest, I was unsure of whether to write a review for this at all or not. It is not like there are a lot of other gorilla-narrated-books out there that I could compare this to. 

While reading I experienced many mixed emotions. Was I to laugh? Was I to cry? How come a seemingly cute and simplistic action of a gorilla made my heart clench? I questioned my own view on animals a lot, and I guess that was exactly the point. Most humans tend to look down on animals and doubt the capacity of their intelligence in comparison to our own. 

This book, being from the perspective of a gorilla, raises a lot of interesting points. Are the lives of animals too simplistic or perhaps we, humans, over complicate everything. If miscommunication between people can cause misunderstandings then it is safe to assume that our inability to communicate with animals causes us to mistreat them whether that is on purpose or not. That is what The One and Only Ivan reminds us of.

In conclusion, I think that this book is worth a read. Interestingly constructed and cleverly told - The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate is a touching story of friendship and finding a place of your own in the world.

List of Books I have read this year:
 https://mybookaddiction101.blogspot.com.ee/2017/08/books-read-in-2017.html