Nancy J. Merrick

I wish I could say that I enjoyed this book, but overall I found it disappointing. The cover says it's "part memoir, part travelogue and part clarion call to action." My own thoughts were similar, but more along the lines of part light science reading, part memoir, and part "what I did on my summer vacation." It's obvious that Ms. Merrick is passionate about chimpanzees. I found her descriptions of the chimpanzees and their behavior insightful and entertaining, however the book as a whole feels unfocused to me. The phrasing throughout was somewhat uninspired, not helped by a degree of disjointedness. I can't help but feel that the book as a whole could have benefitted greatly from a more ruthless editor.… (plus d'informations)

I greatly enjoyed the first part of the book that told the story of the author's personal history of encounters and studies of the great apes in Africa, working with the great Jane Goodall to help give sanctuary and protect these majestic animals. The author is obviously passionate about these animals and the fact they have been notoriously mistreated and are now facing possible extinction. The second part of the book talks about how dire the situation in Africa is and what people around the world are doing to try to remedy or slow this situation. The author even details what she believes each individual person can do to help this situation. If we all do our part, there may be a chance to make a difference. I think it's great this author has done her part and has written this book to raise awareness and as a call to action for others to do the same. Thank you for this copy via Library Thing.… (plus d'informations)

Nancy Merrick was awestruck by Jane Goodall in college, spent a semester working at the Gombe preserve, then turned to medicine as a career. 35 years later, she returned to Gombe with her husband and teenage children, on a trip to Africa to see the current state of chimpanzees. The current state is alarmingly fragile, with plummeting population a consequence of habitat destruction and poaching. Though memoir is inserted as background and credential, the book is primarily a survey, describing the various fates of chimpanzees in the wild and used for human purposes, and efforts to save them, either as a species by education and law, or as individuals by providing sanctuary for former medical subjects and movie stars. Alas, it isn’t quite the book it could be, with moral intensity conveyed in stock phrasing.… (plus d'informations)

I have to admit, this one took me a little while to get through. It's definitely not a large book, just not as enjoyable of a read as I had hoped. This is a subject I am very interested in - and have a number of books about - so it was certainly "up my alley" with regards to books I would enjoy. I was just a bit disappointed with parts of it.

On the cover, it is described as, "part memoir, part travelogue, and part clarion call to action." This scattered description is pretty accurate, and to be honest, I wasn't a fan of this method. Not to mention, her time jumps were confusing and unnecessary. As another reviewer said, the portions that were autobiographical were much less enjoyable for me than the rest of it. I wanted to hear more about the chimps, and why we should care/what we should do about it. When she actually moved on from her personal history and focused on the problems and proposed solutions, her arguments were excellent. Honestly, the second half of the book - where she actually concentrates on the crux of the issue - is much, much better than the first half.

I was also a bit distracted by the number of times she mentioned Jane Goodall - to be fair, Jane is definitely the best and most important key figure in any argument about chimpanzees, and a majority of the time, she mentioned her for good reason. But there were times that I found it more like name dropping (i.e., when she mentions missing her in the airport during a layover....etc.) and wasn't needed for a book with such an important message. If she took out a significant portion about herself and her relationship with Jane, and replaced it with information on chimpanzees, it would be a very enjoyable read for me.

Regardless of whether you read the entire book, pick it up and skim through Chapter 23.… (plus d'informations)