Product Description: Towards the end of the 1950s biologists, investigating the question of how art originated, came up with the idea of getting monkeys to paint pictures. Drawing on a large body of historical and scientific evidence, this fascinating book sets out a new interpretation of quasi-artistic behavior in monkeys, showing that there may be a fine line between it and 'true' art...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Kusasi is a three-hundred-pound male who could rip your arms and legs off like daisy petals if he wanted. Princess was taught sign language by a researcher and had a limited ability to combine vocabulary. . ..For centuries the shaggy red orangutan lived in peaceful seclusion in the jungles of Southeast Asia and kept the ancient secrets about its quiet, contemplative nature. But that time has come to an end, as one of the earth's most intelligent creatures has, sadly, also become one if its vanishing species. "I went up a muddy brown river called the Sekonyer into the jungles of southern Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo, to see orangutans as they really are and to know them the way they deserve to be known. . ."In The Intimate Ape, journalist Shawn Thompson brings together a global assemblage of primatologists, conservationists, and volunteers to reveal the intricate life of these majestic primates. As he travels through the steamy rainforests of Sumatra and the jungle river valleys of Borneo, visiting nature preserves and observing conservation programs, Thompson describes the emotional and intellectual lives of orangutans and recognizes the people who have committed their lives to understand, protect, and ultimately rescue this powerful yet sensitive relation of humanity. "An extraordinary book that adds to our understanding of the animal world." --From the Foreword by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson After 17 years as a reporter, photographer, and editor at newspapers in Ontario, Shawn Thompson became a full-time assistant professor in the journalism department at Thompson Rivers University, in British Columbia, Canada. He has traveled the world to find orangutans and interview orangutan scientists, including trips to Sumatra and Borneo (the only places in the world where orangutans are found in the wild), Java, the Philippines, Australia, the Netherlands, and the United States. He lives in the small city of Kamloops, in the mountainous interior of British Columbia. This is his sixth book.

Product Description: A single mother of five, Ellen Rogers has endured her fair share of tragedy, having lost both her first husband and stepdaughter to cancer. But nothing could have prepared Rogers for the June 2005 car accident that left her son Ned-now twenty-five years old-a quadriplegic with a brain injury...read more

A single mother of five, Ellen Rogers has endured her fair share of tragedy, having lost both her first husband and stepdaughter to cancer. But nothing could have prepared Rogers for the June 2005 car accident that left her son Ned-now twenty-five years old-a quadriplegic with a brain injury. The road to Ned's recovery was long and discouraging, but when Helping Hands: Monkey Helpers for the Disabled stepped in to provide him with a service animal to help him cope with his disabilities, things turned around. Kasey-an adorable, mischievous, fun-loving capuchin monkey-helped Ned and his family to see the world in a new way. In this extraordinary memoir, Rogers paints a vivid portrait of a large and loving family and the challenges that they face together. She shares the low points (the phone call that changed her son's life), the high points (the monkey play that led to Ned's increased mobility), and the strangely in-between (bathing Kasey in the kitchen sink) with equal parts heart and humor. The story of an ordinary family thrust into extraordinary circumstances, this inspiring book proves that old adage: where there's life, there's hope.

Product Description: This volume identifies the primary problems faced in conserving wild populations of gorillas throughout Africa, pinpointing new approaches to solving these problems and outlining the increased role that zoos can play in gorilla conservation...read more

Product Description: This book examines the unique contribution of the Bossou field site to our knowledge of chimpanzees, particularly the endangered West African subspecies. Coverage ranges from their socio-ecology to cognition, to their ability to use stone and perishable tools.