Rickie and Henri

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3–This is a quiet yet candid story about Rickie, a chimpanzee who lost her mother in a brutal hunter's attack, and who was taken from the rain forest to be sold in Brazzaville, Congo Republic. Goodall does not shy away from the imagined suffering a chimpanzee infant would experience in such circumstances yet the story remains elegant. Rickie bonded with the Congolese man who took her home and found it intolerable when he left on a business trip, so she became deeply attached to the family dog, Henri. Operating on various levels, this story is about the plight of African animals, human kindness, and the compassion and friendship animals can exhibit toward one another. The illustrations masterfully capture terror and despair in Rickie's eyes without being maudlin–they are honest and clearly support the story. Goodall closes with a postscript about Rickie and a Web site for her institute for wildlife research, education, and conservation.–Linda M. Kenton, San Rafael Public Library, CA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* PreS-Gr. 3. Renowned wildlife conservationist Goodall tells a heartbreaking animal story in a powerful picture book that stays true to the experience of a baby chimpanzee in Central Africa. It begins in the wild rain forest with a full-page close-up of the baby in the loving embrace of her mother. Then a hunter shoots the mother and offers the traumatized baby for sale in a Brazzaville market. She is saved by a kind Congolese businessman. He loves her, and she loves him, but the rest of his family is hostile. While the man is at work, she bonds with Henri, the family's shaggy, brown dog. It's your archetypal abandoned foundling story, and Marks' line-and-watercolor illustrations show the baby wrenched from her mother's arms, in loving connection with a man and a dog, and, finally, with a chimp mother in a Jane Goodall orphan sanctuary. Set against softly colored backgrounds, the pictures occasionally verge on the sentimental, but few children will be able to resist the images of the small black chimp with huge, sad eyes clinging tightly to the dog, riding on his back, or curled sleeping against him. Goodall makes clear the terror and the love, and in a brief afterword she asks for readers' support in sanctuaries' work. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Book Description
Rickie the chimpanzee loved living with her mother in the rain forests of Central Africa, warm and safe. Until the day the hunters came, and took Rickie away to sell at a Congelese market. Luckily, she was resuced by a kind man who adopted Rickie and cared for her. Best of all, he provided an unexpected friend in his dog Henri. This true story of friendship is heart-warmingly brought to life by renowned scientist Dr. Jane Goodall.

About the Author
Renowned scientist and conservationist Dr. Jane Goodall grew up in southern England, where she dreamed of traveling to Africa to study its fascinating animals. In 1960 at the age of twenty-six, she realized that dream by traveling to Tanzania to observe the chimpanzees of Gombe National Park. Defying convention by giving the chimps names instead of numbers, she came to discover that chimpanzees have distinct personalities and long-lasting family bonds. Her passionate study of these magnificent animals led her to found the Gombe Research Center, as well as the Jane Goodall Institute, of which she is the scientific director. She has also invited young people to join her in preserving wildlife habitats and confronting environmental issues by developing a program called "Roots & Shoots," which boasts more than 6,000 groups registered in 87 countries. The recipient of numerous prestigious awards, Jane Goodall has written books for both adults and children.


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Rickie was born in the rain forest of Central Africa. When she was about two years old, her peaceful life with her mother and the other chimpanzees was shattered. After shooting her mother, a hunter forced Rickie into a small basket and carried her away to a market in the Congo Republic. Cold, frightened, and hungry, Rickie lay in a small ball and had been given up for dead when a kind man spotted her. Rescuing her from the hunter, he wrapped her in his jacket and carried her home. The tall man fed Rickie and made sure she was comfortable, but he was away from home a lot and Rickie was lonely. She sought comfort from Henri, the resident dog. At first Henri ignored Rickie, but eventually a friendship developed. Rickie rode around on Henri's back during the day and slept close to him at night. When Rickie grew too large to remain with her human family and Henri, the kind man took her to the Jan Goodall Institute's Tchimpounga Sanctuary. Rickie remains there with other chimpanzee orphans to the present day. Appealing full-color illustrations pull the reader into this engrossing true story and elicit sympathy for the cause of the chimpanzees. Jane Goodall's letter at the end provides information about ways that people can help young chimps like Rickie. 2004, Minedition/Penguin, Ages 5 to 8.


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