In 1990, when Vince Smith—currently manager of the Diane Fossey Gorilla Fund's mountain gorilla conservation program— was working as a senior keeper at Chester Zoo in the English countryside, a newborn chimpanzee in his care was abandoned by her mother. Named Sophie, the infant chimp was taken home and hand-reared by Vince and his wife. Six months later another new baby arrived: Oliver, their son. A Chimp in the Family is the compelling and entertaining account of Sophie's life. Vince Smith vividly describes the parallel upbringing of Sophie and Oliver—through her early years with Vince and his family, her traumatic journey back to the zoo and her unsuccessful efforts to socialize with other chimps, her repatriation to Africa and reunion with her human foster family, and her integration in a semi-wild group of chimpanzees. A book both humorous (a family outing with both babies to the local pizzeria) and ultimately heartbreaking, A Chimp in the Family provides fascinating photographs and insights into the nature of our closest-living relatives—as well as the nature of human development.

British naturalist Jane Goodall provides an intimate portrait of a group of chimpanzees in the jungles of Africa which she has studied for many years.

A schoolmaster in the heart of Africa takes his best and most attentive student, a chimp, to England. The chimp, Emily, has learned to read and obtained a classically trained mind. We listen as her thoughts become a searchlight upon the English culture of the 1920s. A remarkable social satire, and a best seller.

“Alternately joyous and heartbreaking...” —Jane Goodall A moving and revealing biography of Norway’s most famous chimpanzee. Julius is a national celebrity, the inspiration behind pop hits and bestselling books. He’s also a chimpanzee, born in captivity, but raised in a zookeeper’s home after his own mother rejects him. Julius’s new parents change his diapers and comfort him when he has nightmares, and their daughters play with him. But soon they must reintroduce Julius to the zoo, a challenging task that brings new learnings on primate behavior and the dangers of animal celebrity. Alternately humorous and heartbreaking, Almost Human shows that primates are more like us than we once thought possible. It also charts the transformation of one zoo over time: from a small operation of animals behind bars to a fast-growing attraction coming to terms with twenty-first-century views on animal rights and welfare.

The Development of an Extraordinary Species We human beings share 98 percent of our genes with chimpanzees. Yet humans are the dominant species on the planet -- having founded civilizations and religions, developed intricate and diverse forms of communication, learned science, built cities, and created breathtaking works of art -- while chimps remain animals concerned primarily with the basic necessities of survival. What is it about that two percent difference in DNA that has created such a divergence between evolutionary cousins? In this fascinating, provocative, passionate, funny, endlessly entertaining work, renowned Pulitzer Prize–winning author and scientist Jared Diamond explores how the extraordinary human animal, in a remarkably short time, developed the capacity to rule the world . . . and the means to irrevocably destroy it.