Rescued

Schrefer (Threatened; Endangered) vividly portrays a sibling-like relationship between John and the orangutan John's father brought home from Indonesia. After John's parents' divorce, he moves across the country with his mother while Raja stays behind. The two are dramatically reunited after Raja ends up in a roadside zoo. Schrefer gives readers a complex narrative that brings animal-rights issues to the fore. Reading list.

Schrefer (Endangered, rev. 1/13; Threatened, rev. 5/14) takes a hard look at familial relationships: between mothers and fathers, parents and children, and brothers -- one of whom, in this case, is an orangutan. It is the summer before fifth grade when orangutan Raja arrives in the Atlanta suburbs, procured impulsively by John's father during a business trip to Indonesia. The bond between boy and orangutan is instant and permanent, and their sibling-like interactions are vividly drawn. Increasingly angry exchanges between John's parents eventually lead to divorce, and John moves across the country with his mother while Raja stays back with his father. Raja and John are dramatically reunited after John's father can no longer afford to care for Raja and the orangutan ends up in a roadside zoo. Schrefer again gives readers a deep and compassionate view of a great ape within a complex narrative that brings animal-rights issues to the fore. What should be done with adult primates who have been raised with humans but can no longer live with them? And what about the dreadful situation in Raja's homeland where the demand for palm oil is decimating his species? These questions and more offer much to ponder throughout this well-researched and emotionally rich work. monica edinger