This is a beautiful story told from Ivan's point of view - a gorilla stuck in a roadside arcade. The themes of love, loss, persistence, optimism, and survival are present throughout, as well as thought provoking scenes discussing the benefits and drawbacks of deceiving oneself.
I enjoyed this discussion of anger:
"The
freeway billboard has a drawing of Mack in his clown clothes and Stella on her
hind legs and an angry animal with fierce eyes and unkempt hair.
"That animal is supposed to be me, but the artist made a mistake. I am never angry.
"Anger is precious. A silverback uses anger to maintain order and warn his troop of danger. When my father beat his chest, it was to say, Beware, listen, I am in charge. I am angry to protect you, because that is what I was born to do.
"Here in my domain, there is no one to protect."
While this book is short and written simply, I found it incredibly thought provoking.
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