57 year old American writer Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create a silverback gorilla named Ivan's unforgettable first-person narration of a story of friendship, art, and hope in this 2011 children's book illustrated by Patricia Castelao and published by HarperCollins.Ivan is caged at Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade for 9,855 days already by his own tally and is generally content with his life as he lives in his domain. He watches television, eats bananas and makes artwork that is sold by the owner, Mack.
Along with Ivan, Stella the elephant and Bob a stray dog, live at the mall. Stella is an older elephant who has a chronic injury in one leg and regularly performs in the daily shows. Unlike Ivan, she has a long memory, and can remember living other places, like the circus where she was taught many of her tricks.
However, Stella would like to live at a zoo, because they have much wider spaces for their domains. She believes that zoos are how humans make amends. When Ruby, a baby elephant is brought to live with Stella and learn new tricks, things begin to change. Stella's old injury causes her to get sick. Just before Stella succumbs to her illness and passes away, she asks Ivan to take care of Ruby and find her a better place.
Ivan uses his art to make a large picture of a zoo and when people see, they begin to protest the treatment of the animals. Although it is an entirely fictional story, it is inspired by the true story of Ivan the western lowland gorilla who lived in a similar situation at a Washington circus store for 27 years and was eventually adopted by Zoo Atlanta.
The novel was the recipient of the Newbery Medal, the highest mark in children's literature, just last year. It has won several other awards and is currently nominated to several reading lists. The One and Only Ivan is currently on display at the Grade School Learning Resource Center of Divine Light Academy Las Piñas and is available for check out.
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