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Endangered

by Eliot Schrefer (Goodreads Author)

4.16 of 5 stars 4.16 · rating details · 769 ratings · 292 reviews

The compelling tale of a girl who must save a group of bonobos--and herself--from a violent coup.

The Congo is a dangerous place, even for people who are trying to do good.

When one girl has to follow her mother to her sanctuary for bonobos, she's not thrilled to be there. It's her mother's passion, and she'd rather have nothing to do with it. But when revolution breaks out...more

Hardcover, 272 pages

Published October 1st 2012 by Scholastic Press (first published September 2012)

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Oct 22, 2012 Monica Edinger rated it 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely did not want to read this book. The advance reader copy sat on my shelf for months untouched as I assumed it was yet another book offering a simplistic view of Africa, one that focused on the plight of an exotic animal while barely acknowledging the complications of the people who lived around it. Having lived in Sierra Leone for two years in the 70s, I'm techy about how the continent is represented, especially by well-intentioned outsiders who focus on its animals at the expense of...more I absolutely did not want to read this book. The advance reader copy sat on my shelf for months untouched as I assumed it was yet another book offering a simplistic view of Africa, one that focused on the plight of an exotic animal while barely acknowledging the complications of the people who lived around it. Having lived in Sierra Leone for two years in the 70s, I'm techy about how the continent is represented, especially by well-intentioned outsiders who focus on its animals at the expense of its people. That said, I know that it is very, very hard to even begin to present to anyone, much less to a young person, the horrible complicated conflicts such as what happened in Sierra Leone a decade ago and what is still happening in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Still it was only when I saw that the book was a finalist for the National Book Award that I finally picked it up. And then did not put it down again until I was done.

The story is from the point of view of Sophie, the product of a Congolese mother who runs a sanctuary for rescued bonobos and an American father. When her parents split up, because schooling would be better in the States she returned there with her father, coming back during vacations to be with her mother. As the book begins Sophie is traveling to her mother's sanctuary when she spots a young bonobo with a trader and buys him, recklessly ignoring the Congolese sanctuary worker who tells her they never do that, it will cause problems, that they only rescue those that are brought to them.

At the sanctuary Sophie works to save the young ape whom she names Otto. It takes no time at all for the two of them to become permanently connected, Sophie functioning as the young bonobo's mother. Schrefer quickly and effectively gives us a sense of the sanctuary, of Sophie's mother, the other workers, and the specifics of the bonobos who are the closest of the great apes to humans. Schrefer, without sentimentality, again and again throughout the book shows readers this commonality, making readers think hard about ourselves as humans and our relationship to others in this world.

Shortly after Sophie's arrival the war arrives at the sanctuary. Schrefer does not shy away at his depiction of the horrors of this. In fact, it was this that won me over completely. For I followed closely the conflict in Sierra Leone, a place I knew well long ago, and there are many commonalities to what has happened in the DRC; the drugged child-soldiers, the frightened villagers, the many dreadful things that have been reported from both regions are all too familiar to me. Schrefer presents them truthfully, at times terrifyingly, and sensitively all steadfastly through Sophie's eyes.

Unable to abandon Otto, instead of leaving the country with the UN, Sophie flees with him. At first she stays with other bonobos, but eventually she has to leave them too and sets out on a difficult journey to find her mother who had been releasing bonobos back into the wild in another part of the country when the war began.

Sophie is a remarkable character, full of grit and gumption, and readers are bound to be riveted as her efforts to save Otto and herself are tested again and again as they make their journey. Schrefer does an amazing job communicating their physical and emotional hardships, giving readers a feel for the community and ways of the bonobos and how they link to us humans, and also a straightforward view of the way the conflict affects humans as well, both the victims and the transgressors.

By the end, I was completely won over. Schrefer has crafted an outstanding work about Africa, about bonobos, and about the complexities of the relationship we humans have with the world around us.(less)

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May 01, 2013 Barb Middleton rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: lisa vegan

Shelves: historical, survival, realistic

I started twiddling out reviews as a class assignment two years ago thinking it would help me remember novels when book-talking with students. Lo and behold, this reflection process has been like a boiling hotpot with questions bubbling to the surface as I bumble along. What makes children's books great versus average or what makes picture books rise to an artistic level? What began as an assignment has morphed into an enjoyable blogging journey into the world of children's literature. A common...more I started twiddling out reviews as a class assignment two years ago thinking it would help me remember novels when book-talking with students. Lo and behold, this reflection process has been like a boiling hotpot with questions bubbling to the surface as I bumble along. What makes children's books great versus average or what makes picture books rise to an artistic level? What began as an assignment has morphed into an enjoyable blogging journey into the world of children's literature. A common element inked in good children's books is they speak to both children and adults with various interpretations based on experience and this novel is no exception. I often have students point out a theme or picture detail that I missed or didn't notice as an adult, while I might point out a theme or detail from my perspective as an adult that they don't see.

When Sophie saves a baby bonobo ape off the street of Kinshasa, Congo, in chapter one, I applaud her courage for doing the right thing, but I also think of her as an impulsive teenager who is not thinking about the consequences of her actions. As an adult, I would have called her mother before making that decision because I know that traffickers and poachers are dangerous. Sophie's mother has been running a bonobo sanctuary for over six years and has the knowledge and tools to deal with this type of situation. Sophie, who grew up in the Congo, has lived for the past six years with her father in the United States. Their parents are divorced and Sophie is visiting her mom for the summer. A young reader will probably side with Sophie's actions. She is fourteen-years-old and when she sees a half-starved bonobo, she rescues it. Shucks, her mom owns a sanctuary and will be happy, right? Wrong.

Sophie's youthfulness and innocence makes her noble and seemingly right decision to save the bonobo tragic because the action is ultimately the wrong one. The moral dilemma facing Sophie is a driving force in the novel as she discovers that she can't save the bonobos one at a time like she does with the trafficker on the street, but must consider the endangered animals from a sociologically viewpoint; she must think about how the problem is reflected in the poverty of the Congolese people and the history of colonial abuse from foreigners that have stripped the Congo of its rich resources.

She learns this lesson throughout the novel when the capital city of Kinshasa is overthrown and the president murdered. Militiamen and boys take to the streets shooting and butchering people with machetes. When the sanctuary gets attacked and rebels take over, Sophie flees to the forest with the bonobos learning to survive in the wild and trying to reunite with her mother who happened to be in a remote area north of the capital releasing bonobos into the wild.

The constant tension from Sophie's life being threatened, by either the rebel soldiers or bonobos as she figures out their hierarchy, makes this a page turner. Her discomfort of living in the jungle and dealing with mosquitoes, leeches, crickets, and more, involve the reader's senses creating a vivid atmosphere and setting. Sophie doesn't dwell on the deaths of people, she's too busy trying to survive and she forces traumatic thoughts out of her mind. I thought it might be dealt with after the ordeal but the author skips ahead about four years. While some might not like this, it does make it more suitable for young readers who will focus more on the adventures than horrors of war.

This doesn't mean that the author skips the ugliness of war; just that the violence occurs after-the-fact versus a graphic description of someone being killed. One section becomes particularly intense when Sophie has to deal with a drunk boy soldier. Earlier, an adult explains to Sophie how young boys are snatched to become soldiers and must fight each other to the death. Without giving away any of the plot Sophie cleverly works her way out of what could have been a violent rape situation. It probably isn't realistic but the author portrays the boy soldier as just as much a victim as Sophie; thus making it appropriate for a younger audience. While there is violence, it is toned down (moreso than books like, "Code Name Verity"); Sophie might stumble over a body or hear screams that suddenly stop, but that is about it.

I was first introduced to the Congo in books such as "Heart of Darkness," by Joseph Conrad and "The Poisonwood Bible," by Barbara Kingsolver. These aren't accessible for younger readers and it is fantastic all the great childrens books being written that help build responsible citizens and impress the inseparable connections between humans, animals, and the environment. I have read a bundle of books like this lately. If you want more try: "The One and Only Ivan" by Katherine Applegate (2013 Newbery winner), that deals with treatment of animals and the ethics of zoos; "Moonbird" by Philip Hoose (2013 Siebert finalist), that deals with the extinction of a species and how it impacts the fragile ecosystems; or "A Long Walk to Water" by Linda Sue park, that shows the difference a water well can make in the war-torn country of Sudan. These stories need to be heard. A great read.(less)

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Dec 27, 2012 Kate rated it 5 of 5 stars

I've always felt like the big issues of our world - war, politics, conservation - are best understood not in the context of great big international features in the New York Times but through the personal stories, and ENDANGERED is one of those. Set in war torn Congo, this is the story of a girl and the bonobo she saves, who ends up saving her right back. It's part survival story, part adventure, part coming-of-age tale, and all wonderful. Recommended for ages 12 and up, with the understanding th...more

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Apr 08, 2013 Yoo Kyung Sung rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013-ncbla, africa

Wow ! I haven't read any book like this.
Also I personally like how Sophie is sweet and bitter with her mom who prioritizes her study more than the family.The information of Africa and civil wars invite young readers to global awareness and social justice too.

In terms of language arts, the complexity of global language in Congo, French and indigenous language create richness in language experiences showing how different languages play out in people's social interactions and situations. Most of a...more

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Dec 16, 2012 Mary rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya, adventure, multicultural, ecology, peace-justice-nonviolence

A heartwrenching novel about a fourteen-year-old American-Congolese girl and her harrowing adventure to save an endangered bonobo in the wartorn Democratic Republic of Congo. Schrefer has done a great deal of research to make this true to the circumstances and does not sugarcoat the terrible truth of the human and animal suffering that is created by greed and corruption. A riveting story that makes you care about the human characters and animals, that explains with a good story the current event...more

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May 20, 2013 Megan rated it 4 of 5 stars

The title of this is called Endangered and the author of this book is Eliot Schrefer. I rated this book a 4 because I loved the book but it really was not a book that made me want to jump up and down I still would like to read it a lot but there just some parts that seemed a little bit boring to me. This book is mainly about a girl that goes to visit her mom and then on her way there she sees a little baby Bonobo that is hurt so what she does is she buys the bonobo from the guy and goes to her m...more

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May 14, 2013 Krista rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: royal_may_2013, world-literature, teen-fiction

Based on the ongoing civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the author draws parallels between the countries struggle for independence in the story of African-American teen Sophie coming of age, living and working in her mother's bonobo sanctuary in the capital of Kinshasa. Dealing with struggles of living in a dangerous place, Sophie finds meaning in raising an abandoned bononbo orphan she names Otto, whom her driver rescues as the infant ape nears death from a road-side black market tr...more

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Apr 11, 2013 Sandy rated it 2 of 5 stars

I found out about this book when fellow educators had mentioned it on Twitter and then again during a conference workshop, so I could hardly wait to get my hands on it. Unfortunately, for me, it just did not live up to my expectations. I love the concept of it, and appreciate the fact that it doesn't shy away from difficult concepts as many young adult books tend to do, but the writing did not engage me. I thought that it lacked details and jumped from one event to the next without a whole lot o...more

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Mar 25, 2013 Peggy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: realistic-fiction, military, ya

The only reason I haven't rated this book a 5 is because it almost lost me in the beginning. After about 50 pages of what I considered to be somewhat stilted and unnatural dialog, particularly between Sophie and her mother, I was about ready to give up on it. But a friend suggested that I might want to stick with it. And boy am I glad that I did! By the end of the book, I was carrying it everywhere so I could read a snippet here and another there ... I hated to put it down. I enjoyed learning ab...more

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Mar 24, 2013 Pam rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: passport-to-the-world-challenge, picture-books-ya

"Concrete can rot. It turns green and black before crumbling away. Maybe only people from Congo know that." So begins this tale of Sophie Biyoya-Ciardulli's summer vacation. As many modern children do, she was spending her summer break with her non-custodial parent, her mother. Unlike most children; however, her parents lived on two very different countries. During the school year, Sophie lived with her father in Miami, Florida. During her vacations, Sophie was with her mother in "The Democratic...more

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Mar 18, 2013 Aaron rated it 4 of 5 stars

This really is an incredibly powerful and moving novel that takes a look at the at-risk population of bonobos (wee-little monkeys that look like miniature gorillas) and the tough political instability in many African nations. In this particular instance, we are in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire and formerly Belgian Congo). It is a great ecological tale and also one that takes a look at being in a war-torn country.

Sophie, who was born in the Congo is returning home to visit her...more This really is an incredibly powerful and moving novel that takes a look at the at-risk population of bonobos (wee-little monkeys that look like miniature gorillas) and the tough political instability in many African nations. In this particular instance, we are in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire and formerly Belgian Congo). It is a great ecological tale and also one that takes a look at being in a war-torn country.

Sophie, who was born in the Congo is returning home to visit her mother for the summer. Her mother, who had stayed behind when Sophie went to the United States with her father, is in charge of a preserve that has been set up to protect the bonobo population. It is a tough task, considering how the little apes are often capture for meat or other tribal beliefs. Sophie quickly falls in love with one little guy named Otto, when she rescues him off the streets and brings him to the preserve. This leads to a little conflict between Sophie and her mom because of concerns that the locals might start capturing the bonobos in order to sell them to the facility.

As time pass, Sophie (and the readers along with her) get to know all the unique personalities of the bonobos, allowing each of them to also become a personality. That is quite important as revolution strikes the country while Sophie's mom has left to do a placement for one of the apes. The result is that when the rebels hit the facility, she is left to fend for herself and the little bonobos on her own. it will be up to her (and them) to stay alive by trying to reach safety while also avoiding the rebels who would cause all sorts of harm to the various members of their group.

In some ways, this book reminded me a lot of Parvana's Journey and Island of the Blue Dolphins. It is definitely a survival story, though it is not just limited to beating back the elements of nature. Like Parvana, Sophie must deal with the fact that her country is being torn apart by war.

The books will make you smile at the cuteness of the bonobos and cry at some of the things that happen to the various characters (both human and furred) as the book progresses.

I do wish the cover was a little bit more distinct, but the little bonobo seems to be a perfect detail. (less)

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Feb 25, 2013 Cook Memorial Public Library rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: coming-of-age, young-adult

Sophia has traveled from the US to the Congo for the summer to stay with her mother at her bonobo sanctuary when all hell breaks out---and most of it wasn't her fault. Upon her arrival, Sophia finds and adopts Otto, a frail and sick young bonobo, who becomes her constant companion throughout the rest of their adventures and perilous journey to safety.

This book was a wild trip through war-torn Congo by a brave young woman who very often worried more about the safety of her bonobo Otto than her o...more

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Feb 18, 2013 BAYA Librarian rated it 4 of 5 stars

Ever summer Sophie leaves the United States and travels to stay with her mother in a bonobo sanctuary located in the Democratic Republic of Congo just a few miles north of the capital Kinshasa. A country of instability, where nothing is quite on schedule and peace is tenuous. On her way from the airport to the sanctuary Sophie breaks the number one rule of bonobo preservation, never, ever buy a bonobo from a poacher. When Sophie arrives at the sanctuary with the sickly baby bonobo her mother is...more

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Feb 18, 2013 M. rated it 5 of 5 stars

2012 National Book Award finalist for Young People's Literature. Sophie lives in Miami with her dad but spends the summers with her mom at her mom's bonobo sanctuary in the Congo. When revolution and barbarity come to the refuge when her mother is not there, she has to figure out both how to stay safe herself and how to rescue the bonobos, prime targets for the hungry and impoverished attackers. On her journey to join her mother, she's accompanied by Otto, a very young bonobo she rescued and nur...more

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Feb 15, 2013 Maureen E rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

Image from barnesandnoble.com

"The compelling tale of a girl who must save a group of bonobos--and herself--from a violent coup.

The Congo is a dangerous place, even for people who are trying to do good.

When one girl has to follow her mother to her sanctuary for bonobos, she's not thrilled to be there. It's her mother's passion, and she'd rather have nothing to do with it. But when revolution breaks out and their sanctuary is attacked, she must rescue the bonobos and hide in the jungle. Together

...more

Image from barnesandnoble.com

"The compelling tale of a girl who must save a group of bonobos--and herself--from a violent coup.

The Congo is a dangerous place, even for people who are trying to do good.

When one girl has to follow her mother to her sanctuary for bonobos, she's not thrilled to be there. It's her mother's passion, and she'd rather have nothing to do with it. But when revolution breaks out and their sanctuary is attacked, she must rescue the bonobos and hide in the jungle. Together, they will fight to keep safe, to eat, and to survive.

Eliot Schrefer asks readers what safety means, how one sacrifices to help others, and what it means to be human in this new compelling adventure." (Summary from Goodreads)

Endangered is a book that feels Important. It contains a lot of information about life in the Congo, about bonobos, about what it's like to live through the horror of a civil war. It gives us a sense of the complicated morals involved in this situation as well. In the opening, Sophie, our narrator, saves a bonobo from misery and probably death by buying him and bringing him to her mother's sanctuary. A good thing to do, right? But it also means that the man who sold him believes that there is a market for bonobos. There are no simple answers.

At the same time, important books often translate to books without a lot of plot, and that's definitely what I felt here. It's in an awkward place partway between fiction and non-fiction, and Sophie often comes across as a vehicle for moving the book forward rather than a real character. I mean, I don't think it's an accident that there's a bonobo on the front cover, rather than Sophie. It's not an accident that she's not named in the summary above.

Is this a problem? Maybe not. The people who pick this up will read it because they're interested in the subject, rather than because they want a character-driven book. For me personally, because I am such a character-driven reader, this facet made me feel disconnected from the book. I didn't have any emotional stakes in the story, aside from the sort of vague sense that I ought to because it was a worthy cause.

On another level, I have a hard time with anthropomorphized animals outside of an out-and-out fantasy book. I felt like Schrefer was walking a very fine line between trying to point out how close bonobos are to humans, and not making them into humans. In general I was okay, but there were a couple points where I felt like it kind crossed over. This is partly a personal reading issue, but I do feel like it points again to what I mentioned above--that the bonobos are at the center of the book.

I'm glad that this book exists and I think that for the right reader it could be very powerful (Maggie Stiefvater, for instance, really liked it). For myself, I was interested in learning more about bonobos from a non-fiction source, but as a reader this was a book I personally was not highly invested in.

Book information: Scholastic, 2012; YA/upper mg
Book source: ARC from publisher received for Cybils(less)

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Feb 13, 2013 Adrienne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Sophie's mother runs a preserve for bonobos in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Sophie goes to visit during the summers. Although this year, she's reluctant to visit, she quickly becomes more involved than she's ever been before when she basically adopts a malnourished, mistreated young bonobo, Otto, and essentially becomes his surrogate mother. When the country breaks out in war and the preserve is attacked while her mother is away, Sophie and Otto escape to the jungle, and it's up to...more

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Feb 12, 2013 Brandy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Having this book be one of SLJ Battle of the Book competitors I guess I had higher expectations from it. While I enjoyed the story and felt that the writing was pretty good, I couldn't get past the parts that were unbelievable.

Sophie, a 15 year old who is visiting her mother in the Congo, finds herself in the middle of a civil war. With no mother around, all of her "friends" dead and only the bonobo apes to keep her company, this was a gripping tale. But what bothered me was how she kept running...more

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Feb 04, 2013 Erin Reilly-Sanders rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: freereviewcopy

I was extremely excited to read this after hearing Schrefer speak about this book (I thought he was an excellent speaker- he blended together story and information and personal tidbits and even reflected on a recent school visit in an incredibly engaging way) and I did end up enjoying my read but I thought he had much more finesse as a speaker than a writer. Some of the things which spoke so eloquently about felt clumsy and awkward when inserted into the text (although I must admit that this cou...more

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Feb 02, 2013 Christina rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: animals, multicultural, read-in-2013, realistic

This is a fascinating book and a great story about a beautiful country and the marvelous apes that live there. It is also a look at the violence people do against one another. Sophie has come back to the Democratic Republic of Congo for the summer, to visit her Congolese mother who runs a sanctuary for bonobos there. (Bonobos are primates, very similar to chimpanzees, but share more of our DNA than do chimpanzees.) Sophie's American dad divorced her mother when Sophie was 8, when her mother refu...more This is a fascinating book and a great story about a beautiful country and the marvelous apes that live there. It is also a look at the violence people do against one another. Sophie has come back to the Democratic Republic of Congo for the summer, to visit her Congolese mother who runs a sanctuary for bonobos there. (Bonobos are primates, very similar to chimpanzees, but share more of our DNA than do chimpanzees.) Sophie's American dad divorced her mother when Sophie was 8, when her mother refused to leave the Congo or the bonobos to come live with them in the States. So Sophie has a complicated relationship with her mother, who has always put the welfare of this wildlife species above her own family. On Sophie's first day back she buys an orphaned baby bonobo in order to save it from the disreputable-looking man who has mistreated it. But she doesn't realize how this sets in motion the murder of more bonobos; a theme of the book is that our actions can have complicated, unforeseen consequences. Because bonobos are entirely dependent on their mothers for the first few years of their lives, Sophie has to bottle feed Otto and carry him everywhere in the sanctuary. Just as she is getting comfortable being a surrogate bonobo mom, the war comes right to the sanctuary and suddenly Sophie must flee for her life--among the wild bonobos! If she survives the rebels with guns, will she survive being alone among these animals who can kill her just as easily? And will she be able to keep Otto alive and safe, when she is the only mother he has?

I loved this book for the adventure and survival aspects; what Sophie goes through is incredible. And I loved learning more about the bonobos' habits and personalities; several bonobos are major characters in their own right. And, for the trifecta, this book taught me a lot about life in war-torn Congo and how complicated and dangerous it can be there. While the author states in an afterword that he did not base the story on any particular conflict, he did give enough details to give the reader a good idea of what has been going on in DRC for many years and the causes of the civil war. I think middle and high schoolers will love this book, as long as they are not squeamish about some depictions of violence.(less)

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Jan 16, 2013 Mackenzie H. rated it 4 of 5 stars

fiction
253 pages

When Sophia goes to visit her mother in Congo, she doesn't expect a war to break loose... but it does. After saving her newest bonobo off a salesman in the street Otto, Sophia's mother goes to release some of the bonobos out of her sanctuary and Sophia herself is sopposed to leave back to her father in the U.S. Otto is still a small bonobo and won't survive without her, so she stays. Though Sophia is thought to be left safe with the staff, gunshots and screams of the bonobos fill...more

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Jan 08, 2013 Joyce rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book explores some of the reasons for civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which the main character, Sophie, assures us is neither Democratic nor a Republic. In fact, the government, which continues to be one of the most corrupt on earth, is so ineffective that citizens maraud, capturing children to fight for them and killing almost every living creature they find out of boredom, adventure, hunger or just to terrorize. The YA book is told by a 14 year old half Italian American and...more

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Jan 08, 2013 Beth rated it 4 of 5 stars

in honor of an author friend of YA books who died by being burned to death in her house lately, I decided to read some of the YA books heralded for being published in 2012. This interested me because it was about the Congo area of Africa, Bonobos, and a teen. From a callow teenager who had been living with her white Father in the US, living the American teenage life of school and technology fun, Sophie visits her Mother, a black African who runs a sancturary for Bonobos. She is not close to her...more

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Jan 07, 2013 AJ Conroy marked it as to-read

From NPR: Ordinarily I judge young adult novels on the precise same scale I would judge an adult novel. These are not books for children, after all — these are novels for readers who are, in many cases, every bit as sophisticated as myself. There should be no sliding scale. And yet here I am admitting that I loved Endangered because of how it would've affected me as a teen versus now. It's a story about bonobos — a more peaceful relative of the chimpanzee (and us) — but it is also a story about...more

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Jan 01, 2013 Shomeret rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: animal-behavior, contemporary-fiction, young-adult, around-the-world, my-reviews

This is a YA book for mature readers who don't flinch from reading about horrific violence against animals and human beings. It's about a very courageous fourteen year old girl whose mother runs a sanctuary for bonobo apes in a country in chaos where bonobos are sold on the black market and routinely slaughtered. It's an extremely powerful book and an important one.

I also very much liked the interview with author Eliot Schrefer at the back of the book. I found it very insightful. I was very int...more

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Dec 25, 2012 Sunday rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: national-book-award

National Book Award YA finalist 2012. Riveting. Didn't want to put it down. Schrefer has mastered a suspenseful narrative of one girl's journey to escape rebels in the Congo while also protecting a beloved young bonobo. Fiction, but Schrefer has mastered the details of a real context - the nature of living in an unstable country, the real life environment and shifts in culture that endanger the bonobos, the personality and daily habits of the bonobo and the strong emotional ties/bonds humans dev...more

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Dec 22, 2012 Arlena rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 5-stars, ebooks, excellent-book, my-reviews, thrillers, young-adult

Author: Eliot Schrefer
Published By: Scholastic Press
Age Recommended: Teen, YA+
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Book Blog For: GMTA
Rating: 5

Review:

"Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer was quite some thrill of a read. Truly the novel was a well written read of the real issues of the 'terrifyingly real world of the Democratic Repuglic of the Congo.' The story was of a young girl named Sophie(half white and half black) who was very responsible and courageous...a protagonist, and her journey to get away from violen...more

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Dec 10, 2012 Anne Willkomm rated it 5 of 5 stars

I received a copy of this book as a promo give away at the recent Publishing Perspectives/Scholastic conference: "YA- What's Next." I began reading it on the train as I headed home and could't put it down. I wish I had known how much I was going to enjoy it because Eliot Schrefer was at the conference - I would have asked him to sign my copy!

The story begins in the Congo with Sophie - a 14-year-old American. Her parents divorced and she moved back to the states with her father, but she summers i...more

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Dec 04, 2012 Ed added it

Schrefer, E. (2012). Endangered. New York: Scholastic Press. 264 pp. ISBN: 978-0-545-16576-1. (Hardcover); $17.99.

Bonobos! Who knew? Schrefer’s National Book Award nominated title features bonobos, a close relative to the chimpanzee and the Democratic Republic of Congo, a land torn by violence and corruption. While this book is fiction, it is based on the very real situation in the Congo and Schrefer’s research at the Lola Ya Bonobo sanctuary.

Sophie is Congolese and American. Her mother loves h...more Schrefer, E. (2012). Endangered. New York: Scholastic Press. 264 pp. ISBN: 978-0-545-16576-1. (Hardcover); $17.99.

Bonobos! Who knew? Schrefer’s National Book Award nominated title features bonobos, a close relative to the chimpanzee and the Democratic Republic of Congo, a land torn by violence and corruption. While this book is fiction, it is based on the very real situation in the Congo and Schrefer’s research at the Lola Ya Bonobo sanctuary.

Sophie is Congolese and American. Her mother loves her family, but her family is not as important to her as her work with the bonobos, which has driven her father away. Consequently, Sophie does not feel that she belongs anywhere. While visiting her mother at the sanctuary, she blunders her way into taking charge of Otto, a baby bonobo. Bonobos, unlike other apes, unlike chimpanzees, have a peaceful, matriarchal society. Babies do not do very well when separated from mom. When Sophie’s mother is forced to leave early to release bonobos back into the wild, Sophie is supposed to return to her father. When it comes time to leave, however, Sophie cannot bring herself to abandon Otto, knowing what this will mean to Otto who has come to think of her as his new mother. Instead of boarding the plane, Sophie bolts with Otto through the electrified fence into the bonobo sanctuary, a place that no one enters alone. Eventually rebels enter the nursery and kill the staff and many of the babies and newly rescued, quarantined bonobos. They cannot get to Sophie, however, because of the fence. When the electrified fence loses its charge, Sophie must figure out a way to find safety for herself and Otto. She is forced to run. In a land that has people killing and eating bonobos and selling babies on the black market, to say nothing of killing each other, where does one run? Schrefer exposes the political and ecological drama in a country that not many American students know anything about. One of the important questions considered in this white-knuckle drama, is the basic question of why one should care about a bonobo in a country that has so much poverty and pain. Read this story about Sophie and Otto and ask yourself whether you would have been able to abandon Otto. Caring is important and sometimes our hearts refuse to engage in qualitative arguments over the relative value of the object of our love and concern. Readers should be warned that they will fall in love with bonobos. While recognizing the plight of the humans, readers will also care about what happens to these peaceful animals. Perhaps the most important writing Schrefer does in this book is reinforce the fact that we must understand those whom we hope to help FIRST. This is an excellent blend of fiction and nonfiction. Purchase this one for both middle school and high school libraries. Here is a book that we can share with school life science departments.
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Nov 29, 2012 Robin Kirk rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: human-rights

Schrefer took on an extremely difficult subject and did a tremendous job. This is a real page-turner that I think would captivate a lot of jaded tweens and teens. The gore (I was looking for this especially) is handled very well -- chilling but not gross, effective in heightening the sense of danger and risk facing Sophie on her quest to save the baby bonobo, Otto, and herself.

After rebels take over the bonobo compound, Sophie and Otto sneak back to recover a duffel with food. The workers have...more

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Nov 28, 2012 Gillyb rated it 5 of 5 stars

When I read a book, I like to read it like I think a writer should. That means I look out for structure, pacing, character develop, word usage. I try to read critically (you wouldn’t know it from looking at my most recent reviews, because I’ve been lucky enough to only read good books). I started Endangered like that: focused. Critical.

I ended it a sobbing mess.

For all reviewers like to dissect themes and metaphor and diction, the most important part of a book, for me, is how much you invest in...more When I read a book, I like to read it like I think a writer should. That means I look out for structure, pacing, character develop, word usage. I try to read critically (you wouldn’t know it from looking at my most recent reviews, because I’ve been lucky enough to only read good books). I started Endangered like that: focused. Critical.

I ended it a sobbing mess.

For all reviewers like to dissect themes and metaphor and diction, the most important part of a book, for me, is how much you invest in what you’re reading. The characters and their (which become our) feelings. All of that is enhanced by brilliant line writing, it's true. But if the book makes me laugh out loud, it’s a win. If it makes me squeal, gasp, look away from the page so I can resume breathing, and burst into big fat baby tears, than it is a book that’s great. Endangered did all that and more.

The themes are gorgeous. Gorgeous, frightening, and powerful. Safety and friendship and humanity. Is it human to save yourself and let animals die? Is it human to give up your life for an animals? Sophie, the devoted heroine, is forced to wonder about all these things in truly harrowing or death situations.

The level of brutality in this wartime book is right on, causing just the right level of fear. The torn apart setting of the (not so) Democratic Republic of the Congo is a place rarely visited in young adult literature, and rarely visited so well. You can smell it and taste it. Parts of it are beautiful and brightly colored, but, as Sophie points out, one of the brightest colors of the color is red. Blood red.

There’s action. This is technically a thriller, fast paced, with gasp-inducing developments. It’s a lot more, though. It’s got heart too.

The heart of the book lies in Sophie’s relationship with Otto, the orphaned bonobo she takes under her wing. And it’s the strongest, most heart-wrenching, most touching relationship I’ve read about in ages. It’s stronger than most human relationships, and it’s what drives the story. Sophie matures from a naïve girl, slightly spoiled and aching for her mother’s attention, into a fiercely courageous young woman now a surrogate mother herself. The bonobos are as real as people. Even more so. Their feelings and actions are so vivid and complex. The author does a fantastic job of submerging yourself in their world.

Following Sophie and Otto through their perils was an interactive experience. I worried about them, cheered for them, cried for them. This is an absolutely must read for anyone looking for a real world book about love, animals, friendship, and war. And for people who need to learn more about how animals should be treated (go research bonobos and pledge yourself to their cause IMMEDIATELY). I’m completely in awe of this book. Excuse me while I go wipe my wet blotchy face and blow my nose.

Originally posted at Writer of Wrongs (less)

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About Eliot Schrefer

I write books and then, by an astounding stroke of good fortune, someone publishes them. My first two books, Glamorous Disasters and The New Kid, were for adults, and then I had a momentous lunch with author/editor David Levithan when I became a young adult author.

Since then, you can blame me for a number of titles, including The School for Dangerous Girls, The Deadly Sister, and Endangered. Two...more

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