Endangered Book Review

Endangered, by Eliot Schrefer , is a book about a girl and a bonobo trying to stay alive in the vast forest of the Congo. The book starts out with Sophie riding in a taxi to go visit her mom. Along the way they drive past a beaten bonobo and his owner. Sophie stops the car, buys the bonobo and brings it back to her moms bonobo sanctuary where she takes care of it. She names the bonobo Otto and gets the sick little monkey healthy again. As soon as Otto gets better her mom leaves the sanctuary to release some of the healthier bonobos in to the wild. After her mom leaves Sophie and the workers at the sanctuary learn that the president of the Congo has been killed and rebels are taking over and destroying the country. Since Sophie is American she is permitted to leave the country but instead of getting on the plane to leave she stays with Otto and runs into the forest so nobody can stop her from staying. She lives with the bonobos for weeks in the sanctuary enclosure, learning what to eat, who to trust, and where to sleep in the trees. She eventually escapes the enclosure to try to get to her mom at the release site. She travels through vast forest, escaping soldiers and managing to keep her and Otto alive in the forest. She refuses to leave Otto and turns down many offers to leave the country. Sophie and Otto live in the jungle and slowly make there way to her moms release site. Finally, they find Sophie's mom and are in good care. Sophie takes a plane back to the sanctuary with her mom and gets to her dad in America. Sophie has to leave Otto behind but she visits him in the future and she safely makes it back home.


One of the main themes in this book is we will do crazy things for the ones we love. An example of this is when Sophie abandons her chance to get out of the dangerous Congo. "'I'm staying,' I said. I told myself that soon the van would be gone,  and they'd have to let me remain at the sanctuary with Otto." (65) My second example is when Sophie gets a second opportunity to get out of the country without Otto but she refuses again. "As I re-entered the clearing, swiping at my eyes with the butts of my palms, one thing was very clear to me: I was not leaving Otto here." (161) My third example is when Sophie goes into a dangerous town in the forest to try and save Otto. "Getting to Otto was the one thing on my mind, and pointing towards him was all I could do." (196)

The main setting in Endangered is Kinshasa. Her dad and mom split up when she was five and her dad chose to live in America but her mom chose to stay in the Congo so she could continue working on her bonobo sanctuary. Sophie visits Kinshasa every few years but she hates it. "Then when I was eight I left to live with my dad in America; ever since then coming back to spend summers with my mom meant descending into the muggy and dangerous back of nowhere." (1) When Sophie gets lost in the Congo she is terrified and is unsure of what to do and how to be safe. "I was feeling something more than fear as I rode: it was fear with a purpose, fear devoted entirely to the task of feeling alert." (144)

I would recommend this book to other 7th graders. It had a compelling story line that I really enjoyed. I also liked the way it was written. It was like was there in the story. I also loved the ending. It was heartfelt, sweet, and just so good.


Picture citation: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/515ma1zBFTL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

The First Fish

   The First Fish

by Molly Melnick

It was a cold December day. The air was frosty and I could see my breath. Indian River roared in my ears, mixed with the sound of fish fins slicing through the water for barely a moment before dipping back in. My dad stood a little ways from me casting his fly rod in and out, his line slicing through the air causing droplets of water to hang glimmering in the air for a moment before falling to the ground. The sky was streaked with orange and pink clouds, the sun setting in the distance. The smell of fish and crisp air hung in my nose. I could feel the cold slowly creeping up on me and I was ready to go home and eat.

“Daddy how many so far?” I asked

“About four. Five if you count the one I caught but didn’t land,” he replied.

“How are you catching so many? I have been fishing the same spots you did but none are biting!”

I was beginning to get agitated. The river was cold and I was swarmed with mosquitoes trying desperately to eat me alive. On top of that I hadn’t caught a single fish!

“Well, I got some new fly hooks and the fish seem to like them,” my dad answered calmly.

He cast out neatly, just barely missing the tree tops. He was a skilled fly-fisher though he was only a beginner.

“Do you think I could try using your fly-rod Daddy?” I asked sweetly, hoping to persuade him to let me us his precious fly-rod.

“Sure princess. Do you know how to use it?”

“Well… no.”

“Here let me show you. You put your hand here,” he guided my hand to the bottom of the rod.

  “Loop the line and pull it back. Now whip the rod back with your wrist and let the string go.” He demonstrated for me then let me try it.

“Don’t move your arm, just your wrist. Now whip it forward using the same control. You got it! Ok now repeat.” I was slowly starting to get it. I could feel myself getting into a rhythm

.

 “Watch the bush! Good! Ok let the fly float for a while now!”

My dad was a good teacher. He talked to me in a patient voice and gently guided me through the motions until I got it. He smelled like Old Spice and cinnamon and his deep rumbling voice was soothing. We had been fishing together a lot lately, me and my dad. His father had just passed away and the whole family missed him a lot. I think we both felt especially close to him when we were fishing so we liked to go out together.

 “Is this right? I think I’m doing it!” I asked, trying to distract myself from the feeling of sadness that was slowly creeping up on me.

“You’re getting it!” my dad shouted back over the roar of the river.

I sensed some sadness in that one sentence. I knew exactly what he was thinking about. I was determined to catch a fish just to take both of our minds off the pain. Suddenly I felt a tug at the end if the line.

“DAD! I THINK I HAVE ONE! HOW DO I REEL THIS THING IN?” I was shouting in joy desperately clinging on to the shaking pole.

“Pull the line back. Reel! There you go!”

I followed his instructions and felt a swell of pride as I finally landed the Dolly Varden.

“I got one! My first fish from a fly-rod!”

“I’m so proud of you sweetheart” my dad said.

“Daddy?” I asked.

“Yes?” he answered as he distractedly untangled the fish from the line and let it back into the river.

“My feet are cold.”

I was also hungry and covered in mosquito bites but I kept quiet.

“Let’s stay out for five more minutes,” he said.

“Ok.”

I felt a surge of love for my brave dad and I thought about how much I loved him and how much I would miss him if he was gone.

“Daddy?”

“Yes?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, bear.”

After fishing we hiked back to the car in silence. He held my hand warming it with his touch. I learned a lot that day. I learned how to fly fish, I learned how to cope with pain, and I learned just how much I loved my dad. I still think about that day sometimes. I remember how close I felt to my dad and how much fun we had, but most of all I remember how I learned to fly-fish because of my father’s love and patience.