Title:
The Murderer's Ape
Series:
N/A
Author:
Jakob Wegelius
Genre:
Middle-Grade
Publication:
April 16th 2014
Pages:
640 pages, Hardback
Source:
Thank you to Pushkin Children's Books for sending me this book in
exchange for an honest review!
Rating:
4.5/5 cupcakes!
'I don't know when I last read a book with such pure and unalloyed pleasure. It's ingenious, it's moving, it's charming, it's beautiful, it's exciting, and most importantly the characters are people I feel I know like old friends. I thank Jakob Wegelius wholeheartedly for giving me several hours of joy' -- Philip Pullman
Sally Jones is not only a loyal friend, she's an extraordinary individual. In overalls or in a maharaja's turban, this unique gorilla moves among humans without speaking but understanding everything. She and the Chief are devoted comrades who operate a cargo boat. A job they are offered pays big bucks, but the deal ends badly, and the Chief is falsely convicted of murder.
For Sally Jones this is the start of a harrowing quest for survival and to clear the Chief's name. Powerful forces are working against her, and they will do anything to protect their secrets.
Oh,
this book. It was charming and whimsical and filled with fallible,
yet lovable characters and a beautifully woven plot that took me on
an adventure with love and justice at the heart of it. I wanted
to read this delectable novel from the moment I heard about it. Not
only is it a visually stunning book, but it has such a distinctive,
interesting story line that I knew I would fall in love with. The
Murderer’s Ape is about a very unique gorilla called Sally Jones,
who works as an engineer on the ship, The Hudson Queen with her
human friend, Henry Koskela. She doesn’t speak in a language that
we can comprehend, but she understands what humans say. One day her
and Koskela are offered a job that will pay extraordinary well,
however, deception and malice occurs in the deal and Koskela is
wrongly accused of murder. Belittled and forced into hiding, Sally
Jones has nowhere to go. Settling on the roof of a house in Lisbon,
she hears an angelic voice singing. The voice belongs to Ana Molina,
who kindly takes Sally Jones in and makes her feel at home. This is
the start of her journey to survive and prove her friend innocent. It
starts in a Lisbon port and meanders through oceans and India until
she finally finds her way back home. She’ll face betrayal, threats
and heartbreak on her quest, but she’ll also experience the
goodness and kindness that humans are capable of.
This
was such a beautiful story. It was built on the power of friendship,
love and justice, and the strength love gives us to tackle storms we
face. It was filled with characters who were flawed yet radiated
kindness and love. It explored sensitive issues in a gentle manner.
Not only was it richly layered with emotion and heart, it was a
classic adventure story. In this murder mystery adventure there was
treason, stowaways, and a journey on a sailboat across the seas to
reclaim the innocence of a man wrongly accused - EXCITING!!!
I
absolutely adored the characters. After finishing the book, I wanted
to dive right back in and spend time with the characters. They felt
so real. They were complex and genuine. They were all so vividly
unique and they saturated the text with warmth and love.
Sally
Jones was a brilliant protagonist. She was so incredibly smart and
would go through treacherous trials to even have a chance of saving
her friend. I loved how the author gave each character so much
emotion and complexity. Before reading this book, I thought that this
book would mainly focus on plot and not delve into the emotional
states of the characters. I was wrong. The author described Sally
Jones's heartbreak, terror, happiness and hope so vividly. It wrenched at my
heartstrings. The author mentioned the bouts of depression Sally
Jones would enter into, as well as symptoms of PTSD that she
experienced after what she’d seen and gone through. I admire the
author for touching on those things in a children’s book in an
honest, yet uplifting way. I loved the vast amount of emotion that
was covered in this story - it made it that much more touching.
I
absolutely adored the friends Sally Jones made. They were dynamic and
flawed, yet so kind and generous. Sally Jones and Koskela’s
friendship was so sweet. The care they had for each other and the
lengths they would go to in order to help the other were stunning. I
loved reading about how they would work on the boat together in
compatible silence. They were best friends and companions. It was a
beautiful portrayal of the friendship that can be formed by man and
animal.
I
loved Ana Molina and Signor Fidardo. I loved Ana's kindness and
gentleness. I loved Signor Fidardo's determination, care and
diligence. I loved the friendship between Ana, Signor
Fidardo and Sally Jones. It was so heartfelt and emotional. Their
care and love for one another radiated off of the pages, and some of
my favourite scenes in the book were the Sunday nights they'd spend
in Ana's apartment where she sung and Signor Fidardo played the
guitar, and Sally Jones felt as if she belonged. The scenes were vivid
and captured the harmonious serenity felt when in the presence of
true friends. I loved the traits these characters possessed: kindness, acceptance and selflessness. I loved the evolution of the
friendships in this book too. In the beginning, Signor Fidardo disliked Sally
Jones (or perhaps that's too strong a word...maybe more suspicious of
her?), but then grew to admire, respect, and love her. I adored how
most of the people who initially disregarded her or had hardened
their hearts towards Sally Jones began to adore her after realising
her kindness, sensitivity and intelligence.
I
appreciated that the author wrote the secondary characters with depth
as well, such as the maharajah and Alphonse Morro. They were
characters compiled of varying shades of black and white, and I loved
how Wegelius showed their good and bad qualities, portraying them as
complex humans instead of 2D characters whose main purpose is helping
the protagonist achieve something. I deeply admire the
depth of all of the characters featured in this novel.
I
adored the plot, writing and illustrations too. The Murderer's Ape is
a long book. My edition is 640 pages. It's not a fast-paced read.
It's languid and deliberate; it made the reading experience feel
vividly real. I loved that this book was long. It allowed me to feel
as if I was thoroughly involved with the characters' lives,
especially Sally Jones's as she settled into the different places and
tried to prove Koskela innocent. The plot was an adventure and it
took me on a journey and completely swept me up - I loved it. The
writing was simple which had a greater impact on me. Sally Jones's
intense emotions, her thoughts and her actions were expressed
clearly, in a raw and real manner. I adored the illustrations too -
they transported me even further into the vivid setting Wegelius
created.
The
Murderer's Ape is captivating, emotional and utterly enchanting.
Written with sensitivity and heart, this book wrenched at my
heartstrings. It catapulted me from jubilation to sadness and back
again. I adored the themes of friendship, love, kindness and empathy
that were woven throughout this story, saturating the text with
layered emotion that anyone of all ages will appreciate. The
protagonist's voice is authentic and completely lovable. Many of the
characters are extraordinarily real, fallible yet so gorgeously kind
and compassionate. The plot is detailed and takes the reader on a
journey from a port in Lisbon, across oceans and to a maharajah's
court in exotic India, making all the sights and sounds of the
journey tangible to the reader. All these things combined resulted in
a devastatingly beautiful and wonderfully emotional novel that has
made its mark on my heart. Read it.
I
give it: 4.5/5 CUPCAKES!
