Monday, 7 December 2015

Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel - Reviewed by Olivia Taylor

“She knew. It had happened once before, and she knew it was about to happen again. …Then the tranquilizers kicked in and she slumped clumsily against the wall” (page 1). Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel is a heart wrenching realistic novel. This book follows the story of a chimp who is taken away from his mother when he is only a baby.

Ben is thirteen and lives in Toronto with his mum and dad, both of whom are scientists. When school lets out, he finds himself on the other side of the country with a chimp as a brother. A university in Victoria is going to fund his dad to conduct a costly experiment. To raise a chimpanzee as a part of their family, in their own house (in Victoria) and try to teach him American Sign Language. They named him Zan, and he soon became a big part of the rest of the family’s life. Ben developed an especially strong relationship with Zan. As he got to know his so called “Brother”, the two of them slowly became inseparable. Years go by with Ben trying to fit in with everyone at his new school. Zan gets older, and a linguist declares that he is not learning language properly, although Ben still has faith. He is also getting stronger and uncontrollable, and it becomes obvious that he can not be contained in a house. Ben is devastated when the project comes to an end and will not forgive his dad. Zan is then taken from one sanctuary to another, and is almost sold to have drugs tested on him. All this causes Ben to be often angry, and he and his dad to not get along well.  

Though some may say this is a story about a chimpanzee, this is a story about love. Ben may not have a typical younger brother, and the family goes through some low points, but in the end they are always there for each other. When Zan is in a habitat in which he cannot survive, Ben and his mom come and save him, even if it means putting themselves in danger. When Ben does something to upset his parents, they still love him unconditionally.  

            Throughout the book, the family learns an important lesson. Love is not science. Love can not be forced no matter how hard you try. It does not matter how detailed your plan is or how clever your formula is, it can not be forced. On the other hand, this book makes you realize that you do not have to be related to someone to be a part of their family, and you do not need to be perfect to be loved. Zan and Ben are not related to each other but still consider each other brothers. Nobody in their family is perfect, they make mistakes and can have poor judgement, yet no one is ever left behind.

I recommend this book because it really makes you think about the important things in life. Half Brother will not disappoint you and anyone of any age would enjoy it. This book makes you laugh and cry and is a heart-warming read.
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15 comments:

  1. Unknown9 December 2015 at 09:39

    Dear Olivia,
    I loved the book Half Brother and your review was excellent. I just wanted to know (since I'm forgetting part of the book) what main events happened in Ben's school. Did Ben have a girlfriend? Can you tell us about her?

    Thanks,
    Arnav

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous14 December 2015 at 08:07

      Dear Arnav,

      Thanks for taking the time to ask me a question. For most of the book, Ben is in grade eight at a private school (much like Ashbury). There is a girl named Jennifer whose dad also happens to be Ben’s dad’s boss. Jennifer has pale brown skin with long brown hair: she has a dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose. Ben really likes Jennifer, but it is unclear as to whether or not Jennifer feels the same way about Ben. She has an older brother who is in grade nine (one year older than Ben and Jennifer) and he is Ben’s excuse to be with Jennifer. One of Ben’s major setbacks is Jennifer’s posse, her obnoxious friend Jane and her quiet friend Shannon; who always seen to be by Jennifer’s side, preventing Ben from having a chance to talk to her alone. For a long time, Ben is convinced that he and Jennifer are meant to be together The problem is he can’t quite seem to get her. He develops a sort of project (Project Jennifer) and familiarizes himself with all of her interests. Eventually, he realizes that the two of them are not the perfect fit. He starts talking to Shannon and he realizes that he has a lot in common with Jennifer (whereas he was just pretending when he was with Jennifer). At the end of the school year, Ben and Shannon go to a school dance together. They dance with each other and kiss at the end of the night. However near to the end of the book, Kenneth Oppel focuses on Zan, so the readers do not get a proper ending where Jennifer and Shannon are concerned.

      Thanks,
      Olivia

      Delete
  2. Anonymous9 December 2015 at 11:35

    Dear Olivia,

    It sounds like Ben and his parents put a lot of effort into trying to teach Zan how to speak sing language. How many years did they exaclty work with Zan (if it tells you that in the book)

    Sincerely yours
    Carter Harris Fowell

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    1. Anonymous13 December 2015 at 07:21

      Dear Carter,

      Thanks for your question. They get Zan in August before Ben starts grade eight. Zan is a new born baby. They raise him with the help of hired university students who are helping with Project Zan. When Ben finishes school (before summer vacation) it is time to give Zan away. At only one year old, Zan has a terrible temper and is dangerously strong. For example, he signs “out” continuously until he gets his way, or he throws a tantrum. So they have Zan for about one year before it comes time to give him away. I will let you read the book to find out where Zan goes once he leaves Ben’s house.

      Thanks,
      Olivia

      Delete
  3. Unknown9 December 2015 at 16:20

    Dear Olivia,

    I loved your book review, and I have also read the book! Very clear and thorough. I do have two questions, though. How did Ben fare at his new school? (Any friends, girlfriends, etc). Also, what are some signs that Zan was taught?

    Thank you,
    Kyle M.

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    1. Anonymous15 December 2015 at 17:00

      Dear Kyle,

      Thanks for your question. Ben did not fare all that well at his school in Victoria. He got off to a not so good start, making bad decisions on who his friends would be, and not embracing his “half brother” very well. People teased him, and many did not take the time to understand everything about his life; they acted on assumptions they had made and rumours they had heard. As I mentioned in a previous response, Ben did have a sort of girlfriend throughout the book, but it was a weak relationship. Ben had a few friends but not as many as he would have hoped for. Before Zan left the Tomlin household (Ben’s house) Zan was taught many useful signs. The first few they chose to teach him were: up --pointing your index finger skyward, hug –crossing your arms across your chest, Zan –tracing a Z across your chest, Mother, Father, Ben, done, out, and lots of others.

      Thanks,
      Olivia

      Delete
  4. Unknown10 December 2015 at 05:52

    Dear Olivia,

    As I understand that Ben's family is trying to teach the chimpanzee how to speak. Are they trying to teach him anything else? I was also wondering if he was learning at school or if he was being home schooled?

    Thanks,
    Ewan

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    1. Anonymous15 December 2015 at 18:09

      Dear Ewan,

      Zan is only learning at his home (Ben’s house) and rarely leaves the house. However, Ben’s parents hired a number of their university students to help with the project. They are paid, and have shifts when they come in and take care of Zan while teaching him sign language and paying close attention to everything he does. Zan is only being taught how to speak ASL (American Sign Language), but is being raised as if he is a human child. Ben’s mom is doing research on how he develops, and how he differs psychologically from a human, but he is not being taught anything else.

      Thanks,
      Olivia

      Delete
    2. Anonymous15 December 2015 at 18:58

      Dear Ewan,

      Zan is only learning at his home (Ben’s house) and rarely leaves the house. However, Ben’s parents hired a number of their university students to help with the project. They are paid, and have shifts when they come in and take care of Zan while teaching him sign language and paying close attention to everything he does. Zan is only being taught how to speak ASL (American Sign Language), but is being raised as if he is a human child. Ben’s mom is doing research on how he develops, and how he differs psychologically from a human, but he is not being taught anything else.

      Thanks,
      Olivia

      Delete
  5. Anonymous11 December 2015 at 15:14

    Dear Olivia,

    Really great book review thats sounds really interesting. i was wondering if the book end like that with the son being mad at the dad or if they get over it.

    Thanks,
    Makyla

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    Replies
    1. Anonymous15 December 2015 at 18:34

      Dear Makyla,

      Thanks for your question. Although Ben and his father are mad at each other for a sizeable part of the book, they do, eventually, make up. There is a heart-warming part of the book when Ben hugs his dad, which was something that he had not done for a very long time. His Dad realizes what is best for the chimpanzee, and the whole family agrees with him. Everyone ends up more or less happy by the end of the book.

      Thanks,
      Olivia

      Delete
    2. Anonymous15 December 2015 at 18:59

      Dear Makyla,

      Thanks for your question. Although Ben and his father are mad at each other for a sizeable part of the book, they do, eventually, make up. There is a heart-warming part of the book when Ben hugs his dad, which was something that he had not done for a very long time. His Dad realizes what is best for the chimpanzee, and the whole family agrees with him. Everyone ends up more or less happy by the end of the book.

      Thanks,
      Olivia

      Delete
  6. Anonymous14 December 2015 at 08:16

    Dear Olivia,

    Half Brother sounds really interesting and I will definitely consider reading it. I was wondering what was the conflict in the story.

    Sincerely,
    Adele

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  7. Anonymous15 December 2015 at 16:55

    Dear Olivia,

    Half Brother sounds like a very nice novel. I have a couple of questions to ask you first. How does Ben and Zan's bond grow throughout the novel, and what was Ben's first reaction to his "new brother"?

    Thank-you,
    Elena

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  8. Anonymous16 December 2015 at 20:24

    Dear Olivia,
    Half brother sounds like a touching novel. I was just wondering if there was a clear theme in the novel. Could you please elaborate?

    Thanks!
    Bryan

    ReplyDelete

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