Bonobo Handshake: A Memoir of Love and Adventure in the Congo - Vanessa Woods (.mobi)

In 2005, Vanessa Woods accepted a marriage proposal from a man she barely knew and agreed to join him on a research trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country reeling from a brutal decade-long war that had claimed the lives of millions. Settling in at a bonobo sanctuary in Congo's capital, Vanessa and her fiancé entered the world of a rare ape with whom we share 98.7 percent of our DNA. She soon discovered that many of the inhabitants of the sanctuary-ape and human alike-are refugees from unspeakable violence, yet bonobos live in a peaceful society in which females are in charge, war is nonexistent, and sex is as common and friendly as a handshake.

About the Author

Vanessa Woods is the Director of the Duke Puppy Kindergarten and an award winning author and journalist. Her memoir Bonobo Handshake (June 2010), won the Thomas Lowell award for non-fiction, and her children’s book It’s True! Space turns you into spaghetti won the acclaimed book award from The Royal Society in 2007.