Half Brother

Children's Literature

While astronauts orbit Earth in Skylab and ABBA tops record charts, Canadian teenager Ben Tomlin copes with diverse traumas coinciding with his thirteenth birthday in summer 1973. Ben's entry into adolescence converges with disruptions and sacrifices for his parents' careers as behavioral psychology researchers. He tolerates a move from Toronto to Victoria and immersion into an unfamiliar place where he endures antagonistic peers. Similarly, the chimpanzee, Zan (short for Tarzan), only days old, has been removed forcibly from his environment to reside with the Tomlins who teach him human vocabulary with sign language and instruct Ben to consider Zan a family member. Ben's parents redesign their lives and a house to conduct Project Zan. Ben interacts with college students his parents hire to tend Zan, bonding with Peter, who becomes a figurative older brother. The pair discusses ethical issues associated with experimental animals. The theme of control is symbolized by a chair used to restrain Zan. Both Ben and Zan struggle with how captivity confines their instincts. As Zan matures, his moods and size endanger humans. Ben's father reacts to failed grant applications and researchers' rejection of his work by permitting Zan to be sold, dismissing Ben's emotional attachment to the chimpanzee. Agonized Ben, fearing Zan will become vulnerable to biomedical experimentation, seeks solutions to protect him. Refusing to be intimidated and dominated, Ben assertively questions and disobeys rules others establish. Characterizations effectively show how civilization and wilderness paradoxically intersect. Readers will empathize with Ben's heart-rending predicament. Compare the role of language in Edgar Rice Burroughs's book Tarzan of the Apes (1914) and the film Planet of the Apes (1967). Read with Peter Dickinson's provocative novel Eva (1989). Reviewer: Elizabeth D. Schafer

VOYA

Thirteen-year-old Ben moves with his parents from Toronto to Victoria in the summer of 1973 so his father can accept a job as a professor at the local university. While Ben is not pleased to uproot his life, he is even less thrilled to learn that there will be a new addition to his family: a newborn brother named Zan. Zan is a chimpanzee, taken from his mother as a test subject for Ben's parents. Ben is instructed to treat Zan as a human; Ben's dad is out to prove that chimps can learn a language from humans, American Sign Language. While Ben and his mom adapt Zan to living like a human, his dad's work is strictly scientific—Zan will always be a test subject. But when the experiment is deemed a failure, Ben's dad decides their use for Zan is over. It is up to Ben to save his brother from a cruel keeper, pharmaceutical companies, and the human life Zan has lead so far—the life Ben helped create. Oppel tackles a timely topic—what defines a family: humans, actions, language? Readers will also identify with Ben's coming-of-age story and the unique ways he deals with situations all teens face. Ben is a wonderfully developed character, his witty imagination a product of a time when rec rooms, pinball, and BB guns were accessories in life. Half Brother is highly recommended for all YA collections. While it may not appeal to all teens, those who do read it will be rewarded with a funny and exceptional story they will not soon forget. Reviewer: Sarah Sogigian

School Library Journal

Gr 7–11—Ben, 13, and his family move from Toronto to Victoria, British Columbia, where his father, a behavioral scientist, is undertaking the most important research project of his life. They will take in a baby chimp, treat him like family and, using sign language, set out to document if the chimp can acquire and use human language. Back in the 1960s, this line of research was in its infancy, so the Tomlins are winging it on a lot of levels. Ben is not thrilled about the move, but when his new chimp brother arrives, everything changes. He falls in love with Zan (short for Tarzan) and becomes his constant companion. Zan begins to learn sign language and eventually to string two and three word sentences together. Despite his linguistic success, money dries up and Ben's family must abandon the study and maybe even Zan. Ben and his father square off about their level of responsibility for Zan and their relationship ultimately hangs in the balance. Kenneth Oppel's story (Scholastic, 2010) poses some important ethical questions that confront all researchers. Daniel di Tomasso's narration sometimes seems a bit rushed, but that can be overlooked given the typical speech pattern of teenagers. He occasionally intones the end of a sentence and then seems to discover that more is to come, resulting in some odd phrasing. However, the story itself is so strong and the narration is good enough that listeners will be drawn to this audiobook. A solid purchase for YA collections.—Joan Kindig, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA

Kirkus Reviews

Ben Tomlin and his parents move to Vancouver for his father's new job with the university. Ben's father is a researcher, and his project seeks to prove that chimpanzees can learn sign language, and this means having the object of the study as part of their family. Initially, Ben resents Zan's place in their lives, but he is won over by the baby chimp. Their project attracts good and bad press and places pressures on the family. Despite the project's importance, Ben is still coping with a new school, friends and his first romantic attraction. Everything is pushed aside when Ben's father announces that the project has failed and Zan must be placed elsewhere. Ben's attachment makes him take drastic measures to save Zan. Set in the simpler time of the early '70s, this well-plotted novel weaves together themes of animal rights, family issues and the cost of animal research. The normal teen problems in Ben's life ground the book nicely and prevent it from feeling entirely issue-driven. There are no easy answers, just a thoughtful portrayal of real people grappling with tough questions. (Historical fiction. 12 & up)