Friday, October 31, 2008

Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby - ADVISABLE


Rorby, Ginny Hurt Go Happy, 267 p. TOR, 2006. $5.99. 

MS, HS - ADVISABLE

Joey has been deaf since she was six, so being on the outside is nothing new to her. Then she meets Dr. Mansell and his sign-language-using chimp. Even though her mother has forbidden her to sign, Joey is drawn to the means of expression and to Sukari the chimp. When Dr. Mansell dies, Joey is in agony over what may happen to Sukari. She will have to be bold and determined in order to secure a safe future for herself and for Suakri. 

Rorby manages to pack several different threads into her novel without over dramatizing or skimming over any of them. The drama between Joey and her mother about whether she should be a lip-reader or a signer and the options available for chimps who have been abandoned are just two of the themes. 

CINDY

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