Bonobo Handshake

Vanessa Woods, Australian scientist and author, thought she had found her true love: chimpanzees. But in a reckless moment, she accepts a marriage proposal from a man she barely knows – and agrees to join him on a research trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo. All she’s sure of is that they will be studying bonobos, an extremely endangered species of ape with whom humans share 98.7% of our DNA.

As she adjusts to newlywed life in a war-torn country, Vanessa finds herself enchanted by these remarkable animals. They live in a peaceful society in which females are in charge, war is nonexistent, and sex is as common and friendly as a handshake. She came to study their habits and habitat, but soon learns much more: they teach her about love and belonging, about building a home, and about what makes us human.

Fascinating, courageous and irresistibly funny, Bonobo Handshake is an astonishing story of love, revelation and transformation in a fragile corner of Africa.

‘This is a startling book. Page after page astonished me. A beautifully written journey … told with striking honesty, humour, and intelligence.’ —Alan Alda

‘Enchanting’ —Herald Sun

‘Woods manages to find a near perfect balance between a history of the region, details of research at the sanctuary, interesting information about the peace-loving, sexually liberated, matriarchal society of the bonobos and, almost as an aside, the love story of two people in a dangerous part of the world’ —Sydney Morning Herald

‘Genuinely thought-provoking.’ —Sunday Age

‘Fun and informative.’ —Australian

‘A fascinating story’ —the Examiner

‘Funny, adventurous, and heartbreaking. This must-read book illuminates extraordinary courage in both people and animals.’ —Sara Gruen, author of the New York Times bestseller Water for Elephants

‘This book is both shocking and hilarious.’ —Temple Grandin, author of Animals in Translation and Animals Make Us Human

Vanessa Woods is the author of It’s Every Monkey For Themselves (2007), in which she described her experiences chasing wild capuchin monkeys through the Costa Rican jungle. She has written for the Discovery Channel, BBC Wildlife, New Scientist, Travel Africa and Growing Up Asian in Australia (2008). In 2003, she won the Australasian Science Award for journalism. She is currently a research scientist at Duke University in North Carolina.