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The One and Only Ivan

The One and Only Ivan

JuvenileLiterary Fiction
Pages
311
Published
2012
Language
English

Synopsis

Ivan, a silverback gorilla, has spent nearly three decades as the star attraction at a mall circus. His days are filled with watching TV and painting, his memories of the jungle long faded. But when a baby elephant named Ruby arrives, Ivan begins to question his life and the world around him, leading him to seek a better future for himself and his friends.

Prose complexity
4/10

Vibe

HeartwarmingEmotionalHopefulReflective
Found FamilyComing of Age

Genres

Juvenile Literary Fiction Children's Books Middle Grade Animals

About the author

K
Katherine Applegate

Katherine Alice Applegate is an American writer, best known as the author of the Animorphs, Remnants, Everworld and other book series (Animorphs was co-written with her husband, Michael Grant, under the joint pen name K.A. Applegate). She won the 2013 Newbery Medal for her children's novel The One and Only Ivan. Applegate's most popular books are science fiction, fantasy, and adventure novels. She won the Best New Children's Book Series Award in 1997 from Publishers Weekly. Her novel Home of the...

Characters

IvanProtagonist

A silverback gorilla who has spent nearly 27 years as the main attraction at a run-down shopping-mall circus, communicating in art and memory as he decides to help a newly arrived baby elephant find a better life.

RubySupporting

A baby elephant brought to the mall circus after her previous circus went bankrupt; her arrival is what moves Ivan to seek a better future for them all.

BobSupporting

A stray dog who lives in Ivan's domain at the mall, sly and talkative, and prone to sleeping curled up on Ivan's chest.

StellaSupporting

An elderly elephant caged beside Ivan, scarred by years of hard treatment in traditional circuses; her failing health and her account of Ruby's origins push the story forward.

All characters in The One and Only Ivan

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