Congratulations to the five winners of signed copies of Monkey Magic from the Borneo Orangutan Survival appeal for funds to help 100 apes return to the wild. They are Krystyna Newberry, Gemma Ellis, Lecia Foston, Gillian Flack and Julie Boadle. Enjoy the book!
The first one is from an Discovery article saying that scientists studying tickling (how do you get that job?) reckon that primates have evolved laughing over 10 to 15 million years. Some of my jokes are certainly that old. The muddy orangutan is from a great story about a rare discovery of orangutans swimming through crocodile infested waters.
And this cute chap is from the World Society for the Protection of Animals website. 
I saw an interesting (and complicated) BBC story showing that scientists worked out the benefit of keeping rainforests outweighs the money that companies make chopping it down. Like that wasn’t obvious. But the point is they are trying to work out a system whereby companies can be paid not to tear it down. Whatever works.
Borneo Orangutan Survival is raising $100,000 to help 100 orangutans return to the wild. The Freedom Mosiac Appeal works by people donating 10 pounds to buy a tile in the mosaic, but there is a possible bonus.
FREE COPIES OF MONKEY MAGIC!!
Five of the tiles have a secret copy of the book, a bit like the gold tickets in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. If you or your parents might be interested, go to the Mosaic website.
If you’d like to write a review of Monkey Magic on Amazon UK, click on this. To pen a review on Amazon USA, click here. Go on! Have a go!
If you’d like to sign up to the Monkey Magic Facebook page, click on this :
Monkey Magic goes on sale on Amazon UK from May 17 for 5.59 pounds. It will be on Amazon USA from June 10 and will also be in Brit and American book stores in the next few weeks. Click on this link for the Amazon Monkey Magic pages.
Mega-thanks to British screenwriter Tony Grounds and his daughter for their fab feedback on the book. “Loved it! It’s terrific. Floss is demanding the next one.”
I’d better get a move on…well after a quick hula…
Here’s an article by Rebecca Lynne Tan and a picture by Nuria Lang that appeared in today’s Straits Times in Singapore.
Naming the girl in his book proved a tricky task for Grant Clark who had to please both his daughters
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He eventually settled on Romy, a cross between the names of his daughters Rosie, eight, and Amy, 10. And all was well in the Clark household.
The book is about a young British girl who goes on an adventure with several talking orang utans, only to learn about the plight of the orang utan habitat in Borneo.
Monkey Magic has struck a chord with its young fans since the book’s release earlier this year.
‘A group of kids chased after me and hugged me, demanding a sequel,’ says Clark, a Singapore-based sports journalist with an international news agency, who gave a talk about his book at the United World College recently.
The inspiration for his book came in April 2007 when he was on holiday at the Bako National Park in Sarawak with his family.
His daughters begged him for a bedtime story so he came up with one, which was based on their stuffed proboscis monkey Robbie.
He penned down the idea and two years later, the book was born.
But underlying the whimsical tale of talking orang utans are deeper issues of deforestation and logging that continue to destroy the orang utan habitat in Borneo.
Clark says: ‘I haven’t been a conservationist all my life but I have always cared about the issues. It’s a good way to get people thinking about what’s going on around them.’
He adds: ‘This is my way of doing that and as a writer, this is what I can do to spread the word.’
Congratulations to 10-year-old Isabella Wilson! She won Auckland Zoo’s Young Conservationist of the Year award for her campaign to highlight the role of palm oil in the destruction of the orangutan’s habitat. ”She is a shining example of how people with passion and drive can really make a difference,” said Auckland Zoo conservation officer Peter Fraser. I’m sending Isabella a copy of Monkey Magic to show my admiration.
A shocking new report says more orangutans are being traded as pets now than in the 1970s. The reason is that police are not charging people who get caught, so there’s no reason for them to stop, according to TRAFFIC, which tracks illegal wildlife trade.
“Indonesia has adequate laws but, without serious penalties, this illegal trade will continue and these species will continue to spiral towards extinction,” says TRAFFIC’s Chris R. Shepherd.
About 2,000 orangutans have been confiscated or turned in by private owners in Indonesia in 30 years. Remember, there are just 8,000 orangutans left in Sumatra. It’s about time Indonesia got serious and punished law-breakers who subject tree-dwelling apes to a cruel and solitary life in a cage.
A Confiscated Orangutan
