The Chimpanzee Whisperer: A Life of Love and Loss, Compassion and Conservation

Dr. Jane Goodall once dubbed Stany Nyandwi the “Chimpanzee Whisperer,” for his special way of connecting with even the fiercest chimpanzees. In this memoir, Nyandwi (now the subject of the award-winning documentary Pant Hoot) tells of growing up in bitterly poor conditions in the East African nation of Burundi, bordering Rwanda. When the ethnic civil war between the Hutus and the Tutsis erupted, Nyandwi fled to Uganda’s Lake Victoria, the future site of the Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary. Nyandwi went on to become a leading chimpanzee authority in Kenya, Uganda, and South Africa. Narrator Dion Graham imbues Nyandwi’s words with sincerity and warmth. Graham’s characterization of Nyandwi is so successful that listeners may forget that Graham, rather than Nyandwi, is speaking. Listeners will be captivated by this remarkable account, which ranges from humorous recollections of chimpanzees captaining boats to sorrowful tales of wounded animals.