The One and Only Ivan

At night we sleep in our den, but I’m always the last to head inside. I’ve been inside long enough.

This time of day, there aren’t many visitors. Just a few stragglers, leaning on the wall that separates us. They point, take a couple photos, then head over to the nearby giraffes.

One of the keepers is beckoning. Reluctantly I turn to go.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see someone running. I pause.

It’s a girl with dark hair, lugging a backpack. A man follows behind, racing to catch up.

“Ivan!” the girl yells. “Ivan!”

It’s Julia!

I scramble to the edge of the wide moat that skirts the wall.

Julia and George wave to me. I dash back and forth, hooting and grunting, doing a gorilla dance of happiness.

“Calm down,” says a voice. “You’re behaving like a chimp.”

I freeze.

A tiny, nut-brown, big-eared head pops out of Julia’s backpack.

“Nice place,” Bob says.

“Bob,” I say. “It’s really you.”

“In the flesh.”

“How … where…” I can’t seem to find any words.

“George’s job at the zoo doesn’t start till next month, so he and Julia made an agreement. She’s walking three extra dogs to cover my food. And get this: they’re all poodles.”

“You said you didn’t want a home,” I say.

“Yeah,” Bob says. “But Julia’s mom likes my company. So I figure I’m doing everybody a favor. It’s a win-win.”

Julia pushes Bob’s head back inside her backpack. “You’re not supposed to be here,” she reminds him.

“Ivan looks great, doesn’t he, Jules?” George asks. “Stronger. Happier, even.”

Julia holds up a little photo, but it’s too far away for me to see. “It’s Ruby, Ivan. She’s with other elephants now. Because of you.”

I know, I want to tell her. I saw with my own eyes.

We stare across the expanse that separates us. After a while, George pats Julia’s arm. “Time to go, Jules.”

Julia gives a wistful smile. “Bye, Ivan. Say hello to your new family.” She turns to George. “Thank you, Dad.”

“For what?”

“For—” She gestures toward me. “For this.”

They turn to leave. The lamps that light the zoo pathways blink on, blanketing the world with yellow light.

I can just make out Bob’s little head sticking out of Julia’s backpack. “You are the One and Only Ivan,” he calls.

I nod, then turn toward my family, my life, my home.

“Mighty Silverback,” I whisper.

Acknowledgments

My thanks to the talented folks at HarperCollins for their expertise and enthusiasm. A special shout-out to art director extraordinaire, Amy Ryan; to the incomparable Sarah Hoy for her lovely book design; and to copyeditor Renée Cafiero, the best in the biz.

Most of all, I’m indebted to Anne Hoppe, my remarkable editor, who has the ear of a poet, the eye of an artist, and the patience of a preschool teacher (and those are just a few of her superpowers). Thank you, Anne, for everything. I couldn’t have done this without you. Really.

To my parents, Roger and Suzanne; my siblings, Stu, Martha, and Lisa; my dear, old (but not that old!) friends Lisa Leach and Suzanne Hultman: I know how truly lucky I am to have you in my life.

And to Julia, Jake, and Michael: Humans have so many words, more than we truly need. Still, there are no words that can ever express how much I love you all.

About the Author

Katherine Applegate’s many books include the Roscoe Riley Rules chapter book series as well as the picture book The Buffalo Storm. Her novel Home of the Brave was a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year and won both the Golden Kite Award and the Josette Frank Award for best children’s fiction. With her husband, Michael Grant, she wrote the bestselling series Animorphs, which has sold more than 35 million copies worldwide.

Katherine lives in California with her husband, two children, and an assortment of beloved, if eccentric, pets. You can visit her on the web at www.katherineapplegate.com.

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Author’s Note

The One and Only Ivan is a work of fiction, but the inspiration for this imagined tale lies in a true story.

Ivan, a real gorilla, now lives at Zoo Atlanta, but on the way to that happy ending, he spent almost three decades without seeing another of his own kind.

After being captured as an infant in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Ivan’s twin sister died en route to the U.S. or shortly thereafter), Ivan was raised in a home until he became unmanageable. At that point he was added to an odd collection of animals housed at a circus-themed mall in Washington state.