Unlike Ivan, Stella has a long memory and can remember living in other places, like the circus where she was taught many of her tricks.

When Ruby, a baby elephant, is brought to the Big Top Mall to live with Stella and learn new tricks, things begin to change.

Just before Stella succumbs to her illness and passes away, she asks Ivan to take care of Ruby and find her a better place.

After Stella's death, Ivan begins to remember his life before the Big Top Mall and what it was like to have freedom if only to have stories to tell to Ruby.

While Mack, the owner of the Big Top Mall is trying to train Ruby to do tricks, Ivan witnessed first-hand the abuse to which she is subjected and starts to decide how to keep his promise to Stella.

He later discovers Bob had become Julia's pet, and that he and Ruby had been both adopted by the same zoo, where they begin adapting to their new habitats and the other animals they now live with.

[6] According to Kirkus Reviews, "Fittingly, Ivan narrates his tale in short, image-rich sentences and acute, sometimes humorous observations that are all the more heartbreaking for their simple delivery... Utterly believable, this bittersweet story... will inspire a new generation of advocates.

"[7] Jonathan Hunt wrote in The Horn Book Magazine, "The choice to tell this story in the first person and to personify the gorilla with an entire range of human thoughts, feelings, and emotions poses important questions to the reader, not only about what it means to be human but also about what it means to be a living creature, and what kind of kinship we all share.

Just good crisp writing, complex characters, and a story that will make animal rights activists out of the most lethargic of readers.