About the Author

Jane Goodall (1934–2025) began studying chimpanzees in the wild in Gombe, Tanzania, in 1960. After receiving her doctorate in ethology at Cambridge University, Dr. Goodall founded the Gombe Stream Research Center for the study of chimpanzees and baboons. In 1975, she established the Jane Goodall Institute to promote animal research throughout the world. In 1991, she founded Roots & Shoots, her global humanitarian environmental program. Dr. Goodall contributed to numerous documentaries and films and wrote twenty-seven books including In the Shadow of Man and Reason for Hope: A Spiritual Journey (with Philip Berman). In addition, she was named a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II, named a United Nations Messenger of Peace, and received many awards, including the prestigious Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences and the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom. Her legacy continues with both the research and conservation programs she founded and the inspirational story of her life and work. For more information, please visit JaneGoodall.org.

Reviews

"An engrossing tale of adventure and commitment".-- Defenders of Wildlife

So enthusiastically does Goodall relate the first 28 years of her life in the jungles of Tanzania that her odyssey appears to have just begun. The story of her life with the chimpanzees of Gombe has long been available to adults; in this book she brings that world to young readers and may very well inspire them to follow in her footsteps.The book begins with tales of her childhood in England and her earliest awareness of the needs of animals, her friendship with Louis Leakey and her trip with her motherto the first camp at Gombe. Goodall talks of the sacrifices of living as she hasher first marriage ended in divorce, and she sees her family (including her son Grub) infrequently. Stories of the chimps dominate the bookthey threaten to steal the show in many instances; readers will love meeting these personable animals. And because anecdotes about the chimps bear rereading, an index or other means of looking up a particular fact would have been a bonus. Ages 8-12. (March)

Gr 4-6 Goodall's autobiography pre sents a fascinating insight into her per sonal life, her research, and her philos ophy. A major part of the book covers her work at the Gombe Stream Re search Center in Tanzania and includes observations of a chimp family through several generations. Many of the pho tographs from this period were taken by her first husband, Hugo van Lawick. Their son, Grub, is a focal point of many of her anecdotes about life in the camp at Gombe. Goodall completes her story by encouraging young people to nurture an interest in nature, giving ad vice on how to observe animals and stressing the importance of preserving wildlife. Her autobiography reflects on the importance of friends and family and the need for humans to coexist with nature. The writing flows smoothly, and the progression of stories blends well to present to readers a sincere, al though sometimes sentimental, human being. Cynthia M. Sturgis, Ledding Library, Milwaukie, Oreg.

"An engrossing tale of adventure and commitment".

-- Defenders of Wildlife