What do you think?
Rate this book
Talk to Me
From bestselling and award-winning author T.C. Boyle, a lively, thought-provoking novel that asks us what it would be like if we could really talk to the animals
When animal behaviorist Guy Schermerhorn demonstrates on a TV game show that he has taught Sam, his juvenile chimp, to speak in sign language, Aimee Villard, an undergraduate at Guy's university, is so taken with the performance that she applies to become his assistant. A romantic and intellectual attachment soon morphs into an interspecies love triangle that pushes hard at the boundaries of consciousness and the question of what we know and how we know it.
What if it were possible to speak to the members of another species—to converse with them, not just give commands or coach them but to really have an exchange of ideas and a meeting of minds? Did apes have God? Did they have souls? Did they know about death and redemption? About prayer? The economy, rockets, space? Did they miss the jungle? Did they even know what the jungle was? Did they dream? Make wishes? Hope for the future?
These are some the questions T.C. Boyle asks in his wide-ranging and hilarious new novel Talk to Me, exploring what it means to be human, to communicate with another, and to truly know another person—or animal…
When animal behaviorist Guy Schermerhorn demonstrates on a TV game show that he has taught Sam, his juvenile chimp, to speak in sign language, Aimee Villard, an undergraduate at Guy's university, is so taken with the performance that she applies to become his assistant. A romantic and intellectual attachment soon morphs into an interspecies love triangle that pushes hard at the boundaries of consciousness and the question of what we know and how we know it.
What if it were possible to speak to the members of another species—to converse with them, not just give commands or coach them but to really have an exchange of ideas and a meeting of minds? Did apes have God? Did they have souls? Did they know about death and redemption? About prayer? The economy, rockets, space? Did they miss the jungle? Did they even know what the jungle was? Did they dream? Make wishes? Hope for the future?
These are some the questions T.C. Boyle asks in his wide-ranging and hilarious new novel Talk to Me, exploring what it means to be human, to communicate with another, and to truly know another person—or animal…
352 pages, Hardcover
First published January 25, 2021
About the author
T. Coraghessan Boyle
150 books2,871 followersT. Coraghessan Boyle (also known as T.C. Boyle, is a U.S. novelist and short story writer. Since the late 1970s, he has published eighteen novels and twleve collections of short stories. He won the PEN/Faulkner award in 1988 for his third novel, World's End, which recounts 300 years in upstate New York. He is married with three children. Boyle has been a
Professor of English at the University of Southern California since 1978, when he founded the school's undergraduate creative writing program.
He grew up in the small town on the Hudson Valley that he regularly fictionalizes as Peterskill (as in widely anthologized short story Greasy Lake). Boyle changed his middle name when he was 17 and exclusively used Coraghessan for much of his career, but now also goes by T.C. Boyle.
Professor of English at the University of Southern California since 1978, when he founded the school's undergraduate creative writing program.
He grew up in the small town on the Hudson Valley that he regularly fictionalizes as Peterskill (as in widely anthologized short story Greasy Lake). Boyle changed his middle name when he was 17 and exclusively used Coraghessan for much of his career, but now also goes by T.C. Boyle.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 344 reviews
July 23, 2021
Sam is a young chimp who’s been taught American Sign Language and uses it to talk to his handlers: Guy, a young professor, and his girlfriend/assistant, Aimee. But when funding for the chimp project runs out and the group is disbanded, what will happen to Sam?
I always check out whenever TC Boyle puts out a new book and, while I don’t always read them all all the way through, he tends to put out some real bangers every two or three novels. Talk To Me isn’t as good as The Harder They Come or When The Killing’s Done but it’s also not bad.
The premise was intriguing. I was hoping to see some unusual stuff come out of a chimp who learned to “speak” - nothing too sensationalist like Planet of the Apes, but something more than… the nothing we got, unfortunately. Boyle went the realist route, which is fine, but means Sam doesn’t behave that unpredictably which leads to a somewhat mundane narrative.
This is basically a retelling of Frankenstein, with Sam as the creature, with a dash of Of Mice and Men - the story of the outsider in society. Because Sam isn’t human but he’s also not quite a chimp either, so he’s something completely different and, consequently, doesn’t fit anywhere. And, like Frankenstein, the end result is a somewhat ponderous, ploddingly-paced narrative - though Boyle is a better writer than Mary Shelley was so it’s not quite so painful to read.
Even though not a whole lot happens, it’s surprisingly not dull for the most part. Boyle writes Sam really convincingly and it’s compelling to see how a chimp behaves, particularly a bright one, when he doesn’t realise he’s a chimp and is being raised as a human child. And some of the set pieces are exciting but I’ll refrain from describing them in case anyone considers them spoilers. I did end up caring a great deal for Sam’s plight though and that ending is quite moving.
What I didn’t like was how the chapters from different characters’ perspectives overlapped so that the same events got recounted twice despite being just a few pages apart - it made the narrative even slower and repetitive. Some chapters are completely irrelevant, like when Aimee was stranded in a small town on her way to Iowa, and would’ve been better off edited out.
Sam’s chapters were excellent though, short as they were. And, besides Sam, I also liked the one-eyed animal dealer Moncrief, whenever he showed up. But Aimee and Guy weren’t particularly interesting characters, which is a shame as they’re constantly around.
I don’t know why it was set in the late ‘70s/early ‘80s besides Guy’s ambition to go on Johnny Carson with Sam. Maybe 72 year old Boyle’s just more comfortable writing about a time when he was in his 30s and understood that world better.
Talk To Me is well-written, parts of it are really good, some not so, that final act really drags, and it’s a bit of a downer overall too. I don’t think it’ll be for everyone but you’ll probably enjoy it if you’re a TC Boyle fan.
I always check out whenever TC Boyle puts out a new book and, while I don’t always read them all all the way through, he tends to put out some real bangers every two or three novels. Talk To Me isn’t as good as The Harder They Come or When The Killing’s Done but it’s also not bad.
The premise was intriguing. I was hoping to see some unusual stuff come out of a chimp who learned to “speak” - nothing too sensationalist like Planet of the Apes, but something more than… the nothing we got, unfortunately. Boyle went the realist route, which is fine, but means Sam doesn’t behave that unpredictably which leads to a somewhat mundane narrative.
This is basically a retelling of Frankenstein, with Sam as the creature, with a dash of Of Mice and Men - the story of the outsider in society. Because Sam isn’t human but he’s also not quite a chimp either, so he’s something completely different and, consequently, doesn’t fit anywhere. And, like Frankenstein, the end result is a somewhat ponderous, ploddingly-paced narrative - though Boyle is a better writer than Mary Shelley was so it’s not quite so painful to read.
Even though not a whole lot happens, it’s surprisingly not dull for the most part. Boyle writes Sam really convincingly and it’s compelling to see how a chimp behaves, particularly a bright one, when he doesn’t realise he’s a chimp and is being raised as a human child. And some of the set pieces are exciting but I’ll refrain from describing them in case anyone considers them spoilers. I did end up caring a great deal for Sam’s plight though and that ending is quite moving.
What I didn’t like was how the chapters from different characters’ perspectives overlapped so that the same events got recounted twice despite being just a few pages apart - it made the narrative even slower and repetitive. Some chapters are completely irrelevant, like when Aimee was stranded in a small town on her way to Iowa, and would’ve been better off edited out.
Sam’s chapters were excellent though, short as they were. And, besides Sam, I also liked the one-eyed animal dealer Moncrief, whenever he showed up. But Aimee and Guy weren’t particularly interesting characters, which is a shame as they’re constantly around.
I don’t know why it was set in the late ‘70s/early ‘80s besides Guy’s ambition to go on Johnny Carson with Sam. Maybe 72 year old Boyle’s just more comfortable writing about a time when he was in his 30s and understood that world better.
Talk To Me is well-written, parts of it are really good, some not so, that final act really drags, and it’s a bit of a downer overall too. I don’t think it’ll be for everyone but you’ll probably enjoy it if you’re a TC Boyle fan.
June 12, 2021
I've been reading TC Boyle for the past 30 years or so, and while sometimes he falters, mostly he soars, as in this account of the attempts to bridge the species by performing studies on a chimp that has been raised by humans since birth. Sam is adorable, calculating, able to perform amazing feats of cognition. He is also several degrees of dna removed from humans. But from first sight, Aimee Villiers is completely smitten. She enters the study as an assistant, and there is an immediate bond between her and Sam, and also their professor. Boyle's books have been more and more concerned with scientific studies and sociological situations of the past that while sincere in the intent are inconsistent in the result, as with Drop City, Terranauts, The Road to Wellville. This is a work of humanity and compassion with sprinklings of humor. Just like Boyle himself.
August 28, 2022
Talk to Me is classic TC Boyle with plenty of swagger and humor focusing on a triangular relationship between a young student, a professor and a chimp. It is also a searing critique of the way humans exploit animals for scientific experimentation. I found it a weird mixture of fun and disturbing.
December 8, 2021
Let me start with a rant: the way we treat our fellow animals is nothing short of a disgrace. A chimp shares 98.9% of his DNA with a human being. Yet we believe that the 1.1% difference gives us the right to test and prod and abuse and discard and betray because we fool ourselves into believing we are vastly superior.
I am an unabashed animal lover and this book – well, I couldn’t stop turning pages and at the same time, I couldn’t wait to stop turning pages. T.C. Boyle is very successful, albeit a tad manipulative, in his writing, which, in some ways, brought to mind Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men.
The plot is linear: Guy Schermerhorn, a professor specializing in animal behaviorism, raises a juvenile chimp names Sam and teaches him to speak in sign language, expressing his needs and feelings. Aimee, an undergrad, signs on as his assistant and forms a powerful and enduring bond with Sam. That bond is tested when Guy’s own professor, Donald Moncrief, a raging megalomaniac, appears on the scene and throws a wrench into this scenario. In the meantime, the linear progression of the novel is interrupted with chapters that are narrated from Sam’s own limited view of the world.
The book jacket presents questions: “Do apes have God? Do they have souls? Do they know about death and redemption?” These questions might be intriguing to some, but I prefer to think of it as, “Do we all have worth as sentient beings?” I was more interested in T.C. Boyle’s (through his characters) insights into how we can treat animals like disposable property and deceive ourselves into believing that they cannot feel or grieve or form close attachments.
Despite the forward propulsion of the narrative, there are times when characters are created with a too-heavy hand. For example, Moncrief is downright evil (even wearing a pirates eye patch and requiring the chimps to kiss his ring). I wished that he showed a smidgen of empathy for his subjects to make him more real. Aimee is so obsessive about Sam that I needed to know her back story and why she was willing to risk so much. Yet despite this issue, I still couldn't put the book down and the emotions it engendered in me were real and powerful.
I am an unabashed animal lover and this book – well, I couldn’t stop turning pages and at the same time, I couldn’t wait to stop turning pages. T.C. Boyle is very successful, albeit a tad manipulative, in his writing, which, in some ways, brought to mind Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men.
The plot is linear: Guy Schermerhorn, a professor specializing in animal behaviorism, raises a juvenile chimp names Sam and teaches him to speak in sign language, expressing his needs and feelings. Aimee, an undergrad, signs on as his assistant and forms a powerful and enduring bond with Sam. That bond is tested when Guy’s own professor, Donald Moncrief, a raging megalomaniac, appears on the scene and throws a wrench into this scenario. In the meantime, the linear progression of the novel is interrupted with chapters that are narrated from Sam’s own limited view of the world.
The book jacket presents questions: “Do apes have God? Do they have souls? Do they know about death and redemption?” These questions might be intriguing to some, but I prefer to think of it as, “Do we all have worth as sentient beings?” I was more interested in T.C. Boyle’s (through his characters) insights into how we can treat animals like disposable property and deceive ourselves into believing that they cannot feel or grieve or form close attachments.
Despite the forward propulsion of the narrative, there are times when characters are created with a too-heavy hand. For example, Moncrief is downright evil (even wearing a pirates eye patch and requiring the chimps to kiss his ring). I wished that he showed a smidgen of empathy for his subjects to make him more real. Aimee is so obsessive about Sam that I needed to know her back story and why she was willing to risk so much. Yet despite this issue, I still couldn't put the book down and the emotions it engendered in me were real and powerful.
May 19, 2021
Talk To Me is a lively, thought-provoking novel exploring animal consciousness, what it means to be human, to communicate with another and to truly know another person—or animal. It's the late 1970s when animal behaviourist and brilliant young professor of psychology Guy Schermerhorn, disciple of the pioneering Dr Moncrieff, demonstrates on an American TV game show that he has taught Sam, his two-year-old chimpanzee, to reliably and coherently communicate. He begins to make a name for himself as Sam can not only order a cheeseburger but also say his name using sign language. Like a child, he grows up cared for by scientists, researchers and nannies in Schemerhorn's foster family. Guy aimed to demonstrate that primates, like humans, are programmed to use language. His boss, Professor Moncrief, is more sceptical, partly because of new research refuting the claim. Then off the back of his now myriad television appearances, timid undergraduate Aimee Villard volunteers to become Guy’s live-in assistant at his ranch. A very unique and close relationship develops: Sam reciprocates her feelings and literally develops into an individual. A romantic and intellectual attachment soon morphs into an interspecies love triangle that pushes hard at the boundaries of consciousness and the question of what we know and how we know it. However, when Schemerhorn's vision, which believed in the human element in animals, failed to set a precedent, Sam is confiscated and presented to another university for them to perform experiments upon. Devastated, Aimee comes up with a crazy plan to save her best friend.
This is a compelling, original and fascinating story in which award-winning and bestselling writer Boyle is both funny and compassionate about the question of whether animals are more like us than we suspect. It has many unexpected facets to it including a profound sadness running throughout, an almost cinematic quality and some interesting and wonderful bonds between the characters and Sam, although I did find Guy rather unsympathetic as a person. The author has written an impressive tale about animal research featuring a fluid and distant writing style, and I particularly liked that the perspective of the individual chapters alternates between the chimpanzee and the other characters involved, which in turn increases the tension. The chapters from the perspective of the chimpanzee Sam moved and touched me very much highlighting the plight of animals and their rights, considerations so frequently overlooked; you can tell that the author has carried out extensive research as he has packed a lot of intriguing scientific knowledge into his novel. It's a beautiful, captivating and richly emotive tale penned by an eminent storyteller, and I found myself pretty rapidly being caught up in the engaging, pacy narrative unable to foresee some of the twists and surprises that unexpectedly came about. Above all, the heart and soul of the book reminded me how we are not so different to the likes of Sam, a species we share 99% of DNA with, but that we as the dominant of the two must protect all animals from exploitation wherever humanly possible no matter their level of sentience.
This is a compelling, original and fascinating story in which award-winning and bestselling writer Boyle is both funny and compassionate about the question of whether animals are more like us than we suspect. It has many unexpected facets to it including a profound sadness running throughout, an almost cinematic quality and some interesting and wonderful bonds between the characters and Sam, although I did find Guy rather unsympathetic as a person. The author has written an impressive tale about animal research featuring a fluid and distant writing style, and I particularly liked that the perspective of the individual chapters alternates between the chimpanzee and the other characters involved, which in turn increases the tension. The chapters from the perspective of the chimpanzee Sam moved and touched me very much highlighting the plight of animals and their rights, considerations so frequently overlooked; you can tell that the author has carried out extensive research as he has packed a lot of intriguing scientific knowledge into his novel. It's a beautiful, captivating and richly emotive tale penned by an eminent storyteller, and I found myself pretty rapidly being caught up in the engaging, pacy narrative unable to foresee some of the twists and surprises that unexpectedly came about. Above all, the heart and soul of the book reminded me how we are not so different to the likes of Sam, a species we share 99% of DNA with, but that we as the dominant of the two must protect all animals from exploitation wherever humanly possible no matter their level of sentience.
July 15, 2021
You'll forgive me, I hope, but this book just didn't speak to me. It was well-written, as almost all of Boyle's works are. The set-up -- a program to teach a chimpanzee to sign and thus discover if it has "intelligence" comparable to our own -- is engaging and provocative, and the book does raise interesting questions about thought, consciousness, and the meaning of intelligence. The story itself is a good one (though the device of a sympathetic character absconding with a test animal is not terribly original). And Boyle, as ever, is often daring in his language ("There were BIRDS, dark small hurtling things like flung stones, and they infested the thin dry elbows of the bushes and vanished and reappeared all over again, making their way over the hard scalp of rock and pecking, always pecking.") But something about the book kept me distant, even as I appreciated the intelligence, wit, insights and humor Boyle displayed in its pages.
Perhaps the chapters that came from the chimp's perspective seemed "off," forced. Or maybe I thought Boyle a bit heavy-handed in setting up situations where the humans' behavior was beastly and the chimp's remarkably "human" (though that isn't always a good thing, is it?). Or the odd (to me) introduction of religion -- the chimp trying to understand the concept of God, a priest trying to decide whether an obviously intelligent and self-aware animal had a soul. I could see what Boyle was getting at, and it was amusing, but still...
Or maybe it's nothing more than the fact that I knew several of the people who were involved in exactly this kind of research back when I worked at MIT.
For whatever reason, I enjoyed it well enough --3 stars is a positive rating -- but less than Boyle's other works. I imagine many readers will feel more warmly about the book than I. I might even appreciate it more in retrospect after a time.
My thanks to Harper Collins for an advance digital review copy in return for an honest review.
Perhaps the chapters that came from the chimp's perspective seemed "off," forced. Or maybe I thought Boyle a bit heavy-handed in setting up situations where the humans' behavior was beastly and the chimp's remarkably "human" (though that isn't always a good thing, is it?). Or the odd (to me) introduction of religion -- the chimp trying to understand the concept of God, a priest trying to decide whether an obviously intelligent and self-aware animal had a soul. I could see what Boyle was getting at, and it was amusing, but still...
Or maybe it's nothing more than the fact that I knew several of the people who were involved in exactly this kind of research back when I worked at MIT.
For whatever reason, I enjoyed it well enough --3 stars is a positive rating -- but less than Boyle's other works. I imagine many readers will feel more warmly about the book than I. I might even appreciate it more in retrospect after a time.
My thanks to Harper Collins for an advance digital review copy in return for an honest review.
September 13, 2021
Do animals have souls?Are they self aware? Can they think, plan, even lie?
In this story which takes place in the 1970s, Dr Donald Moncrief of Davenport University in Iowa has pioneered the cross-fostering of chimpanzees in human home environments with a focus on language acquisition and comparative development. His protege, Dr Guy Schermerhorn, has obtained a chimp from Moncrief to do a similar project at UCSM where he is an associate professor of comparative psychology. Guy and his wife have been raising Sam the chimp on a ranch provided by the university and have taught him to communicate with sign language.
But now Guy's wife has had enough and has left him so he advertises for students willing to assist him in his project with Sam. Aimee Villard, who is pursuing an early childhood education major at UCSM, is very eager to volunteer after seeing Guy and Sam on tv. Everyone warns her NOT to get emotionally involved with the chimp, but uh-oh! It's love at first for both of them.
Everything seems to be going very well in the study but then the axe falls: as so often happens in academia, the grant money eventually dries up and Dr Moncrief wants Sam returned to his lab in Iowa. Aimee is devastated but what can she do??
Sam has a neat personality--quite humanlike in many ways; wild in others. Aimee seems quiet and shy but shows herself to have quite a strong character, determined to do what she feels is right.
There are several issues in this story that would make for some interesting group discussions. If you are interested in the topic of sentience in animals, I also recommend Ismael by Daniel Quinn.
I received an arc of this new novel from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks.
In this story which takes place in the 1970s, Dr Donald Moncrief of Davenport University in Iowa has pioneered the cross-fostering of chimpanzees in human home environments with a focus on language acquisition and comparative development. His protege, Dr Guy Schermerhorn, has obtained a chimp from Moncrief to do a similar project at UCSM where he is an associate professor of comparative psychology. Guy and his wife have been raising Sam the chimp on a ranch provided by the university and have taught him to communicate with sign language.
But now Guy's wife has had enough and has left him so he advertises for students willing to assist him in his project with Sam. Aimee Villard, who is pursuing an early childhood education major at UCSM, is very eager to volunteer after seeing Guy and Sam on tv. Everyone warns her NOT to get emotionally involved with the chimp, but uh-oh! It's love at first for both of them.
Everything seems to be going very well in the study but then the axe falls: as so often happens in academia, the grant money eventually dries up and Dr Moncrief wants Sam returned to his lab in Iowa. Aimee is devastated but what can she do??
Sam has a neat personality--quite humanlike in many ways; wild in others. Aimee seems quiet and shy but shows herself to have quite a strong character, determined to do what she feels is right.
There are several issues in this story that would make for some interesting group discussions. If you are interested in the topic of sentience in animals, I also recommend Ismael by Daniel Quinn.
I received an arc of this new novel from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks.
January 23, 2021
Das Buch ist verdammt schwer zu bewerten, weil die Geschichte mir verdammt sehr ans Herz gegangen ist.
So vieles war falsch und doch hätte ich es nicht anders gemacht aber die Frage nach der Notwendigkeit mancher Handlungen bleibt.
Verdammt schönes Buch, aber auch verdammt schwer zu verdauender Inhalt.
So vieles war falsch und doch hätte ich es nicht anders gemacht aber die Frage nach der Notwendigkeit mancher Handlungen bleibt.
Verdammt schönes Buch, aber auch verdammt schwer zu verdauender Inhalt.
August 18, 2022
Maybe you already knew that humans share 98.5% of their DNA with chimps (some say 98.8%), that chimps’ intelligence is on par with four-year-old humans, and that they comprehend symbols and do surprisingly well with sign language. They’re smart enough, so could talk right back at us if only they had vocal chords that were up to the task. And of course, they are loving creatures, protective of their loved ones, and super cute. One thing I’d forgotten, though, is they also share our propensity to violence, and though they haven’t mastered it with quite the same elan as humans, they do on occasion give it their best shot. Ouch.
So, reading this book, I was surprised, in a good way, and grateful to be reminded exactly how complicated chimps can be. This means the book was considerably more nuanced than I expected, and not a lighthearted remake-in-print of Bedtime for Bonzo. I’m a long time fan of Tom Boyle, especially his stories, and he was a huge influence on my own writing. The prose here is more subdued, more straight-forward than some of his earlier stuff. He’s still fond of third-person POV that freely shares the characters’ thoughts. Sam the chimp’s chapters are treated likewise, and maybe in the beginning I was skeptical, but became very impressed. (Probably not surprisingly, this is the first book I’ve read with a chimp’s perspective.) I liked how he used all caps for the words Sam knows how to sign. An example of Sam’s perspective (his chapters btw are a small part of the novel):
The TRAILER was not a CAGE and it wasn’t a TENT and the BLACK BUGS, even Alice, were just a memory now. He slept in a bed, watched TV, ate cereal out of a box whenever he wanted. Where was he? He didn’t know, and if it felt foreign—the sun, the rocks, the ground that burned his feet in the middle of the day and the plants that reached out and stabbed him if he let his vigilance slip for just an instant—it didn’t matter because he was with her, always, from the minute he opened his eyes till she read him his BEDTIME STORY and fell into a dreamless sleep.
(end of excerpt)
Now a few notes for my benefit, scenes I don’t want to forget down the road. Possible spoilers?--maybe.
Sam and another chimp steal the rowboat, leaving Aimee stranded on an island; she has to strip and swim in freezing water. Of course, the chimps ransack the house, and of course, the bad guy shows up.
The baptism.
That Sam calls the priest in robe NO LEGS
The Halloween pirate with eye patch scene.
Of course, the final chapters: when the BIG MAN shows up at the trailer door; the heart-breaking finale. (That, I don't think I'll have any trouble remembering!)
August 30, 2021
3.5 Stars.
My review is published in the September edition of goodREADING magazine.
My review is published in the September edition of goodREADING magazine.
September 11, 2021
An unsentimental and at the same time beautifully emotional literary triumph of blurring the borders between different orders of primates.
A great achievement.
A great achievement.
October 5, 2023
Eigentlich eine Version von Frankenstein, halt nur mit einem Affen. Kratzt an ähnlichen Themen wie Der Letzte seiner Art, das ich zufällig parallel gelesen habe, wobei mir Sibylle Grimberts Roman besser gefallen hat. Boyles Versuchsanordnung krankte mir zu sehr an der nervtötend naiven Protagonistin und der darauf aufbauenden Schwarz-Weiß-Malerei bei den anderen Figuren.
February 19, 2024
Ich mochte einige von Boyle’s Romanen aber dieser hat mich fast am stärksten beeindruckt. Das hat stark damit zu tun, dass TCB sich einen Stoff ganz zu eigen macht, mit Haut und Haaren und das wirkt sich so aus, dass er einen Teil des Romans sogar aus der Perspektive eines Schimpansen erzählt und keineswegs romantisierend, natürlich nicht glaubwürdig, aber durchaus so überzeugend, dass man während des Lesens gerne mal die Realität verdrängt und sich sagt, ja, warum nicht, so ungefähr könnte es ja tatsächlich sein, wenn sich ein Menschenaffe in unserer Sprache verständigen könnte.
Das Personal (rücksichtsloser, charismatischer Wissenschaftler und als Gegenpol ein Novize oder wie hier eine Novizin, die anfangs voller Bewunderung für den Guru ist und sich dann bis zur Auflehnung entwickeln darf) verwendet er nicht zum ersten Mal.
Einschränkung, die ich aber fast auf alle Romane von TCB anwenden kann, ist die Frage die mir am Ende immer bleibt: so what? Und wozu das Ganze? Welches grundsätzliche Motiv treibt TCB an, einen solchen Roman zu schreiben? Was soll ich nun damit anfangen?
Solche Fragen könnte man sich bei sehr vielen Romanen stellen, mache ich aber zum Beispiel nicht bei Stephen King. Weil mir klar ist, was es soll.
Bei TCB ist halt die Erwartung etwas anders, zumal er sich so großer Themen annimmt.
Das Personal (rücksichtsloser, charismatischer Wissenschaftler und als Gegenpol ein Novize oder wie hier eine Novizin, die anfangs voller Bewunderung für den Guru ist und sich dann bis zur Auflehnung entwickeln darf) verwendet er nicht zum ersten Mal.
Einschränkung, die ich aber fast auf alle Romane von TCB anwenden kann, ist die Frage die mir am Ende immer bleibt: so what? Und wozu das Ganze? Welches grundsätzliche Motiv treibt TCB an, einen solchen Roman zu schreiben? Was soll ich nun damit anfangen?
Solche Fragen könnte man sich bei sehr vielen Romanen stellen, mache ich aber zum Beispiel nicht bei Stephen King. Weil mir klar ist, was es soll.
Bei TCB ist halt die Erwartung etwas anders, zumal er sich so großer Themen annimmt.
July 13, 2021
loved it. very interesting subject - language aquisition in chimpanazees, as studied in a psychology department in california in 1970 - centered around „sam“, a home-raised chimp who has learned to use sign language to communicate with humans. the novel explores the different aspects of this project in depth - the emotional implication of the main care-taker of sam, aimee, an undergraduate student who has an immediate rapport with him and a deep understanding, and even love for him. there is a multitude of problems which arise when trying to live with a primate, with the intelligence of maybe a three-year old child, and physically three times stronger then the humans. i found all the aspects presented interesting, and i especially liked that alternate chapters are written from sam‘s p.o.v., with both empathy and stringency. a thought-provoking novel about consciousness, communication, the meaning of love and of what it means to be (or not) human.
October 12, 2021
I'm disappointed to say this was strangely underwhelming. The premise is interesting: A chimpanzee is being raised as a human as part of a professor's research project on language and communication, an undergraduate student joins the project, and a romantic triangle (of sorts) unfolds before all hell breaks loose. Scenes are presented and sometimes repeated from different perspectives (including the chimpanzee's, with its own unique linguistic style).
Unfortunately the characters never felt fully developed and what I did get didn't exactly make them likable, so it was hard to feel invested in any of their dynamics. There were some worthwhile moments that gave me pause for thought on our relationship with animals in general (whether as pets, food, or laboratory test subjects), but overall they didn't land for me in the way the book seemed to be intending. Oh well.
Unfortunately the characters never felt fully developed and what I did get didn't exactly make them likable, so it was hard to feel invested in any of their dynamics. There were some worthwhile moments that gave me pause for thought on our relationship with animals in general (whether as pets, food, or laboratory test subjects), but overall they didn't land for me in the way the book seemed to be intending. Oh well.
February 8, 2021
Sprich mit mir habe ich auf Vorablesen entdeckt, das Cover hat mich angezogen und auch der Klappentext. Nach einem Blick in die Leseprobe habe ich sogleich meine Punkte für das Buch eingetauscht, heißt mir hat die Leseprobe so gut gefallen, dass ich das Buch unbedingt lesen wollte und nicht darauf hoffen wollte, dass ich bei der Verlosung Glück habe.
Umso mehr war ich dann beim Lesen enttäuscht, als ich merkte, dass mir die Geschichte nicht gefällt.
Die Idee finde ich nach wie vor klasse. Schimpanse Sam wird beigebracht sich mit der Gebärdensprache auszudrücken und er verliebt sich in seine Pflegerin Aimee. Schnell wird einem als Leser:in klar, dass man nicht pauschal sagen kann, die wer hier die guten und die bösen sind. Tiere, die für die Wissenschaft vermenschlicht werden, nur um sie dann in die Forschung abzuschieben, wenn sie ausgewachsen / zu gefährlich werden. Moralisch ist das Buch auf jeden Fall interessant.
Und doch fand ich es leider sehr anstrengend. Was an dem Schreibstil und der gewählten Erzählform liegt. Dinge werden nicht unbedingt einfach beim Wort genannt, sondern umschrieben, so zieht sich einiges und man muss sich doch ziemlich konzentrieren. Wäre dabei dann wenigstens eine gewisse Poesie entstanden, wie man es auch manch anderen Büchern kennt, aber dem war, zumindest für mich, hier nicht der Fall.
Außerdem werden manche Geschehnisse aus der Sicht von mehreren Personen erzählt, was ich als anstrengenden empfand. Ja, ich mag ungeduldig sein, denn wenn ich etwas schon weiß, dann muss ich es nicht nochmal aus einer anderen Sicht lesen. Dies ist aber sicherlich Geschmackssache. Das in einem Kapitel Unterumständen aus der Sicht von mehren Personen erzählt wurde und dass auch einfach gewechselt hat, hat mich leider immer wieder aus dem Lesefluss geworden. Irgendwie gab es für mich keinen klaren roten Faden.
Meine erstes und wohl auch letztes T.C. Boyle Buch. Ich glaube wir passen nicht zusammen. Interessante Idee, aber die Umsetzung war nichts für mich. Das Thema finde ich trotzdem gut und so bin ich beim Lesen trotz der Kritik am Ball geblieben. Die Darstellung von Sam und seine Kapitel haben mir einen zusätzlichen Reiz gegeben weiterzulesen.
2,5 Sterne
Umso mehr war ich dann beim Lesen enttäuscht, als ich merkte, dass mir die Geschichte nicht gefällt.
Die Idee finde ich nach wie vor klasse. Schimpanse Sam wird beigebracht sich mit der Gebärdensprache auszudrücken und er verliebt sich in seine Pflegerin Aimee. Schnell wird einem als Leser:in klar, dass man nicht pauschal sagen kann, die wer hier die guten und die bösen sind. Tiere, die für die Wissenschaft vermenschlicht werden, nur um sie dann in die Forschung abzuschieben, wenn sie ausgewachsen / zu gefährlich werden. Moralisch ist das Buch auf jeden Fall interessant.
Und doch fand ich es leider sehr anstrengend. Was an dem Schreibstil und der gewählten Erzählform liegt. Dinge werden nicht unbedingt einfach beim Wort genannt, sondern umschrieben, so zieht sich einiges und man muss sich doch ziemlich konzentrieren. Wäre dabei dann wenigstens eine gewisse Poesie entstanden, wie man es auch manch anderen Büchern kennt, aber dem war, zumindest für mich, hier nicht der Fall.
Außerdem werden manche Geschehnisse aus der Sicht von mehreren Personen erzählt, was ich als anstrengenden empfand. Ja, ich mag ungeduldig sein, denn wenn ich etwas schon weiß, dann muss ich es nicht nochmal aus einer anderen Sicht lesen. Dies ist aber sicherlich Geschmackssache. Das in einem Kapitel Unterumständen aus der Sicht von mehren Personen erzählt wurde und dass auch einfach gewechselt hat, hat mich leider immer wieder aus dem Lesefluss geworden. Irgendwie gab es für mich keinen klaren roten Faden.
Meine erstes und wohl auch letztes T.C. Boyle Buch. Ich glaube wir passen nicht zusammen. Interessante Idee, aber die Umsetzung war nichts für mich. Das Thema finde ich trotzdem gut und so bin ich beim Lesen trotz der Kritik am Ball geblieben. Die Darstellung von Sam und seine Kapitel haben mir einen zusätzlichen Reiz gegeben weiterzulesen.
2,5 Sterne
February 28, 2021
Ein unglaublich ergreifender, zu Tränen rührender, eindrucksvoller Roman, der mich während des gesamten Lesens nicht aus dem Staunen rausbrachte. T.C Boyle hat einen überwältigenden Roman geschrieben, inspiriert von dem echten Fall des Primatenforschers Roger Fouts und Schimpansin Washoe, die die Gebärdensprache erlernte und somit das erste Tier der Welt war, das eine menschliche Sprache beherrschte.
Sam, der aus Forschungszwecken , von Menschen aufgezogen wird und mit dem Professor Guy und seinen studentischen Hilfskräften auf einer Ranch zusammen wohnt und in ein menschliches Leben hineinwächst, sich Pizza bestellt, Umarmungen liebt und eine besondere emotionale Beziehung zu Aimee, einer Studentin aufbaut, wird eines Tages aus seiner Umgebung gerissen und soll als biomedizinisches Versuchstier verkauft werden, was Aimee aber nicht zulassen kann.
Ein unglaublich schöner Roman, der Fragen aufwirft wie: Wie viel Mensch steckt in einem hochentwickelten Tier und wie viel Tier steckt in uns, den Menschen ? Haben Tiere ein Bewusstsein und sind sie sich ihrer Existenz bewusst ? Denken sie über ihre Vergangenheit oder die Zukunft nach? Haben sie Angst vor dem Tod?
Die ergreifendsten Momente sind die, in der sich T.C Boyle in den gefangen Schimpansen Sam hineinversetzt und die Ereignisse von ihm geschildert werden.
Das führt dazu, dass LeserInnen seine Gedanken und Gefühle miterleben und wir an seiner Entwicklung teilhaben dürfen.
Einfach großartiges Leseerlebnis. Das wird definitiv nicht das letzte Buch gewesen sein, was ich von T.C Boyle lesen werde.
March 4, 2021
Im Rahmen eines einzigartigen Experiments nimmt das Wissenschaftlerehepaar Schemerhorn das Schimpansenbaby Sam bei sich auf, um es wie ein Kind zu erziehen. Es lernt die (Gebärden-)Sprache, Essen, Trinken, auf Toilette gehen. Doch als seine engste Bezugsperson verschwindet, zerbricht die Illusion eines menschgewordenen Affen: Sam, zwei Jahre, tobt und rast. Erst mit dem Auftauchen der Studentin Aimée kehrt wieder Frieden ein und zwischen den Beiden entsteht eine ganz besondere Beziehung. Doch leider ist dies nicht von Dauer.
Obwohl Sam durch Fernsehauftritte einen gewissen Bekanntheitsgrad erlangt und seine Fähigkeiten zweifelsfrei anerkannt werden, wird die finanzielle Unterstützung dieses Experiments beendet. Sam muss in eine Art Forschungslabor, in einen Käfig, gefangen, gemeinsam mit anderen Affen. Doch Aimée will das nicht akzeptieren.
Die Guten und Bösen sind fast schon ein bisschen klischeehaft dargestellt: Der böse Professor mit schwarzer Augenklappe, der seine Affen ausschließlich als Dinge betrachtet, ob sie nun sprechen können oder nicht. Die herzensgute Aimée, die bis zur Selbstaufopferung liebt. Und der Wissenschaftler Schemerhorn, der deutlich diffuser dargestellt wird, obwohl dennoch schnell klar ist, in welche Richtung sein Handeln gehen wird.
Trotzdem ist T.C. Boyle in diesem Buch ein wirkliches Kunststück gelungen wie ich finde. Er lässt die Geschichte aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven erzählen, auch aus der Sams. Statt diesen aber zu vermenschlichen, in dem er ihm einen ’normalen‘ Tonfall verleiht, sind es seine bruchstückhaften Gedanken, die durch die großgeschriebenen Worte (die, die Sam in der Gebärdensprache kennt und versteht) bestimmt werden. So wirken diese vergleichsweise kurzen Abschnitte überaus glaubhaft.
Ich habe Sam in diesem Buch ins Herz geschlossen und konnte Aimées Handeln in Bezug auf ihn voll und ganz nachvollziehen (anderes hingegen nicht), was mich auch seitdem öfter über die Beziehung Mensch – Tier nachdenken lässt. Ein lesenswertes Buch!
Obwohl Sam durch Fernsehauftritte einen gewissen Bekanntheitsgrad erlangt und seine Fähigkeiten zweifelsfrei anerkannt werden, wird die finanzielle Unterstützung dieses Experiments beendet. Sam muss in eine Art Forschungslabor, in einen Käfig, gefangen, gemeinsam mit anderen Affen. Doch Aimée will das nicht akzeptieren.
Die Guten und Bösen sind fast schon ein bisschen klischeehaft dargestellt: Der böse Professor mit schwarzer Augenklappe, der seine Affen ausschließlich als Dinge betrachtet, ob sie nun sprechen können oder nicht. Die herzensgute Aimée, die bis zur Selbstaufopferung liebt. Und der Wissenschaftler Schemerhorn, der deutlich diffuser dargestellt wird, obwohl dennoch schnell klar ist, in welche Richtung sein Handeln gehen wird.
Trotzdem ist T.C. Boyle in diesem Buch ein wirkliches Kunststück gelungen wie ich finde. Er lässt die Geschichte aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven erzählen, auch aus der Sams. Statt diesen aber zu vermenschlichen, in dem er ihm einen ’normalen‘ Tonfall verleiht, sind es seine bruchstückhaften Gedanken, die durch die großgeschriebenen Worte (die, die Sam in der Gebärdensprache kennt und versteht) bestimmt werden. So wirken diese vergleichsweise kurzen Abschnitte überaus glaubhaft.
Ich habe Sam in diesem Buch ins Herz geschlossen und konnte Aimées Handeln in Bezug auf ihn voll und ganz nachvollziehen (anderes hingegen nicht), was mich auch seitdem öfter über die Beziehung Mensch – Tier nachdenken lässt. Ein lesenswertes Buch!
January 25, 2021
Sam liebt Pizza, Cheeseburger und Schokolade. Er trinkt für sein Leben gern Cola. Sam braucht eine Kuscheldecke zum Einschlafen und spielt für sein Leben gern Fangen. Sam lernt gerade zu sprechen. Sam ist ein Schimpanse. Als Aimee Sam das erste Mal im Fernsehen sieht und sich daraufhin auf eine Pflegschaftsstelle bei dem Professor, der sich um Sam kümmert, bewirbt, rüttelt diese Entscheidung ihr Leben durcheinander. Bereits beim ersten Kennenlernen wird deutlich, zwischen ihnen besteht eine ganz besondere Verbindung. Doch verschiedene Ereignisse bringen das neue Leben von Aimee und Sam durcheinander...
T.C. Boyle hat mit „Sprich mit mir“ einen unglaublich spannenden und zugleich emotionalen Roman geschrieben. Im Fokus stehen verschiedene Beziehungen zwischen den Protagonist*innen sowie die Spracherwerbsforschung im Bereich der Primaten. Wir lernen die Protagonist*innen aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven kennen, scheinen sie doch die gleichen Situationen zu erleben, unterscheidet sich die Deutung bzw. Akzentuierung teilweise immens. Einige Charaktere sind mir sympathischer als andere erschienen, doch ergeben sie zusammen ein stimmiges Bild der schwierigen Situation zwischen wissenschaftlicher Forschung, wissenschaftlicher Hierarchien, Tierethik sowie persönlichen Beziehungen. An vielen Stellen wird gewarnt keine Beziehung zu seinem Forschungsobjekt zu entwickeln. Diese Gratwanderung ist nicht für alle möglich... Ich habe vor allem Sam unglaublich lieb gewonnen beim Lesen und an vielen Stellen emotional mitgelitten, mich mitgefreut und gehofft.
Boyle thematisiert eine Reihe an Fragen in den Beziehungen zwischen Mensch, Tier und Natur und versucht die Vielschichtigkeit durch die unterschiedlichen Facetten und Perspektiven aufzuzeigen.
Eine spannende und zugleich emotionale Reise, die der Lesende gemeinsam mit den Protagonist*innen unternimmt! Für mich war dies mein erster Roman des Autors aber bestimmt nicht der letzte gewesen sein.
T.C. Boyle hat mit „Sprich mit mir“ einen unglaublich spannenden und zugleich emotionalen Roman geschrieben. Im Fokus stehen verschiedene Beziehungen zwischen den Protagonist*innen sowie die Spracherwerbsforschung im Bereich der Primaten. Wir lernen die Protagonist*innen aus unterschiedlichen Perspektiven kennen, scheinen sie doch die gleichen Situationen zu erleben, unterscheidet sich die Deutung bzw. Akzentuierung teilweise immens. Einige Charaktere sind mir sympathischer als andere erschienen, doch ergeben sie zusammen ein stimmiges Bild der schwierigen Situation zwischen wissenschaftlicher Forschung, wissenschaftlicher Hierarchien, Tierethik sowie persönlichen Beziehungen. An vielen Stellen wird gewarnt keine Beziehung zu seinem Forschungsobjekt zu entwickeln. Diese Gratwanderung ist nicht für alle möglich... Ich habe vor allem Sam unglaublich lieb gewonnen beim Lesen und an vielen Stellen emotional mitgelitten, mich mitgefreut und gehofft.
Boyle thematisiert eine Reihe an Fragen in den Beziehungen zwischen Mensch, Tier und Natur und versucht die Vielschichtigkeit durch die unterschiedlichen Facetten und Perspektiven aufzuzeigen.
Eine spannende und zugleich emotionale Reise, die der Lesende gemeinsam mit den Protagonist*innen unternimmt! Für mich war dies mein erster Roman des Autors aber bestimmt nicht der letzte gewesen sein.
December 8, 2021
Wow! This novel packs a punch I was not prepared for! I finished it and couldn't move for awhile. It is unforgettable, and will probably haunt me for weeks. Well done T.C. Boyle. I've always been a fan, but with this one you've outdone yourself.
Read
November 12, 2021Dieses Buch hat mich sehr bewegt, irgendwie tut es das immer noch.
Es geht um Sam. Ein Schimpanse, der direkt nach der Geburt zu einem Professor gebracht wird und dort wie ein Kind aufwächst. Ein Experiment, das zeigen soll, wie diese Umstände und die Erziehung den Schimpansen beeinflussen. Zeigt er Loyalität? Empathie? Kann er lernen, mit Menschen zu kommunizieren und seine eigenen Bedürfnisse äußern?
Zusammen mit einer Studentin, die einen Nebenjob sucht, wächst Sam quasi in einer WG mit ihr und dem Professor auf. Doch als die Forschungsgelder gestrichen werden, läuft alles aus dem Ruder.
In diesem Buch gibt es Kapitel, die aus der Sicht von Sam geschrieben sind. Und diese Kapitel haben mir mein Herz gebrochen, sie waren so unschuldig und schmerzhaft, dass ich mehrfach geweint habe. Nichts für schwache Nerven.
Das Buch ist sprachlich ein absolutes Meisterwerk. Zahlreiche literarische und philosophische Anspielungen, die Kapitel aus Sams Sicht, die einem eine andere Gedankenwelt zeigen, die zahlreichen Denkanstöße durch die einfachsten Sätze. Der Schreibstil ist anspruchsvoll, der Inhalt schwer zu verdauen - und doch war es ein so wichtiges Buch, das sich trotzdem sehr schnell lesen lässt.
Diese Geschichte bleibt im Kopf - ein absolutes Highlight.
Es geht um Sam. Ein Schimpanse, der direkt nach der Geburt zu einem Professor gebracht wird und dort wie ein Kind aufwächst. Ein Experiment, das zeigen soll, wie diese Umstände und die Erziehung den Schimpansen beeinflussen. Zeigt er Loyalität? Empathie? Kann er lernen, mit Menschen zu kommunizieren und seine eigenen Bedürfnisse äußern?
Zusammen mit einer Studentin, die einen Nebenjob sucht, wächst Sam quasi in einer WG mit ihr und dem Professor auf. Doch als die Forschungsgelder gestrichen werden, läuft alles aus dem Ruder.
In diesem Buch gibt es Kapitel, die aus der Sicht von Sam geschrieben sind. Und diese Kapitel haben mir mein Herz gebrochen, sie waren so unschuldig und schmerzhaft, dass ich mehrfach geweint habe. Nichts für schwache Nerven.
Das Buch ist sprachlich ein absolutes Meisterwerk. Zahlreiche literarische und philosophische Anspielungen, die Kapitel aus Sams Sicht, die einem eine andere Gedankenwelt zeigen, die zahlreichen Denkanstöße durch die einfachsten Sätze. Der Schreibstil ist anspruchsvoll, der Inhalt schwer zu verdauen - und doch war es ein so wichtiges Buch, das sich trotzdem sehr schnell lesen lässt.
Diese Geschichte bleibt im Kopf - ein absolutes Highlight.
February 5, 2022
I absolutely loved this!!!! This is my first TC Boyle novel, and if this is any indication of how his other books are, I was pleasantly surprised!!! I loved the characters, I enjoyed the story of Sam, although it was sad, and heartbreaking. The story was very well done!! 5/5 ⭐️
April 25, 2024
This book makes a strong statement about animal testing, research and the sentience of chimps but it's so depressing, oof. Sam's POV was painful 😢
July 15, 2021
Of course, Talk To Me was sure to be a hoot, coming from T. C. Boyle. A chimp is raised by humans, thinks it is a human, talks with sign language. A young student applies to be a caretaker, and soon it’s a King Kong beast loves woman story. Sam, the chimp, and Aimee, a willing Fay Wray, have a love story for the ages. They live together, sleep together, play together. And Sam will do anything to protect her. (No, there is no sex involved, which is physically impossible we are told.)
The professor in charge of the experiment to teach Sam language is also pleased with the pretty, shy Aimee and he makes her his paramour, sneaking in love-making behind Sam’s back.
Sam is charming. He may even appear on the Johnny Carson show. Everyone is happy.
Except the man who actually owns Sam and funds the experiment. The idea of primates talking falls out of favor, funding dries up, and it’s time to put Sam back into a lab cage and make a monkey out of him again. Aimee can’t desert Sam and she offers herself as free labor in the lab, cleaning up ape shit and feeding them monkey kibble.
Aimee steals Sam and they run away together into the high desert. And that works for a while, but it all catches up with them. The story ends with a dramatic confrontation, the evil bad guy getting what’s coming to him. But Aimee must make a horrific decision.
In many ways, this novel is a lark, with a dose of suspense. But it also posits questions about relationships, communication, and animal consciousness.
Aimee had “given herself over to something she couldn’t explain, a deep connection with another soul, whether it be human or not.” Usually, we humans connect with animals like dogs and cats, sometimes horses. As I child, I was certain that I had a deep understanding with my pet dog Pepper. And all my life, I believed that dogs understood that I loved them and they loved me back. And even if our Suki understood lots of what we said, from ‘walk’ and ‘sit’ and ‘turn right’ and even ‘Go get Kaze’ when our blind dog got lost in the back yard, she could only communicate back with deep looks, pacing, and waiting at the door.
What if a creature did learn to communicate in ways we understood? What would it tell us? Sam recognized his photograph and categorized it with ‘humans’ not with ‘chimps,’ who he called Black Bugs when he finally met his own kind. He could lie and plot devious escape plans. But did he regret biting his first caretaker? When he asked forgiveness, or would not forgive, did he understand morality?
Human love failed Aimee. Sam never did. And so, the book is also a tragic love story.
Although I read T. C. Boyle’s early novels when they came out, its been a while since I last read him and I am glad to have read this new book.
I received a free egalley from Ecco through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
The professor in charge of the experiment to teach Sam language is also pleased with the pretty, shy Aimee and he makes her his paramour, sneaking in love-making behind Sam’s back.
Sam is charming. He may even appear on the Johnny Carson show. Everyone is happy.
Except the man who actually owns Sam and funds the experiment. The idea of primates talking falls out of favor, funding dries up, and it’s time to put Sam back into a lab cage and make a monkey out of him again. Aimee can’t desert Sam and she offers herself as free labor in the lab, cleaning up ape shit and feeding them monkey kibble.
Aimee steals Sam and they run away together into the high desert. And that works for a while, but it all catches up with them. The story ends with a dramatic confrontation, the evil bad guy getting what’s coming to him. But Aimee must make a horrific decision.
In many ways, this novel is a lark, with a dose of suspense. But it also posits questions about relationships, communication, and animal consciousness.
Aimee had “given herself over to something she couldn’t explain, a deep connection with another soul, whether it be human or not.” Usually, we humans connect with animals like dogs and cats, sometimes horses. As I child, I was certain that I had a deep understanding with my pet dog Pepper. And all my life, I believed that dogs understood that I loved them and they loved me back. And even if our Suki understood lots of what we said, from ‘walk’ and ‘sit’ and ‘turn right’ and even ‘Go get Kaze’ when our blind dog got lost in the back yard, she could only communicate back with deep looks, pacing, and waiting at the door.
What if a creature did learn to communicate in ways we understood? What would it tell us? Sam recognized his photograph and categorized it with ‘humans’ not with ‘chimps,’ who he called Black Bugs when he finally met his own kind. He could lie and plot devious escape plans. But did he regret biting his first caretaker? When he asked forgiveness, or would not forgive, did he understand morality?
Human love failed Aimee. Sam never did. And so, the book is also a tragic love story.
Although I read T. C. Boyle’s early novels when they came out, its been a while since I last read him and I am glad to have read this new book.
I received a free egalley from Ecco through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
April 12, 2021
Ein Forscher (Guy) bringt einem Schimpansen (Sam) Gebärdensprache bei. Dafür braucht er eine neue Assistentin (Aimee). Die Frau kriegt zwar fast eine Panikattacke, wenn sie ein Glas Rotwein ablehnen soll, das sie nicht will, wird aber für ihren Chef ruckzuck zum sexy Vamp. Auch die Beziehung zum Schimpansen entwickelt sich irgendwie unschön, sie kiffen zusammen und schlafen im gleichen Bett, WTF. Als die Forschungsgelder gestrichen werden,
Mir ist bewusst, dass es tatsächlich solche Sprachexperimente mit Schimpansen gab, und sie sind durchaus spannend. Auch die Kritik, Tiere zu vermenschlichen und entgegen ihrem Naturell zu eigenen Zwecken zu benutzen, ist nachvollziehbar und angebracht. Was der Autor da als Geschichte drumherum strickt, ist aber schon ziemlich grotesk. Leider nicht auf eine unterhaltsame Weise; der Text ist unfassbar langweilig zu lesen. Die Figuren sind hauptsächlich damit beschäftigt, sich zu streiten, zu betrinken und Pizza zu bestellen. Ab und zu gibt's ein bisschen Action. Darüber, wie Sam Gebärden erlernt oder neue Zusammenhänge herstellt, erfährt man aber kaum etwas. Am Schluss bleibt eine simple Entführungs-Gefangenschafts-Rettungs-Geschichte.
Mir ist bewusst, dass es tatsächlich solche Sprachexperimente mit Schimpansen gab, und sie sind durchaus spannend. Auch die Kritik, Tiere zu vermenschlichen und entgegen ihrem Naturell zu eigenen Zwecken zu benutzen, ist nachvollziehbar und angebracht. Was der Autor da als Geschichte drumherum strickt, ist aber schon ziemlich grotesk. Leider nicht auf eine unterhaltsame Weise; der Text ist unfassbar langweilig zu lesen. Die Figuren sind hauptsächlich damit beschäftigt, sich zu streiten, zu betrinken und Pizza zu bestellen. Ab und zu gibt's ein bisschen Action. Darüber, wie Sam Gebärden erlernt oder neue Zusammenhänge herstellt, erfährt man aber kaum etwas. Am Schluss bleibt eine simple Entführungs-Gefangenschafts-Rettungs-Geschichte.
April 2, 2021
Es geht um Kommunikation mit einem Schimpansen (Sam), um Tierversuche, um ein wissenschaftlichen Experiment, um das Zusammenleben zwischen Mensch und Tier und um die Frage, wie weit man ein Tier dressieren soll (darf).
Vieles ist für mich unglaubwürdig. Besonders der Teil, in welchen die Gedanken des Tieres beschrieben werden.
Und der Ausflug in die Religion (wo man SAM erklären will wer Jesus war) hat dann gleich noch einen Stern Abzug gegeben. So ein Unsinn!
Ab und zu mal Ansätze von wissenschaftlichen Untersuchungen und Ideen (obwohl der Ober-Professor der größte Fiesling im Buch ist). Aber das rettete das Buch auch nicht mehr...
Vieles ist für mich unglaubwürdig. Besonders der Teil, in welchen die Gedanken des Tieres beschrieben werden.
Und der Ausflug in die Religion (wo man SAM erklären will wer Jesus war) hat dann gleich noch einen Stern Abzug gegeben. So ein Unsinn!
Ab und zu mal Ansätze von wissenschaftlichen Untersuchungen und Ideen (obwohl der Ober-Professor der größte Fiesling im Buch ist). Aber das rettete das Buch auch nicht mehr...
June 15, 2021
Some of my favorite stories feature primates, from Planet of the Apes to King Kong. So this book had an immediate appeal. The author it seems has had a long and productive career thus far and this is my first time reading him, though this book served as a most auspicious of introductions. Proper literary fiction and a fascinating concept. Not a new one or unheard of by any means, in fact it’s practically a fictionalized account of Project Nim. Which, for those who don’t know, is a documentary based on the language experiement conducted from the early age with a ridiculously adorable chimp named Nim Chimpsky. Nim also wasn’t the first, best or only simian learner of sign language. There’s a totally awesome gorilla named Koko, who is absolutely worth checking out on Youtube. But Nim, like Sam the protagonist of this novel, are both chimps, the species that share the insane 98.9% of our DNA.
Sam is a bright precocious youngster when we meet him, too much to handle for Guy Schermerhorn, the professor experimentally raising him and when the existing assistants prove insufficient, he hires new ones, Enter Aimee, a shy but intrigued 21 year old college girl with zero experience. But then again, none is needed, because from the instance they meet, Sam and Aimee share a connection. They become inseparable. Even when the circumstances conspire to separate them. And thus unfolds the story of the talking ape. And a woman who loves him.
While definitely no Planet of the Apes, this novel does echo King Kong in a way. It is a love story, unorthodox as it is. In fact, at times it’s positively a love triangle between Guy, Aimee and Sam. It isn’t a simple kind of love, more of a potent brew of romantic, parental/childlike, caretaker/cared for, etc. Two outcasts who don’t really belong with their own kind and find a strange codependency with each other. It’s desperate, tragic and can’t possibly end well, but it isn’t so much the beauty that kills the beast here as it is the hubristically mismanaged expectations of others. In having been raised as a person, Sam was brought up against his very nature and he ends up belonging to no world. A tragic character, really.
Aimee is tragic too, but in a different way, the obsessiveness of her love and devotion is her Sisyphean boulder. She can’t walk away, doesn’t have Guy’s calculating pragmatism to guide her. Or Sam’s legal owner, Guy’s own professor’s sheer evil practicality. Evil’s apt here actually, the guy is fictionally rendered as a comic book antagonist, appearance to attitude.
It stands to mention that the novel takes place about four decades ago before animal rights (apes and otherwise) became a thing, so Sam is pretty much at mercy or whoever owns him and their designs on him. As are all the other apes in this book. So yes, it’s very sad, very disturbing and might be too much for some readers.
Readers seem to have gotten more dainty these days, so yeah, consider this to be a warning for animal abuse. But seriously, shouldn’t people try to read challenging things…something that stretches their emotional boundaries as much as the intellectual ones? I believe so. And this book certainly does that. It posits large questions about the meaning of language and sentience and faith and ability to genuinely communicate and, of course, love…and it also absolutely guts you emotionally. There, you’ve been warned.
It isn’t so much a question of do we strive to communicate with other species beyond natural means, it’s question of should we. But then again you meet a cute chimp in overalls who knows sign language and you just go…talk to me. Can’t help it. It’s too fascinating. Though, of course, words or no words, so often our interactions (with animals or people) say more about us than them. Either way…talk to me will speak to you. It’s just that different readers might hear different things. I enjoyed it very much. Terrific writing and themes of great interest to me. Great read. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
Sam is a bright precocious youngster when we meet him, too much to handle for Guy Schermerhorn, the professor experimentally raising him and when the existing assistants prove insufficient, he hires new ones, Enter Aimee, a shy but intrigued 21 year old college girl with zero experience. But then again, none is needed, because from the instance they meet, Sam and Aimee share a connection. They become inseparable. Even when the circumstances conspire to separate them. And thus unfolds the story of the talking ape. And a woman who loves him.
While definitely no Planet of the Apes, this novel does echo King Kong in a way. It is a love story, unorthodox as it is. In fact, at times it’s positively a love triangle between Guy, Aimee and Sam. It isn’t a simple kind of love, more of a potent brew of romantic, parental/childlike, caretaker/cared for, etc. Two outcasts who don’t really belong with their own kind and find a strange codependency with each other. It’s desperate, tragic and can’t possibly end well, but it isn’t so much the beauty that kills the beast here as it is the hubristically mismanaged expectations of others. In having been raised as a person, Sam was brought up against his very nature and he ends up belonging to no world. A tragic character, really.
Aimee is tragic too, but in a different way, the obsessiveness of her love and devotion is her Sisyphean boulder. She can’t walk away, doesn’t have Guy’s calculating pragmatism to guide her. Or Sam’s legal owner, Guy’s own professor’s sheer evil practicality. Evil’s apt here actually, the guy is fictionally rendered as a comic book antagonist, appearance to attitude.
It stands to mention that the novel takes place about four decades ago before animal rights (apes and otherwise) became a thing, so Sam is pretty much at mercy or whoever owns him and their designs on him. As are all the other apes in this book. So yes, it’s very sad, very disturbing and might be too much for some readers.
Readers seem to have gotten more dainty these days, so yeah, consider this to be a warning for animal abuse. But seriously, shouldn’t people try to read challenging things…something that stretches their emotional boundaries as much as the intellectual ones? I believe so. And this book certainly does that. It posits large questions about the meaning of language and sentience and faith and ability to genuinely communicate and, of course, love…and it also absolutely guts you emotionally. There, you’ve been warned.
It isn’t so much a question of do we strive to communicate with other species beyond natural means, it’s question of should we. But then again you meet a cute chimp in overalls who knows sign language and you just go…talk to me. Can’t help it. It’s too fascinating. Though, of course, words or no words, so often our interactions (with animals or people) say more about us than them. Either way…talk to me will speak to you. It’s just that different readers might hear different things. I enjoyed it very much. Terrific writing and themes of great interest to me. Great read. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.
This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/
July 4, 2021
Original, thought-provoking and very entertaining, this novel about animal consciousness is a great read. Chimpanzee Sam is being brought up amongst humans and is being taught sign language – at which he seems to excel, sometimes expressing quite complex ideas. But a child chimp in the house is one thing – a fully grown adult male is quite another. And then teaching chimps to “speak” starts to go out of fashion and Sam’s future is in jeopardy, to the horror of young woman researcher Aimee who has grown to love him – to an uncomfortable extent. I don’t want to talk too much about what actually happens in the book as part of the joy of it is following the narrative stream, but it raises some interesting and controversial issues, not least animal consciousness, the ability to communicate with animals, the idea that animals have a soul, what right do we as humans have to use animals for research merely to gratify our own desires, whether for knowledge, scientific discovery, fame, ambition or perhaps our longing for love and connection. My only gripe with the novel is that some chapters are from Sam’s perspective and in his voice and I didn’t find this convincing. Trying to imagine what level of consciousness he actually has was one step too far and he was far too articulate. These chapters seemed forced and manipulative. But as a good read the book succeeds on many levels and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
January 27, 2021
In dem neuen Buch von T.C. Boyle „Sprich mit mir“ geht es um sprechende Affen. Aber nicht um Affen wie aus „Plant der Affen“, sondern um einen Schimpansen der sprechen kann. Genauer gesagt um Sam, der per Gebärdensprache kommuniziert.
Die junge Studentin Aimee, die eigentlich lernen wollte, sieht Sam in einer Fernsehsendung. Ab diesem Moment hat sie nichts anderes mehr im Kopf als diesen sprechenden Schimpansen. Sie bewirbt sich daraufhin auf eine Stelle als studentische Aushilfskraft, bei dem Professor der sich um Sam kümmert. Schnell wird Aimee die Bezugsperson von Sam und dieser macht deutliche Fortschritte in seiner Sprachentwicklung. Doch irgendwann werden die Forschungsgelder für Sams Projekt gestrichen und er soll zurück zu seinem ursprünglichen Besitzer in ein Tierversuchslabor. Aimee möchte das mit allen Mitteln verhindern.
„Sprich mit mir“ ist als ein multiperspektivischer Roman aufgebaut. Die einzelnen Kapitel werden von den unterschiedlichen Protagonisten erzählt. Besonders faszinierend sind hierbei die Kapitel, die aus der Sicht des Affen verfasst wurden. Sie bieten einen ganz besonderen Einblick in die Gedanken von Sam, seiner Beziehung zu Aimee, den Sprachexperimenten und seiner Weltsicht als Affe.
Die Frage die in diesem Roman behandelt wird: Sind Mensch und Tier sich doch ähnlicher als wir es wahrhaben wollen? Oder größer gedacht: Was macht uns Menschen, zu dem was wir sind? Ein Geist, die Fähigkeit Sprache zu artikulieren?
Weil ganz offensichtlich ist es möglich, das auch Schimpansen Sprachen lernen können, um so zu kommunizieren. Dass das alles nur in einer fiktiven Romanhandlung passieren kann, stimmt so nicht. Bereits in den 1960er-Jahren wurde einem Schimpansen Gebärdensprache beigebracht und dieser konnte damit aktiv kommunizieren. Dieses Experiment, in der Wirklichkeit sowie in dem Roman, wirft die Frage auf, ob Affen mehr Rechte zugesprochen bekommen sollten, weil sie und Menschen doch ähnlicher sind als Macheiner es wahrhaben will.
Eine klare Leseempfehlung!
#bücherangelegenheiten
Die junge Studentin Aimee, die eigentlich lernen wollte, sieht Sam in einer Fernsehsendung. Ab diesem Moment hat sie nichts anderes mehr im Kopf als diesen sprechenden Schimpansen. Sie bewirbt sich daraufhin auf eine Stelle als studentische Aushilfskraft, bei dem Professor der sich um Sam kümmert. Schnell wird Aimee die Bezugsperson von Sam und dieser macht deutliche Fortschritte in seiner Sprachentwicklung. Doch irgendwann werden die Forschungsgelder für Sams Projekt gestrichen und er soll zurück zu seinem ursprünglichen Besitzer in ein Tierversuchslabor. Aimee möchte das mit allen Mitteln verhindern.
„Sprich mit mir“ ist als ein multiperspektivischer Roman aufgebaut. Die einzelnen Kapitel werden von den unterschiedlichen Protagonisten erzählt. Besonders faszinierend sind hierbei die Kapitel, die aus der Sicht des Affen verfasst wurden. Sie bieten einen ganz besonderen Einblick in die Gedanken von Sam, seiner Beziehung zu Aimee, den Sprachexperimenten und seiner Weltsicht als Affe.
Die Frage die in diesem Roman behandelt wird: Sind Mensch und Tier sich doch ähnlicher als wir es wahrhaben wollen? Oder größer gedacht: Was macht uns Menschen, zu dem was wir sind? Ein Geist, die Fähigkeit Sprache zu artikulieren?
Weil ganz offensichtlich ist es möglich, das auch Schimpansen Sprachen lernen können, um so zu kommunizieren. Dass das alles nur in einer fiktiven Romanhandlung passieren kann, stimmt so nicht. Bereits in den 1960er-Jahren wurde einem Schimpansen Gebärdensprache beigebracht und dieser konnte damit aktiv kommunizieren. Dieses Experiment, in der Wirklichkeit sowie in dem Roman, wirft die Frage auf, ob Affen mehr Rechte zugesprochen bekommen sollten, weil sie und Menschen doch ähnlicher sind als Macheiner es wahrhaben will.
Eine klare Leseempfehlung!
#bücherangelegenheiten
Displaying 1 - 30 of 344 reviews