A BEAUTIFUL TRUTH

Joe Barrett’s folksy voice is a great choice for this unusual audiobook. The novel takes its strange turn early on when a Vermont couple, desolate in their unanswered longing for a child, adopts a chimpanzee to complete their family. This unique choice sets the tone for this animal-rights-manifesto-meets-cautionary-tale. Barrett moves confidently between the family's nontraditional home and a Florida research institute that specializes in primates. He’s comfortable with the author’s style, which ranges from complex narrative to simple primate-inspired sentences. While the story itself may appeal to a narrow audience—one that is willing to both suspend disbelief and look at animal rights issues from an uncomfortable angle—Barrett is the kind of narrator anyone can embrace. L.B.F. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2013]