Unspoken : if we teach her to talk ... can she trust us to listen?

“What can animals tell us about God? Do animals have souls?... Hunt offers a compelling story that asks both questions... Poignant” (Publishers Weekly). Glee Granger has spent the last eight years of her life entirely focused on Sema, a gorilla the scientist has been teaching sign language. Though Sema isn't the first gorilla to use sign language, Glee has pushed their interaction to breakthrough levels. Technically, however, Sema belongs to the zoo where she was born—and the zoo wants its gorilla back. Unwilling to be separated from the ape, Glee joins the zoo staff and sees that it's not as drastic a change as she first thought. That is until a near-death experience overturns everything Glee thought she knew about humans and animals, the seen and the unseen, the spoken and the unspoken. Suddenly, Glee has become the student and Sema the teacher... A Christy Award–winning author, “Hunt knows how to craft believable, interesting characters, and readers will find themselves drawn to the lovable Sema, the conflicted Glee and Glee's scripture-spouting ‘Nana,'the proprietor of a Florida motel” (Publishers Weekly). A love unlike any other...a story of sacrifice and the unspoken connections that bring us together. For the last eight years, Glee Granger has centered her life around Sema--they live together, play together, eat together, and "talk" together. Though Sema isn't the first gorilla to use sign language, Glee has pushed their interaction to breakthrough levels. Technically, however, Sema isn't hers. She belongs to the zoo where she was born--and the zoo wants its gorilla back. Glee's only option for continuing her work is to join the zoo staff. At first reluctant, Glee begins to see real possibilites in their new arrangement...until the unthinkable happens. One event overturns everything Glee thought she knew about humans and animals, the seen and the unseen, the spoken...and the unspoken. She taught a gorilla to talk. Now can Glee learn to listen? Unspoken is about a woman named Glee Granger who has adopted a gorilla, Sema, who she is teaching sign language. For eight years the zoo doesn’t really care that Glee has Sema, but after a while they strike back and think that Glee is making money off their gorilla. Glee’s brother is a layer, so the zoo goes to court and Rob ( her brother) and the judge find a happy medium, Glee will now work at the zoo, and she will be able to continue her work with Sema without threats from the zoo. Glee thinks that is all fine until the impossible becomes possible. I am writing this under duress. My brother the lawyer says duress is the wrong word, because it implies threats or illegal coercion, and he hasn't exactly put a gun to my head and forved me to sit at the computer. He has, however, suggested that the acts of recording the events of the last few months might help them from a cohesive whole and make sense. I'm not sure they can ever be understood in terms of human reason. This is the first couple paragraphs. :-) For the last eight years, Glee Granger has centered her life around Sema - they live together, play together, eat together, and "talk" together Angela Hunt. Includes An Interview With The Author And Discussion Questions For Book Groups.