Ape House, by Sara Gruen

Bonobos are the nicer cousins of chimpanzees, which they resemble. But where chimps by nature are altogether too much like humans, engaging in war-like behavior and infanticide, the bonobos are peaceful primates who bond with their tribe through sex, lots and lots of undifferentiated sexual contact. Like many great apes, they have been used for research, sometimes horrific medical research. But the research Isabel Duncan does at the Great Ape Language Lab is more benign, focusing on language acquisition -- they understand human speech and respond in sign language -- and they have become the lonely scientist's family. When animal rights extremists kidnap the apes, severely injuring Isabel in the process, the bonobos are sold to a entrepreneur who turns their natural sexual proclivities into a for-pay reality TV show. Although I enjoyed the book, it pales in comparison to her earlier Water for Elephants, which I loved. Although there is a lot of humor, and a pretty fast-paced plot, Gruen's is perhaps too dedicated to making the case for great apes to have written a really fine novel. 306 pp.