Our Primate Family: Stories of Conservation and Kin

In Our Primate Family, Lou Grossfeldt writes about her love of and work with primates. I have known and admired Lou since 2008 when I first visited the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, where she has worked as a primate keeper for much of her life. When I visit Australia, I always look forward to spending time with Lou and the other keepers at the zoo, hearing the latest stories about the chimpanzee family.

Indeed, during her more than twenty years' experience with monkeys and apes (and other animals, too), Lou has so many stories to share, stories that will fascinate and often enlighten those who read this book. It is my hope that many people will read and enjoy these stories, and that this will encourage them to join the growing band of those of us who care and help us to make a positive difference for primates and all living things.

- Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE

Founder, the Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace

Lou Grossfeldt has always wanted to work with animals. Today, she is one of Australia's leading experts on primate husbandry and care. Lou has spent more than two decades working to help save our primate family from extinction, and today she supervises the African primate division at Taronga Zoo, which includes managing some of mankind's closest relatives, the Chimpanzees and Gorillas.

In this book, Our Primate Family, Lou shares her remarkable stories with award-winning writer David Blissett. You'll travel from the stunning rainforests of Borneo and Vietnam to the vanishing wilderness of Madagascar and Uganda, then to one of the world's most iconic zoos. You'll read about the refugees of the forest and meet some notable members of the family: mighty Kibabu, lover of lettuce and waterfowl; Sonny, Sydney's own snow monkey; Willow, shy, beautiful, and with a fire-fighting fixation; and Lubutu, the wisest and most judicious of them all.

Lou offers insight into the plight facing primates in the wild. They are a group of animals more like us than any other. They are beautiful, enigmatic, and often misunderstood. They are our biological family, and many of them are in trouble. Lou shares some practical advice each of us can follow to help make a tangible difference to the survival of these amazing animals.