The Woman and the Ape
by By Hoeg, Peter and Haveland, Barbara (TRN)
Category: Fiction , General

The Woman and the Ape is the story of a unique and unforgettable couple - Madelene and Erasmus. Madelene - a sleeping beauty drowsing gently in an alcoholic stupor - is the beautiful and disillusioned wife of Adam Burden, a distinguished behavioral scientist. Erasmus - the unlikely prince - is a 300-pound ape.Erasmus is brought to the Burdens' London home after escaping from animal smugglers. In him, Adam Burden believes he has discovered a hitherto unknown mammal, a highly intelligent anthropoid ape, the closest thing yet to a human being. If he is right, Erasmus will become the jewel of Burden's new zoo. But Madelene decides to save Erasmus, investing in her efforts all the single-mindedness she until now has reserved for drinking. The two fall in love - a love affair as emotionally and erotically charged as any female-male relationship could ever be. But Erasmus has come to England with a purpose, and eventually the couple must face the world they have sought to flee.A fable for our time, The Woman and the Ape poses searching questions about the nature of love, freedom, and humanity. It combines the farcical humor of a Marx Brothers movie with the magic of a fairy tale and the pace of a thriller.