Bringing Up Ziggy: Lessons from a Helping Hands Monkey Mom [Hardcover]

Andrea Campbell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1999

Andrea Campbell received Ziggy in 1990 when the capuchin monkey was just five weeks old. She knew at the time there would come a day when she would have to give the monkey away. What she didn't know was how difficult it was going to be to say goodbye.

From the challenges of reading an infant monkey to the ultimate lessons about love, commitment, and sacrifice, Life with Ziggy is a wonderful human-interest story, a fascinating animal behavior study, and a heartwarming and inspiring read.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Andrea Campbell has studied primatology for over a decade including her hands-on experience with Ziggy. In another field of interest, she holds a degree in criminal justice, is a Diplomate and Fellow of the American College of Forensic Examiners, and is the author of Rights of the Accused and Forensic Science: Evidence, Clues and Investigation. Her other books include Great Games for Great Parties and Your Corner of the Universe: A Guide to Self-Therapy Through Journal Writing. She is currently working on a legal book for writers and has another book on games/parties due out soon. She resides in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Renaissance Books (December 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580630855
• ISBN-13: 978-1580630856
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,501,245 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Andrea Campbell is the author of many traditionally-published nonfiction books and she specializes in forensic science, criminal law, entertaining and more (a motley mix for sure). A hound for research anything she studies finds its way into print.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Primate Portrait of the non-human kind., December 26, 1999

By 

Karen Hawkins - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bringing Up Ziggy: Lessons from a Helping Hands Monkey Mom (Hardcover)

This book presents refreshing insight into the dedication and commitment necessary to raise a non-human primate (a capuchin monkey) for the Helping Hands Program (a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for quadriplegic individuals by training capuchin monkeys to assist them with daily activities) located in Boston, MA. Ms Campbell relates her journey with Ziggy, a female capuchin monkey, from infancy adoption to adulthood. The delights of raising a baby, the trials of adolescence and the compassion needed to understand the intricacy of maturity are all described with comprehensive detail.

The tantalizing prospect of living with one of our closet relatives is quickly dispelled as infant antics turn into potential difficulties. Each member of this family must learn their place in Ziggy's world. And, indeed, each member is quickly placed in a particular category, according to Ziggy's personal hierarchy. Ms Campbell weighs the pros and cons of having accepted the responsibility of foster caring this incredible creature. She holds back nothing in describing what it is like to share her home with a monkey. Controversy abounds in regards to some of the necessary procedures and Ms. Campbell presents them astutely. She interjects facts about these incredible creatures among the personal account of her life with Ziggy.

The accomplishments of Ms. Campbell and her human family, in learning to understand who Ziggy is, along with Ziggy's own accomplishments, makes for an engaging narrative. Several black & white photos enhance this account of one woman's devotion to her diminutive charge and her beliefs in the benefits proposed by the Helping Hands Program. It is a must read for anyone who has contemplated life with a non-human primate. Having raised a capuchin monkey from infancy to adulthood myself, I can speak from experience and highly recommend this book.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A LOVE STORY, August 21, 2000

By 

MONKEY MOM (BROKEN ARROW,OK USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bringing Up Ziggy: Lessons from a Helping Hands Monkey Mom (Hardcover)

BRINGING UP ZIGGY IS SUCH A DELIGHTFUL TALE, OR IN THIS CASE, IT COULD BE TAIL. THE HEROINE OF THE BOOK, ZIGGY, HAS A TAIL,THAT FUNCTIONS INDEPENDENTLY OF HER. THE STORY TAKES THE READER BY THE HEART AND LEADS THROUGH THE LIFE OF A BLACK CAP CAPUCHIN MONKEY-GIRL AND HER HUMAN FOSTER FAMILY. WHILE BEING A WONDERFULLY ENTERTAINING TRUE STORY, IT IS ALSO VERY EDUCATIONAL AND FACTUAL. HELPING HANDS MONKEYS ARE GIFTS FROM GOD TO PEOPLE WHO ARE QUADRIPLEGIC. FROM THE BIRTH OF THE BABY MONKEY TO THE TIME IT IS READY TO BE A HELPING HAND IS A FASCINATING AND MOVING TRIP. READ THIS BOOK AND PREPARE TO FALL IN LOVE WITH THE CAMPBELLS AND THE LITTLE ZIGSTER.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bringing Up Ziggy, January 1, 2000

By 

Karline Elder (Blytheville, Arkansas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bringing Up Ziggy: Lessons from a Helping Hands Monkey Mom (Hardcover)

Andrea Campbell's book, Bringing Up Ziggy, is a heartwarming and inspiring book. Campbell describes rasing a monkey as a foster parent for the Helping Hands Program. The Helping Hands Program provides quadriplegics with trained monkeys to assist in their daily care. Campbell explains the love, commitment, and sacrifice needed. For most people, it would be hard to imagine such an undertaking or how amazing the amount of knowledge that a human can learn from an adorable capuchin.

This book is one that the reader will not be able to put down once the reading has begun. Bringing Up Ziggy offers animal behavior facts, adventure, and comedy from cover to cover. Campbell shares her knowledge with the reader on living a life with a monkey in the home. The book tells about the rewards of being a foster parent in the Helping Hands Program.

I would recommend this book to anyone considering adding a monkey to their household. Bringing Up Ziggy will help the readers to understand the love, commitment, and sacrifice that is needed in raising a monkey in the home. Most of all, the book will enlighten the reader to the richness, love and joy the monkeys bring to the people they live with.