Customer Reviews

Monkeys Are Made of Chocolate: Exotic and Unseen Costa Rica

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
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As the author of Explore Costa Rica, a travel guide to Costa Rica, I've known Jack Ewing for more than ten years. Jack owns and runs Finca Hacienda Baru, one of Costa Rica's oldest eco-lodges. Jack has had many fascinating experiences during his years of residence, and he tells about them in this book. I learned a lot, and you will too! I recommend this book to anyone interested in tropical rainforests, ecology, Costa Rica, and animals.

This book is a series of easy-to-digest short stories and essays by a good storyteller. Some are lightweight and merely entertaining, some are likely to change your life. Over 30 years the author, who was born and raised on the midwest plains, gradually turned a typical Central America cattle ranch into a premier eco-resort. By simply being open to what the land and environment were trying to do, some amazing and highly encouraging lessons are taught. The environmental future shown here is lush, varied, and hopeful. This is a bright ray in a field that tends too much toward doom and gloom.

This book gives an excellent overall review of the Pacific rainforest and it's inhabitants in Pacific Costa Rica while encouraging the reader to contemplate preservation of the fragile ecosystems. Very readable. I recommend it to interested travellers to the region.

I have to tell you that this was one of the very best nature books I have read in a long time. It has great stories, it is super-engaging, and it has a wonderful yet not overpowering environmental message.

All I can say is: read it, you'll love it! (as well as learn more than you probably learn in a year of science class, change the way you think about the world, have a better understanding of what nature really is, be highly entertained, want to gather everyone you know and read them entire chapters [or the whole book!] be recomending this book like crazy...you get the idea)

I purchased this book prior to traveling to Costa Rica with a group of friends. It was purchased along with a few guidebooks. My friends all purchased guidebooks as well. This is not a guidebook. It will not tell you how to ID anything or where anything is located, but it will tell more about the real Costa Rica than any guidebook can.

This book was passed around on my tour more than any of the guidebooks. Nobody who read it could put it down, and they all wanted to talk about it each other (so the next person said, "Can I read that?").

The author is a great storyteller and not at all preachy. The book is broken down into short, fun stories (the moral of most of them is conservation...but having a moral doesn't get in the way of the enjoyment of the story). Easily read by even the biology layperson.

The book was read in 1-2 sittings by most of my friends. That's a sure sign of a good read.

Most books on Costa Rica focus on travel tips, but MONKEYS ARE MADE OF CHOCOLATE: EXOTIC AND UNSEEN COSTA RICA takes a different turn, examine how animals, plants and people interact in that country and providing over thirty essays which come from a conversion of a cattle ranch into a popular eco-tourism destination. Stories and essays provide literally decades of observation of the Costa Rican natural environment and its management. A 'must' for any who plan on seeing the country and who want to know more of its wildlife and habitats.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This is a terrific compilation of essays from an author who lives in Costa Rica and makes his living by understanding the nature of this Central American country. The essays range from environmentalism to animals, evolution, and conservation.

I purchased this book in advance of a family trip to Guanacaste in northwest Costa Rica. I consider this book a must-have for advance research, planning and understanding of the natural-side of this extremely eco-friendly and eco-aware country. "Monkeys" will provide insight into the country's natural history and you'll feel more prepared and aware of what the country has offer.

The short essays(ranging from 3-6 pages each) are a quick read - perfect for the pool, beach or plane.

Light, enjoyable, and thought-provoking. I picked it up one Saturday and didn't put it down until I finished the whole thing. A little repetitive in places, but that is part of the design - each chapter is a self-contained essay. The author puts a lot of his personality in the essays. Highly recommended for anyone going to or coming from Costa Rica.

How many times do we look in the mail and see a letter from the same nonprofit organization looking for money, even after we've sent the check? The key to marketing is brand recognition and message repitition. How many times did Jack Ewing mention Hacienda Baru in his book? I'm not sure. All I know is I want to visit.

This book has all of the basic conservation messages in it, packaged in stories starring the flora and fauna of the Hacienda Baru National Wildlife Refuge. Its messages can easily be shared with young adults, as the book is written simply enough, and arranged in a manner that each chapter can stand alone as a lesson.

Some stories seem incredible: snakes striking after being beheaded, toucans savaging other bird species, etc., but the author has not spoken from anything but what he and others around him have experienced. This is a great book to read either for literary enjoyment or as a primer before a trip to Central America.