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    The Girl with No Name: The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys
    Unavailable
    The Girl with No Name: The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys
    Unavailable
    The Girl with No Name: The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys
    Ebook325 pages5 hours

    The Girl with No Name: The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys

    By Marina Chapman, Lynne Barrett-Lee and Vanessa James

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    The unbelievable true story of a young girl who is abandoned in the Colombian jungle and finds asylum in the most unlikely of places—with a troop of capuchin monkeys​

    In 1954, in a remote mountain village in South America, a little girl was abducted. She was four years old. Marina Chapman was stolen from her housing estate and then abandoned deep in the Colombian jungle. That she survived is a miracle. Two days later, half-drugged, terrified, and starving, she came upon a troop of capuchin monkeys. Acting entirely on instinct, she tried to do what they did: she ate what they ate and copied their actions, and little by little, learned to fend for herself.

    So begins the story of her five years among the monkeys, during which time she gradually became feral; she lost the ability to speak, lost all inhibition, lost any real sense of being human, replacing the structure of human society with the social mores of her new simian family. But society was eventually to reclaim her. At age ten, she was discovered by a pair of hunters who took her to the lawless Colombian city of Cucuta where, in exchange for a parrot, they sold her to a brothel. When she learned that she was to be groomed for prostitution, she made her plans to escape. But her adventure wasn’t over yet . . .

    In the vein of Slumdog Millionaire and City of God, this rousing story of a lost child who overcomes the dangers of the wild and the brutality of the streets to finally reclaim her life will astonish readers everywhere.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPegasus Books
    Release dateApr 9, 2013
    ISBN9781453298572
    Unavailable
    The Girl with No Name: The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys
    Author

    Marina Chapman

    Now married to an Englishman and living in Bradford, England, Marina Chapman plans to donate her share of the profits from this book to help finance charities that combat human trafficking and child slavery in Colombia.

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    Reviews for The Girl with No Name

    4/5

    61 ratings11 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Marina Chapman doesn't know her parents or real name. She has a few fleeting images of her early childhood before the day she was (apparently) kidnapped...and ultimately dumped in the Colombian rain forest. The first half of the book concerns the five or so years she spent here: the loneliness, the weird flora and fauna...and ultimately becoming a sort of fringe member of a group of monkeys. Following their foraging skills, they became her closest friends, as she avoided the hunters who occasionally came here. And yet a yearning for humans persisted; attempts to befriend a local tribe were immediately rebuffed. But one day she took a risk and tagged along with a couple of seemingly more friendly hunters...Here begins the second part, as she undertakes life as more of a monkey than a child. Filthy, unable to speak, she finds herself sold off to a brothel owner and moves on to life as a street child, servant to a violent gang, and raised by nuns. Before the one trustworthy human she meets arranges something better...This is ghost-written and while OK, it's not great literature, but the story is so unusual that I kept on reading.
    • 5/5
      Excellent true story which is further validated on you tubes. The author's wisdom and endurance as a child into adolesence is testimony to both animal and human insight, kindness and cruelty.
    • 5/5
      A young girl is kidnapped, raised by monkeys in the jungle, and rescued, only to be sold to a brothel is just the beginning of this incredible story of survival. I am anxiously awaiting the sequel.
    • 5/5
      Some might say that this book cannot possibly be true, some might look at the release date and wonder if something else is up. But truth be told or not, it doesn't matter - this was an utterly engrossing read. I devoured it in 24 hours, and found myself totally immersed. The writing style, at the beginning, is written in the manner of a child - not a child as young as Marina actually was, but with the same innocence and naive outlook on the world. Why the child was dropped in the forest, we shall never know, nor how she managedf to survive on her own wits and befriend the monkeys. But her fascinating tale does not end when she leaves the rainforest - it has only just begun. She must struggle to find her way through another kind of jungle - the harsh and twisted nature of humanity, until finally she finds redemption, of a sort.

      It all seems too extraordinary to be true, but yet it is still believable, and whether this is the true story, or a story she has led herself to believe, it certainly makes for a compelling read.
    • 4/5
      This memoir was so riveting and compelling that I could hardly put it down.The author's very early life in the jungle as a part of a troupe of monkeys was unlike anything I've ever read, and her life as a Colombian street kid was more Dickensian than anything dear Charles could have dreamed up.It was such an unusual story, that I have some doubts about its veracity, but I couldn't stop reading, none-the-less.
    • 3/5
      I guess I'm a skeptic when it comes to these kind of memoirs based upon an adult's recollection of childhood. I know I don't remember much about my early childhood years and I suspect that things I do remember might be because family members told the story a number of times. How does a person who lived with monkeys for up to 5 years remember so much detail about that life? It isn't like the monkeys sit around telling stories about her.On the other hand, her claims have been examined by a number of journalists and news outlets and they cannot find anything to refute her story. In fact her bone scan shows that she was malnourished between the ages that she claims she was living with the monkeys. And she still has a remarkable ability to clamber around the jungle. So, maybe, this recollection is accurate. If it is then it is a remarkable story. She survived by copying the monkeys from age 5 to about age 10. Then she survived abuse and hardship while living with humans including a madam, a gang of street children and a big crime family. Through it all she believed she would find love and a family. And she has.Read this remarkable story and let me know what you think.
    • 4/5
      Interesting and nicely told story of a young girl abandoned in the forest and looked after by a tribe of monkeys.
    • 5/5
      Around five years old, Marina is kidnapped from her home in Columbia. She remembers the men running with her through the woods, before unceremoniously dropping her. Wandering for days, she is hungry and thirsty, crying for her mother. After an exhausting night, she finds herself surrounded by monkeys. By copying their actions she learns to survive, and eventually is accepted into their group. After many years of surviving in the jungle, she finds two hunters, who she reveals herself too. Walking on all fours, unable to speak, she is taken back to the city and sold to a brothel.This is a very interesting and dynamic book. I was a bit skeptical about the premise, but it was fascinating. I wanted to read more about Marina, how did she find a husband, raise a family? How did those around her react to her past? I definitely think an epilogue is needed. Highly recommended.
    • 5/5
      When I decided to read this book, I did some research to see if the author’s story could possibly be true. Apparently it is. A couple of corrections: first, Marina Chapman wasn’t really “raised” by monkeys. However, apparently she did live among monkeys for up to five years. I say “up to” because she really doesn’t know how much time transpired while she was in the Rain Forest in Colombia. As to the truthfulness of Chapman’s story, tests have been done which show that she experienced malnutrition during the approximate years she was in the forest. Only about 1/3 of the book actually covers those five years, and the rest of her story is not as dramatic but is certainly heart wrenching. Those years include abusive home after abusive home with time on the streets in between where Chapman became a professional scavenger and thief. If not for a couple of women in her life, chances are pretty certain that Chapman wouldn’t have survived the gang-ridden streets of Colombia. Overall, the story is engaging and well worth the time investment.
    • 5/5
      The Girl With No Name - The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys; Marina Chapman with Vanessa James and Lynne Barrett-Lee; Pegasus Books; 2013“The Girl With No Name” is a powerful true story of a preschooler in Colombia who is cruelly kidnapped from her home and then tragically abandoned in the remote jungles of Colombia. Alone and afraid, the traumatized 5 year old girl gradually becomes one with a group of monkeys who basically help teach her, keep her alive and accept her into their jungle family. Even after being ‘rescued’ from the jungle years later, however, the wild young child is forced to adapt and continue to fight for her very survival. Bravo, Marina Chapman, you are clearly not just a survivor, but a victor in your own life. A wonderful, true story of triumph over a difficult world, “The Girl With No Name“ is a dramatic life story not soon forgotten. Published by Pegasus Books in 2013.I have received this book for free to review. I am a member of NetGalley, Goodreads, and Librarything. DBettenson
    • 3/5
      Supposedly true story of a nearly 5-year-old child who was kidnapped, and then abandoned in the jungle. She was not "raised by monkeys" as the subtitle suggests, but did live among them and learned their ways in order to survive for a number of years. When she revealed herself to some hunters, she was returned to "civilization", where the humans treated her worse than her monkey family.Now in her early 60's, the author has shared her early life with her daughters, and together they turned into a book. It's a well-written book that keeps the interest level high throughout. The story ends when Marina is around 14. I would like to learn more of her story -- how she learned to read and write, how she met her husband, etc.