More from Kenneth Oppel in the Huffington Post

I only recently realized how fitting (and possibly ironic) it was that, after writing four bestselling "talking animal" fantasies featuring bats (the Silverwing series), I'd go on to write a realistic novel about an animal who truly did talk.

The seed for my novel Half Brother was planted in my mind over twenty years ago, but didn't germinate until late 2007 when I came across the obituary for Washoe, an extraordinary chimpanzee who had learned over 250 words of American Sign Language.

read more :

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kenneth-oppel/writing-half-brother-love_b_710856.html