The One and Only Ruby Summary, Characters and Themes
The One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate is a heartwarming follow-up to The One and Only Bob, centered on a young elephant named Ruby. After being rescued from tragic circumstances in Africa, Ruby finds herself in a sanctuary, surrounded by caring animals like Ivan the gorilla and Bob the dog.
As she approaches an important coming-of-age ceremony called Tuskday, Ruby grapples with deep feelings of grief and uncertainty stemming from her difficult past. With the support of her friends and family, she learns to face her fears and embrace the future with courage and grace.
Summary
Ruby, a young elephant living in the WildWorld Zoological Park and Sanctuary, is anxiously awaiting her Tuskday, a rite of passage symbolizing her growth into adulthood as her tusks begin to emerge.
Although the ceremony is meant to be a joyous occasion, Ruby is filled with doubt and reluctance, wanting to avoid it altogether. She even starts avoiding Aunt Akello, the wise and strong matriarch of the elephant herd, who continually urges her to embrace the upcoming event.
Things take an unexpected turn when Jabori, a handler from an elephant orphanage in Africa where Ruby once lived, comes to visit her at the sanctuary. Although Ruby is excited to see him, his arrival also stirs painful memories of her traumatic past.
With the help of her adoptive uncles—Uncle Ivan, a gentle gorilla, and Uncle Bob, a mischievous dog—Ruby finally begins to confront the emotions she’s been burying for a long time.
Ruby recalls the heartbreaking loss of her mother, who was killed by ivory poachers, and the terrifying day the orphanage she lived in was set on fire by another group of poachers.
Separated from Jabori and her friends, Ruby endured a harsh journey overseas, crammed into a filthy crate.
She was eventually sold to a rundown roadside circus in America, where she was forced to perform in dismal conditions alongside another despondent elephant named Fiona. When the circus went bankrupt, Ruby was moved to a shopping mall, where she lived in a cage next to Ivan and Bob.
Stella, an older elephant, became her surrogate mother figure, but Ruby never got to see her moved to a better life in the sanctuary, as Stella died before they were rescued.
Despite having found safety and friendship at the sanctuary, Ruby still struggles with the grief of losing Stella.
The unspoken sadness weighs on her until, encouraged by her uncles, Ruby finally opens up about her feelings. Talking about Stella’s death helps her process the grief, and she also begins to face her complicated emotions about growing tusks, which remind her of how her mother was killed for her ivory.
On the morning of her Tuskday, feeling overwhelmed, Ruby attempts to escape the sanctuary. She becomes stuck in a hole in the fence, and Aunt Akello finds her. Akello, too, has suffered loss at the hands of poachers, and she shares her own story with Ruby.
Using her tusk to help free Ruby from the fence, Akello shows her that tusks can be a source of strength and resilience, not just a burden. She leaves Ruby with the choice to either run away or return for the ceremony.
Ruby ultimately chooses to return, and the Tuskday ceremony becomes a beautiful moment of healing. Aunt Akello ensures that Aunt Stella, Ruby’s beloved mentor, is symbolically honored and welcomed into the herd along with Ruby.
This gesture allows Ruby to feel connected to Stella’s memory and helps her accept her new role as a young adult in the herd.
Surrounded by her friends, Ruby reflects on the kindness she has received and promises to care for others in the same way. Filled with hope, Ruby looks to the future, cherishing the memories of the past but eager to embrace her next chapter.
Characters
Ruby
Ruby, the protagonist of The One and Only Ruby, is a young elephant with a complicated and tragic past. Her experiences with loss, trauma, and displacement shape her emotional and psychological journey throughout the novel.
As a baby elephant, she witnessed the violent death of her mother at the hands of ivory poachers, an event that left deep emotional scars and a lingering fear of her tusks. Ruby is introspective and grapples with feelings of grief and confusion, particularly surrounding her upcoming Tuskday ceremony—a rite of passage for young elephants that she views with dread and uncertainty.
Despite her fears, Ruby shows resilience and courage as she opens up to her adoptive family about her trauma. Through conversations with her uncles Ivan and Bob, she gradually comes to terms with the loss of her mother and her mentor, Stella.
Ruby’s journey is one of emotional growth and healing, as she learns to reconcile her past and present. Her eventual participation in the Tuskday ceremony symbolizes her transition into adulthood, and by the end of the novel, she emerges stronger, more self-assured, and hopeful for the future.
Aunt Akello
Aunt Akello serves as the matriarch of the Park Herd and plays a critical role in guiding Ruby through her emotional turmoil. She embodies wisdom, strength, and compassion, traits that define her leadership within the sanctuary.
As an elder elephant, Akello understands the deep pain associated with loss, having lost both her mother and grandmother to poachers. This shared trauma creates a bond between her and Ruby, enabling Akello to offer empathy and understanding when Ruby is overwhelmed by grief and fear.
Akello’s role as a mentor is pivotal in Ruby’s development. By sharing her own painful experiences, Akello helps Ruby see that trauma does not define them but can be a source of strength.
When Ruby tries to escape on the morning of her Tuskday, Akello finds her and helps her realize that her tusks, once associated with pain, can also be symbols of resilience. Akello’s empathy and wisdom enable Ruby to make the decision to face her fears and participate in the ceremony.
Uncle Ivan
Ivan, the silverback gorilla, acts as a protective and nurturing figure for Ruby. His past experiences have made him a creature of deep empathy and understanding.
Ivan’s bond with Ruby is rooted in their shared experiences of captivity and loss. He recognizes Ruby’s emotional struggles and offers her quiet, steady support, allowing her to process her grief at her own pace.
Ivan’s patience shines when he encourages Ruby to talk about Stella, the older elephant who had cared for Ruby. By discussing Stella’s death, Ivan helps Ruby navigate her grief, showing that emotional vulnerability is a sign of strength.
Throughout the novel, Ivan remains a stable and loving presence. He guides Ruby toward a deeper understanding of herself and her past.
Uncle Bob
Bob, the stray dog, provides comic relief and emotional support for Ruby. His small size does not detract from the depth of his loyalty and love for Ruby.
Bob’s humor and lightness help Ruby navigate the challenges she faces. He encourages her to find joy amidst difficulties, offering a balance to the heaviness of her emotions.
Bob’s role is less about offering deep wisdom and more about helping Ruby experience happiness. His loyalty and positive energy remind Ruby that even in darkness, joy is possible.
His presence encourages Ruby to look forward to the future with optimism. He remains a constant reminder that she is never alone.
Stella
Although Stella is not physically present, her influence on Ruby’s life is profound. As an older elephant who had cared for Ruby in the mall, Stella provided a sense of safety, nurturing, and wisdom during a time of fear.
Stella’s death left a deep void in Ruby’s life, and her absence weighs heavily on Ruby’s heart. However, Stella’s impact endures through the lessons Ruby learned from her.
Stella taught Ruby the importance of community, love, and resilience. These values help Ruby prepare for her Tuskday and continue to guide her even after Stella’s death.
Stella’s inclusion in the Tuskday ceremony symbolizes her lasting connection with Ruby. It honors the role she played in shaping Ruby’s identity.
Jabori
Jabori, a handler from the African baby elephant orphanage, serves as a living link to Ruby’s past. His visit to the sanctuary brings back memories of both joyful and painful times.
Jabori represents a world that Ruby had lost, one filled with love and companionship. However, his presence also forces Ruby to confront the trauma she experienced after her mother’s death.
Through Jabori’s appearance, Ruby is reminded of the strength she developed in her early life. His visit helps Ruby integrate her African past with her present life in the sanctuary.
By reconnecting with someone from her past, Ruby gains closure. This strengthens her resolve to embrace her tusks and her place within the herd.
Themes
The Complex Nature of Grief and Healing Through Storytelling
In The One and Only Ruby, Katherine Applegate delves into the intricate relationship between grief, memory, and the healing process. Ruby’s journey is defined by the trauma of losing her mother and later, her surrogate mother figure, Aunt Stella, to circumstances tied to human cruelty.
The novel examines how Ruby internalizes these losses, initially choosing silence over confrontation. Her reluctance to discuss her grief reflects the complexity of dealing with such emotions, particularly for someone so young and vulnerable.
Grief is portrayed not as a singular, linear process but as an evolving experience that shapes Ruby’s perception of her identity and tusks, which become symbolic of the violence that took her mother’s life. Ruby’s decision to open up about her pain to her uncles, Ivan and Bob, illustrates how healing can begin through the act of storytelling.
In unpacking her sorrow, Ruby is not only acknowledging her past but also finding a way to integrate those experiences into her present. This makes it possible for her to approach her future with a clearer sense of self.
The novel’s exploration of grief is multilayered. It shows how talking about past traumas, sharing stories, and memorializing lost loved ones can help someone regain control over their narrative.
The Duality of Heritage: Tusks as Symbols of Power and Vulnerability
Ruby’s ambivalence towards her tusks captures a nuanced theme in the novel: the duality of heritage, particularly the inherited symbols of strength that simultaneously carry the weight of vulnerability. Tusks are a physical manifestation of Ruby’s growth and entry into adulthood, symbolized by the Tuskday ceremony.
On one hand, they signify power, wisdom, and maturity within the elephant community. On the other hand, for Ruby, these symbols are inextricably linked to her trauma, as her mother was killed for her tusks.
This duality gives rise to Ruby’s conflicted feelings about her own identity and what her tusks represent. The novel further explores how heritage is not merely a matter of inheritance but shaped by how one chooses to engage with it.
Aunt Akello’s story about her own family members, who were also poached for their tusks, adds a generational weight to this struggle. By offering Ruby the choice between escape or returning to the enclosure for her Tuskday, Aunt Akello emphasizes that Ruby has the agency to define her relationship with her heritage.
In this way, the novel suggests that heritage is not a static burden, but something that can be reinterpreted and reclaimed with autonomy, even amidst its painful histories.
The Interplay of Agency and Obligation in the Journey Toward Adulthood
Ruby’s reluctance to engage with her Tuskday ceremony speaks to the broader theme of the tension between personal agency and societal obligation, particularly in the transition to adulthood. The novel paints Ruby’s journey toward maturity as not merely a physical process but a psychological one.
Tuskday, in this sense, becomes symbolic of the expectations that come with adulthood—expectations that Ruby feels unprepared to meet. Ruby’s initial instinct to run away reflects her desire to avoid these pressures, underscoring how the journey to adulthood often involves a struggle for agency against societal norms.
Aunt Akello’s intervention is key here, as she empathizes with Ruby’s reluctance. She does not force her into the ceremony but instead presents her with the choice, highlighting the novel’s nuanced portrayal of adulthood.
Adulthood is not about the passive acceptance of obligations, but about active engagement with the expectations placed upon oneself. Ruby’s eventual decision to return to the ceremony is a reclamation of her agency, showing that the journey to adulthood involves negotiating between societal obligations and personal autonomy.
Collective Memory and the Transmission of Wisdom Across Generations
A critical theme in The One and Only Ruby is the role of collective memory and the transmission of wisdom across generations. Ruby’s coming-of-age is not merely a solitary journey but one deeply embedded in her relationships with her adoptive family and the elephant herd.
The novel highlights how Ruby’s experiences are shaped by the stories, lessons, and wisdom passed down to her, both from her biological mother and her surrogate mother, Aunt Stella. This theme underscores the importance of memory in shaping identity.
Ruby’s ability to process her trauma and navigate her future is largely influenced by the wisdom and love she has received from her elders. Aunt Akello’s inclusion of Aunt Stella in Ruby’s Tuskday ceremony is a poignant reminder that the dead are not entirely gone but continue to influence the living through the legacies they leave behind.
The transmission of this wisdom is crucial not only for Ruby’s personal growth but also for maintaining the continuity of the community’s collective memory. Ruby’s vow to care for others as she has been cared for further emphasizes this theme, reflecting her understanding that her role in the herd is part of a larger, interconnected cycle of support, memory, and wisdom.
Reconciliation of Trauma and the Path to Forging a New Identity
Another profound theme explored in the novel is the reconciliation of trauma and the creation of a new identity. Ruby’s past, marked by significant losses and hardships, weighs heavily on her sense of self and her future.
At first, her trauma appears to have robbed her of her ability to fully embrace her life in the sanctuary. She remains haunted by memories of her mother’s death and her separation from her homeland.
However, as the narrative unfolds, Ruby’s journey illustrates how confronting trauma directly, rather than avoiding it, can allow for a deeper reconciliation and a new beginning. The novel doesn’t suggest that trauma can be easily overcome or forgotten.
Instead, Ruby’s transformation comes from her decision to acknowledge her past as a critical part of who she is, while also allowing herself to envision a future not defined solely by that pain. Her participation in the Tuskday ceremony, despite her ambivalence, represents her acceptance of her past and her willingness to move forward.
Ruby’s journey is a powerful depiction of how forging a new identity requires an ongoing process of reconciling trauma, accepting its impact, and finding ways to live with it. This nuanced portrayal of trauma emphasizes that healing is an ongoing process, one that involves both personal strength and the support of a caring community.