In the early 80s Gribbin and Cherfas published THE MONKEY PUZZLE- a book that challenged the accepted theory that homo sapiens were descended from apes. The authors argued that we are 100% ape - not a separate species, but a sibling species to chimps and gorillas, more closely related than the horse is to the zebra. Dismissed at the time as 'armchair theorists', recent research has vindicated Gribbin and Cherfas. THE FIRST CHIMPANZEE is a substantially revised edition of the earlier book, bringing to light these developments.We now know that human beings and apes were descended from a common 'manlike ancestor', and that chimps and gorillas went back to the trees AFTER our ancestors had gone a long way towards becoming human.