52 pages • 1 hour read
Stuart GibbsBelly Up
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2010A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapter 17-EpilogueChapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 17 Summary: “The Funeral”
Buck Grassley accuses Mr. and Mrs. Fitzroy of being “covert members of the Animal Liberation Front [...] [c]aught red-handed plotting another attack” (244). One of the security guards spots Teddy, and his parents urge him to run. He flees from the administration building and tries to hide among the vast crowd of mourners at Henry’s funeral, but Buck and the guards pursue him. Teddy hurries to the crane transporting Henry’s coffin, and one of the guards accidentally tasers the crane operator. Teddy scrambles into the safety of the crane’s cab. The coffin falls, and Henry’s corpse bursts from the impact, showering everyone besides Teddy within 100 feet with the hippo’s rotting remains. As Teddy uses the confusion to make his escape, he and Summer make eye contact. Her expression makes him think she set him up.
Teddy stops running a mile away from FunJungle. Alone and scared, the boy “never felt so helpless in [his] life” (254). Summer’s supposed betrayal is all the more bitter because he struggles to think of anyone else who would help him solve Henry’s murder and clear his parents’ names. He realizes Doc may be the only person he can trust and hurries back to the park.
Chapter 18 Summary: “Safariland”
When Teddy finds Doc in Safariland, the veterinarian’s eyes are “rimmed with red, as though he was close to crying” (256). He knows about the false accusations against the Fitzroys and the hunt for Teddy. Doc apologizes to the boy because he knew Teddy snuck into the autopsy; Doc hoped Teddy would pass the information about Henry’s murder to an adult. He never expected Teddy to undertake the investigation and regrets getting him involved.
Doc believes Martin del Gato is responsible for Henry’s murder. Martin’s ignorance about animals caused FunJungle to hemorrhage money throughout the years it took to develop and open the park. Martin believed McCracken would inevitably fire him, and he wanted to make a fortune first. Using his contacts at an emerald mine, he had precious stones surgically placed inside animals that were obtained through illegal hunting and then sent to the zoo. The animals inevitably died from this unethical treatment, and Doc removed the emeralds for Martin during the autopsies.
Doc’s daughter is a member of the Animal Liberation Front and was involved in the bombing of a meat-packing plant. Martin threatened to report Doc’s daughter to the authorities unless Doc cooperated. Doc was brusque toward Teddy the day he brought him the jack because Martin was in the operating room with him and he was afraid Martin would see the boy.
Doc has a flash drive full of evidence against Martin that he wants to get to J. J. McCracken. Teddy still isn’t sure they can prove Martin is responsible for Henry’s death, but their conversation is interrupted by the arrival of security guards in two Land Rovers. Doc hurries Teddy into his truck and speeds off with the Land Rovers in pursuit.
Chapter 19 Summary: “The Chase”
Doc’s truck startles a mother rhino, and the angered animal overturns one of the Land Rovers. As the chase with the second Land Rover continues, Doc encourages Teddy to reach out to Summer because he doesn’t believe she set the Fitzroys up. Teddy calls Summer, and she explains her father receives an alert every time she uses his security code to access part of FunJungle. She didn’t know this until after she let the Fitzroys into the administration building. Summer doesn’t think her father would arrest Teddy’s parents or accuse them of belonging to the Animal Liberation Front.
A herd of water buffalo blocks the exit to Safariland. Doc gives Teddy the flash drive and promises to distract the guards as long as he can. Summer gives Teddy her father’s secret code so he can get back into the administration building. She also apologizes to Teddy for the incident with the tiger and how she hasn’t spoken to him much since then: “I kept meaning to call you, but…I was too embarrassed by what we’d done. We nearly got you killed! Can you ever forgive me?” (271). Relieved at the cleared up the misunderstanding, Teddy accepts Summer’s apology.
The guards in the second Land Rover spot Teddy. He throws a rock at the herd’s leader, which causes the water buffalo to stampede the vehicle and clears his escape route. Marge and a number of other security guards attempt to keep Teddy from reaching McCracken’s office, but he makes it inside with Summer’s help. McCracken decides to hear Teddy out. When Teddy declares Martin del Gato is Henry’s killer, Martin confidently strides over to McCracken’s desk.
Chapter 20 Summary: “Who Did It”
Martin’s confidence and bluster wither away when McCracken opens the files on Doc’s flash drive. He admits to smuggling the emeralds, but he says Buck is the one who killed Henry. Buck wanted in on the emerald scheme, and Martin threw a bag of precious stones into Henry’s enclosure when Buck cornered him. Buck fed sharpened jacks to the hippo rather than waiting for him to pass the stones. After Doc began the autopsy, Buck and Martin took the emeralds. Buck’s involvement clarifies a number of points for Teddy, and he shares his deductions. Buck followed him home after the autopsy, heard him talking to the cops, and left a footprint outside his trailer. He turned off the security cameras in World of Reptiles and released the mamba to scare Teddy. After Teddy told Buck about the autopsies, he released the tiger to try to kill Doc: “If Buck got rid of Doc, he got rid of all the evidence” (283).
Buck asks McCracken to trust him, and the billionaire retorts that he doesn’t seem to be able to trust anyone, from his head of security to his director of operations to his own daughter. Teddy points out that McCracken is also hiding something, and Summer is horrified by her father’s plans to build thrill rides in the animal exhibits. While the abashed billionaire attempts to explain himself, Buck tries to flee. Marge knocks him out with a punch to the face.
Epilogue Summary: “Hippo River”
McCracken doesn’t press charges against Doc or report Doc’s daughter, but he makes sure Martin and Buck are arrested. McCracken also appoints Marge as his new head of security. McCracken promises not to build rides in the enclosures because his daughter is so disappointed with him, but Teddy suspects the billionaire may change his mind. Summer and Teddy don’t see each other as often after the case is closed, and she will soon return to boarding school.
A month after Henry’s funeral, FunJungle is busier than ever. Teddy’s parents ask him to meet them at the Hippo River restaurant, which has enormous observation windows looking into the hippos’ enclosure. Hildegard Hippo is in labor with Henry’s baby. Summer and her father come to the restaurant for the special occasion. She takes Teddy’s hand, and he hopes she wants to be more than friends. Looking at the newborn baby boy hippo, J. J. McCracken declares, “Henry Hippo Junior, [...] I believe we can market that” (294).
Chapter 17-Epilogue Analysis
In the novel’s final section, Teddy discovers the identity of Henry’s killer and foils two other plots against the animals of FunJungle, as the story pits The Purposes of Environmental Ethics Versus Greed. Gibbs builds suspense in Chapter 17 through chase scenes and the protagonist’s desolate emotional state. After his parents’ arrest and his desperate escape from the administration building, the grim reality of Teddy’s situation sinks in: “I was lost and on my own. I’d never felt so helpless in my life” (254). His despair is deepened by his suspicion that Summer betrayed him. She was his closest friend as well as his primary ally in the investigation: “I couldn’t think of another person I could trust. I couldn’t even come up with anyone else I considered a friend” (253). After hitting his lowest point, the protagonist proves his bravery, perseverance, and resourcefulness once again when he returns to FunJungle and recruits Doc as an ally. As Teddy becomes more allied with others who share his ethics, it becomes clear that the challenge to greed will be a communal one. He is deflated by the thought Summer betrayed him, but he will ultimately need her in the end.
In Chapter 18, Doc’s exposition reveals Martin del Gato’s sinister scheme, making the director of operations the lead suspect in Henry’s murder and providing a face to the now identifiable greed camp within the zoo. His crimes connect to the theme of The Purposes of Environmental Ethics Versus Greed because he abuses animals to smuggle precious stones and the emeralds themselves symbolize avarice. In addition, the veterinarian’s exposition reveals he knew Teddy was present at the autopsy and explains he hasn’t done more to support the investigation because of his daughter’s involvement with a bombing: “Watching animals die for no good reason [...] goes against everything I believe in. There’s been a hundred times when I wanted to call the police, but…I love my daughter” (262). Like the young protagonist, Doc must summon up his bravery and perseverance to secure justice. He accepts his daughter must face the consequences of her actions and refuses to stand by and watch the Fitzroys’ lives be destroyed. While Doc is often gruff with Teddy throughout the novel, he ultimately proves to be an ally. The two camps oppose each other and cannot be reconciled, and as their opposition grows, it leads closer to Teddy and his friends’ triumph.
Teddy reconciles with Summer, and their relationship proves vital to the mystery’s resolution, showing the necessity for a communal challenge to the greed. In Chapter 19, Teddy realizes she didn’t betray him: “In that moment, I hated myself for any doubts I’d ever had about Summer. She’d been a good friend all along. I was the one who’d failed her by questioning her loyalty” (276). During their conversation, Summer gives Teddy the access code he needs to reach her father and expresses her opinion that her father wouldn’t arrest the Fitzroys. This gives the reader a clue that Buck, who is later revealed to be Henry’s killer, is acting independently from his employer’s wishes. In the novel’s final chapter, then, multiple mysteries come to light, and the young detective clears his parents’ names. All of the clues Teddy collected through his curiosity and resourcefulness combine to prove Buck’s guilt, including the footprint Teddy found in Chapter 5: “I pointed to Buck’s cowboy boots. Their heels were half-circles, the kind I’d assumed had been from dress shoes” (282). This highlights Using Curiosity and Resourcefulness to Illuminate Social Issues as Teddy’s inner traits must lead him to expose these evils. Teddy revises his theories to fit new evidence and perseveres until he uncovers the truth. In addition to exposing Henry’s murderer, Teddy drags McCracken’s scheme about the thrill rides into the light. Thus, the protagonist’s detective work protects FunJungle’s animal residents from multiple threats. His inner character leads him to illuminate the zoo’s corruption.
The Epilogue enhances the novel’s happy ending and gives Gibbs room to continue Teddy’s adventures in FunJungle in other books, showcasing the future of a more ethical zoo. The birth of Henry’s baby helps the story end on a hopeful note by showing how new life follows Henry’s death. However, the baby’s name, Henry Junior, also serves as a reminder that the park’s owner cares more about profit than animals: “I caught J.J. and Pete share an excited look. Both seemed to be seeing dollar signs” (294). McCracken’s greed implies his scheme with the thrill rides will come back into play later in the series despite his promises to his daughter. Summer takes Teddy’s hand in the final scene, showing that whatever mystery menaces the zoo next, the two young detectives will crack the case together. The group of ethical characters will lead the future of the zoo, even if they will have to continually face this societal greed.
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