Curious George
By Mary Dixon Weidler,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Michievous monkey's antics will have kids laughing.
Add rating
A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this book.
Where to Read
Community Reviews
Based on 6 parent reviews
Allegory in favor of slavery.
Report this review
Curious George is king
Report this review
What's the Story?
What happens when you take a curious monkey out of the jungle and set him loose in the big city? When the monkey is Curious George, the answer is chaos ... and a whole lot of fun! It's one adventure after another until he is arrives happily at the zoo.
Is It Any Good?
George's insatiable curiosity -- and children's understanding of what could go wrong -- make this book such a fun read. This classic from 1941 has been criticized in recent times for seeming to condone colonialism, as it portrays the white Man in the Yellow Hat taking George from the African jungle to the big city with intentions of "civilizing" him.
Author-illustrator H. A. Rey takes care to fill every other page with a colorful cartoon-like drawing. One outstanding picture shows an aerial view of George holding balloons and floating over the city. However, sometimes a series of thumbnail pictures appears on one page and can confuse young children.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how George keeps getting into trouble. Why do you think he does?
What other George stories have you read or seen on TV? Why do kids love him so much?
Why is George in such serious trouble after the fire-station incident? What would happen if you accidentally summoned a fire truck in real life?
Book Details
- Author: H. A. Rey
- Illustrator: H. A. Rey
- Genre: Adventure
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Children's Books
- Publication date: February 1, 1973
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 4 - 7
- Number of pages: 48
- Last updated: July 12, 2017
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.
Suggest an Update
Where to Read
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate