Parents' Guide to

Wild About Books

By Marigny Dupuy, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 4+

Determined librarian gets zoo animals reading.

Book Judy Sierra Picture Book 2005
Wild About Books Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

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age 3+

Based on 1 parent review

CarrieRogers2
CarrieRogers2 Parent of 2 and 4-year-old
January 15, 2010
age 3+

Not just my kids love with it, but their grandmothers do too!

We are a reading family, and so this book is PERFECT. The rhyme is amazing-- very Suessian. You can really see the influence Suess has on the story, yet it has a real flair that is great. It is a little long, though, so an active 2 year old may not e interested. It is so catchy that we read it several times a day sometimes and the girls want me to repeat some of the pages.

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
See all 1 parent review

What's the Story?

Molly McGrew, the librarian, normally drives a bookmobile, but things get interesting when she accidentally turns into the local zoo. With the clarity of purpose well-known among librarians, once there she simply does what she knows best: she promotes reading.

From llamas reading dramas and hyenas enjoying joke books to a boa constrictor who loves Crictor, Molly soon has the entire population of the zoo reading. She opens a branch library at the zoo called the Zoobrary.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (1):
Kids say: Not yet rated

With illustrations by the creator of the popular Arthur books, this cheerful rhyming story celebrates several things simultaneously: animals, books and reading, story writing, and libraries. Young kids will not be surprised to find animals reading books and writing their own stories because the line between themselves and the sweet, smiling animals in the story is a thin one.

The author uses many well-known stories to highlight the animals' enjoyment. From The Cat in the Hat and Goodnight Moon, to The Wizard of Oz and Harry Potter, the animals appreciate the same books loved by kids. There is some humor in the story that's strictly for the adult readers. For example, there's a scorpion book reviewer who gives "a stinging review" to whatever it reads and a Zoolitzer Prize awarded to a hippo's memoir.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the books the animals enjoy. What books would you recommend to the different zoo animals?

Book Details

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