Baboon [Paperback]

Kate Banks (Author), Georg Hallensleben (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up

On his first trip into the world, a baby baboon meets a very slow turtle and concludes that the world is slow. But then, as his mother takes him farther afield, he sees much more: he watches a hungry crocodile, a thundering herd of elephants, a swift gazelle, a rhinoceros. He feels the heat of a fire, the softness of grass, the warmth of the sun. Throughout the day, everything he experiences expands his understanding, and when night falls, he has seen with his own eyes that the world is a big and varied place.

With its simple, rhythmic text and bold, impressionistic jungle pictures, Baboon is a book to share with children as they explore their own new worlds.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2. Baby Baboon begins to notice various fascinating phenomena from which he draws conclusions about the world. He sees a forest and decides the world is green. "Some of it," says his mother. He watches a turtle and says, "The world is slow." "It can be," answers his mother. He observes predators, a forest fire, a swift gazelle, and soft grass; his mother wisely agrees that each of these wonders is the world. In simple, dreamlike paintings, Hallensleben conveys both the changing colors of the day in the ochre-green jungle and the warm microcosm of the mother with her baby clinging to her neck. The impressionistic illustrations reinforce the calm mood of the well-written text. The words and pictures are perfectly matched and equally compelling. A good choice for parent-child sharing.?Karen MacDonald, Teaticket Elementary School,
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Ages 3^-5. A baby baboon is introduced to the complexities of the world in this deceptively simple story. Mother takes her child into the great forest. "So the world is green," the young baboon notes. "Some of it," his mother replies. As they progress into the forest, Baboon tries to hold on to the truths he thinks he sees: the world is slow because the turtle takes so long to pass; a crocodile opens his mouth wide, and the world seems hungry. But when a gazelle dashes past, Baboon sees that the world can be fast, and when he spies a monkey in a tree, he realizes that although many creatures in the world are different from him, there are some that are like him, too. As evening falls, Baboon understands that the world is big. "Yes," his mother says softly, "the world is big." In a reassuring yet uncompromising manner, Banks opens young children's eyes to the message that there is more to their universe than they might know or understand. The chunky artwork, executed in jungle hues, features strong central images that work exceptionally well for the age group. A book that will support children's own questioning. Ilene Cooper --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) (March 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374404739
• ISBN-13: 978-0374404734
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 9.2 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #867,356 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Baboon evokes a sense of quiet at bedtime, November 17, 2008

By 

Sarah A. Gilbert "cafemama" (portland, oregon) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Baboon (Paperback)

I love a bedtime book that I can read in a whisper, and this book is a melody of soothing tones. The language is amazing; it's lovely to read, non-repetitive, and truly evocative of the quest for any mother (baboon, human, whomever) to describe the world to the hungry eyes of a young child. I'd pick this every night for bedtime reading if I could.

3.0 out of 5 stars BABOON, BY KATE BANKS, January 10, 2007

By 

Carolyn Stark - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Baboon (Hardcover)

An engaging theme of discovering that the world is more varied than first experiences would have you believe suffers from a very dull palette. 'The muddy greens olives and browns may be true to a Baboon's forest world but lack the contrast to engage a young child. Even a brushfire is muted.

This book was a dissapointment compared to Close Your Eyes by Kate Banks with the same ilustrator Georg Hallensleben. Both stories are soothing and engaging, providing the rare developing narrrative to be found in picture books for the very young. Mother to child invokes imagination in Close Your Eyes and investigating reality in Baboon. However, in Close Your Eyes abundant blue sky sets off the orange, black-striped little tiger, the greens are bright, and the dreams conjured up by the tiger mother burst with color and surprising details.Even a rainy mountian landscape is engaging. Nature is not at all dreary.

1 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Baboon Butts and More!, June 16, 2004

By 

SuperGnome (Madison, WI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Baboon (Hardcover)

In one word, wow! I purchased this book in the hopes of finding a good children's book, but boy was I surprised when I found a collection of lovely paintings, drawings, and pressed art made from the hind quarters of various baboon species. What a find!

-Pie