Customer Reviews

Doctor De Soto Goes to Africa

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Most children want to hear a storybook over and over again, which quickly becomes tedious for even the most indulgent parent. William Steig is one of the few children's authors who has managed to write books that children adore and adults enjoy, even when they can be recited from memory. The adventures of Dr. Bernard De Soto and his wife Deborah are interesting and surprising. The illustrations are guaranteed to make both child and reader smile. Steig is most masterful in his use of words: he picks words that are not commonly heard, especially by children ("an ill-bred pachyderm with a preposterious schnozzola"), and the words he chooses are fun to say and to hear! My two year old loves to hear me say "Honkitonk", "Mudambo", "yes indeedle-de-doe" and "gold walulus". My six year old gets a thrill from hearing someone called a "moron", and learning about Caruso. I like the drawings of Mrs. Mudambo, an elephant who wears earrings and a necklace. If you are searching for books that will satisfy a child's voracious appetite for repeated stories, check out William Steig's Dr. De Soto Goes to Africa. It just may keep you sane until your child learns to read!

William Steig's inimitable mouse creation, Doctor DeSoto, goes on a wonderful adventure in this wonderful book. Along with his able assistant and wife, Deborah, he travels via ocean liner to Africa to see about fixing the tooth of an ailing elephant. While there, the DeSotos get into all sorts of difficulties, all of which are vividly, colorfully illustrated by Steig.

Steig has a wonderful way with artwork, as those who love him already know, but he has an equally uncanny knack with narrative. Eschewing simple phrases and tiny words, he throws around plot and dialogue with great vim and vigor and his enthusiasm and childlike view of this mouse couple are infectious. Highly recommended!

What makes William Steig tick?

Reading this book one can only wonder at the inner workings of a sublime and zany mind. Is he mad? At times he seems to barely skirt the edge of lunacy - an imagination such as this is anything but normal.

Do you want your kids to read this?

Absolutely - just make sure they buckle their seatbelts first.

Here's how it starts...

"Doctor Bernard De Soto was such a one-in-a-million, humdinger of a dentist that the whole world knew about him, and also about his wife, Deborah, who helped him work his wonders".

De Soto, it should be noted is a very refined and professional looking mouse. But why in the world is his wife's name Deborah?

Steig continues, "The two of them were listening to Caruso one evening when this cablegram arrived"...

Of all the things the DeSotos might be listening to, why Caruso? The author surely has a reason as each such unexpected choice contributes to the the book's bent and altered state of reality.

The cablegram contains an offer of ten thousand gold walulus as an incentive for Dr. D. and his wife D. to travel to Dabwan West Africa to deal with the giant toothache of a seriously suffering elephant. And so the action gets underway.

Along the way things take a dark and scary twist. "Around midnight, while his wife slept, Dr. Bernard De Soto was kidnapped. A hand covered his mouth, and he was hustled off in the clutches of a certain rhesus monkey, Honkitonk by name."

Why in the middle of the book is the by now well known protagonist referred to as "Doctor Bernard De Soto"? By now you get the idea...

In the end, however, all is well. The successful dental intervention liberates the pachyderm from pain and he and his wife dance a "frolicsome fandango".

Just amazing.

William Steig never disappoints me. And our whole family loves Dr. De Soto. The good vs. evil in Steigs books are similar to that of fairy tales. Dr. De Soto and his wife are gentle & good mice. And willing to help other animals even when it is not the most convienent thing for them to do.

My son really enjoyed this book. He took it with him to his grandma's and read it to her, he also had to go to his dad's office to read it to him. It is one of his favorites.

As a big fan of Steig, and of the original Dr. De Soto book, I was excited to find that there was a sequel. However, it was a bit of a letdown.

The story isn't bad, especially on the first read. De Soto and his wife are called away to Africa to treat an ailing elephant, but before the doctor can complete his work he is kidnapped by a moronic monkey named Honkitonk. The interaction between these two is mildly amusing. You feel for De Soto's plight, but he eventually escapes to return to his beloved Deborah, and all ends well.

After a few reads the story just doesn't hold up well. I find myself wishing my daughter would bring me the original instead, but the novelty of the new one hasn't worn off yet.

I wouldn't discourage the purchase of this book for fellow De Soto fans, but if one were looking to purchase a Steig book, there are a number I'd recommend before this one.

My children, ages 4 & 5, borrowed this book from our library, and immediately were entranced, asking me to read it over and over again.

I enjoyed this book in general but worried about the depiction of the Indian monkey with no morals. Was he supposed to model the stereotype many African peoples have of Indian immigrants to Africa? In several countries, Indians were blamed for a country's problems and driven out. Is William Steig predjudiced against Indians?

Though this book is very nicly written, the illustrations are freaky!!!!!
The monkey made my whole family scream in terror! I would not recommend this book for children under 7 years of age .