Customer Reviews

Zoo

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This book should be required reading for Zoo staff and Zoo visitors alike. ZOO is full of the ugly truth that surrounds so many zoo visits. I know. I work at a zoo. This book is appropriatly meloncholy, giving the reader{if they have'nt already] very mixed feelings about these institutions. The characters are real and if just one reader can see themselves in these characters and change for the better,dreams do come true.As always, Anthony Browne's illistrations are haunting and rich. the text is subtle, giving the reader an opportunity to read between the lines as they look between the bars on cages,to find their own perspective. I recommend this book.My three-year-old asked me thoughtful questions about it for days.It was fun to have such meaningfull dialogue with someone so young.

This book is very good. This book may not be educational but it is very, very, VERY funny. I love this book and I first heard it at a very young age. I don't get how someone can't like this. This book may not have good role models or a happy ending, but I swear if you have a dry sense of humor you will love it!

I love all of Anthony Browne's books. He is a fantastic author. He brings light to many issues that surround our world. While I am sure that some people want all children's books to be "happy" and "perfect", I prefer the books that create real and honest conversation with children about their feelings about various topics. Anthony Browne's books allow you, even as an adult, to rethink your ideas about the treatment of animals and people alike. I hope that more people will read Anthony Browne's books and enjoy them with their children.

Zoo by Anthony Browne totally captures what it is like to go on a family outing. The fussing between the brothers is as real as it gets. The hidden pictures in the art work is spell binding. The end is thought provoking. I rate it a 5 star.

mg.

I picked up this book for my son at a library book sale without reading it, I liked the art work. When I first read it I couldn't believe that this weird little story was actually published. The mean, nasty dad is just too much. The story is too weird. Perhaps it's a cultural thing and Americans just don't get the humor of it? I don't know... I like that it makes children think about what it must be like for animals in the zoo but I don't care for the characters or the story. The art work is quite nice but overall it's just too weird. And not weird in a good way.

I can't believe so many people who have written a review here. You obviously don't get that this book is not a typical children's picture book. It is meant to be intriguing; it is meant to make us question. To say that it is not an appropriate book for children is not accurate - it was written for gifted children who are inquisitive and curious about humans and our world. I should know, I teach a class full of them.

My six year old checked this book out of her school library. We sat down to read it this evening and we got thgouth about 4 pages and I closed tha book and asked to get something that wasn't neasrly as offensive. I understand the point of view of zoo haters such as Mr. Browne, but I don't appreciae being ambushed in such a way that belittles the family and puts fathers in such a negative hateful light. I love my wife and children, and don't believe that most faithful husbands and loving fathers resemble anything close to the father that Mr. Browne portrays. I'm sorry he had a rotten childhood.

This is not your average story of a family going to the zoo. Dad is a boor in "one of his moods" and mom is a passive enabler. The animals are kept in small, shabby cages and are nearly as miserable as the human visitors.

This is all very realistic, I suppose, but is it appropriate for a childrens' book? This review thinks not. I'll take my literary zoos idealized and happy, thank you very much.

I checked this book out of our library based on the title alone (big mistake) after a family trip to the zoo, to read to my 4 year old twins. I had to immediately start changing the words so as to not freak them out completely. The illustrations did the job anyway. OK, I "get it" that zoos are not the most noble creations of humankind, but do we have to shove that down a preschooler's throat so soon? They have plenty of time to figure out what injustices we have perpetrated on animals, our environment, and ourselves. This book is SO NOT for the age group at which it is aimed. Unless you are one of those people who don't kids to be kids for as long as possible.

The wonderful illustrations are what attracted me to the book at my local library. The characters however, are far from wonderful. What could have been a fun story about a family's trip to the zoo, was instead a story about a miserable family who could not get along. As a mother you are looking for positive stories to read to your children. This story did not provide anything positive. I was embarrassed to read this book to my child. Neither one of us enjoyed it at all. I would not recommend any books by Anthony Browne for families. Most of which I feel are very negative, and should not be marketed to children.