Product Description

Hannah loves gorillas but has never seen one. Her father's too busy to take her to the zoo – or for anything else come to that. For her birthday, Hannah asks her father for a gorilla – but is disappointed when she discovers that the gorilla she's got is just a toy one. But then something extraordinary happens ... the toy turns into a real gorilla, who puts on her father's hat and coat and takes her off for a magical visit to the zoo...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2618 in Books
• Published on: 2008-06-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 32 pages

Review
"* "One of the best picture books for the over-threes I've seen in a long time." Practical Parenting * "Sad, joyous and full of surprises for the sharp-eyed... Browne asks his readers to think...His strong visual images are arresting, compulsive." The Good Book Guide * "Joyous and moving... A tour de force." The Times Literary Supplement"

About the Author
Anthony Browne is one of the most popular and stylistically distinctive children's book artists with a number of outstanding titles to his credit. Gorilla was the winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal and the Kurt Maschler Award. Other titles include four books featuring Willy the lovable chimp: Willy the Wimp (9780744543636); Willy the Champ (9780744543568); Willy the Dreamer (9780744569643) and Willy's Pictures (9780744582406) as well as the picture books Into the Forest (9781844285594) and Silly Billy (9781406305760). In 2000, Anthony received the highest international honour for illustration, the Hans Christian Andersen Award, for his services to children's literature – the first British illustrator to win the prize since 1956.

Customer Reviews

Delightful
A sad little girl, whose father works too hard to spend time with her, is taken out by a gorilla. This is such a beautifully illustrated story that it will appeal even to children who are beginning to outgrow picture books. The pictures are expressive and full of jokes, and the story is sad, exciting and happy by turns. The point where the toy gorilla grows into a real one had my six year old niece shivering with excitement.

Stunning pictures but...
I am not entirely comfortable with this book.

The illustration is fantastic but what on earth are we expected to make of the story?

Our heroine is dreadfully neglected. In particular Dad has no time for her. In one picture she appears to be in a room bare of all but a television. What is that about?

The girl is rescued from her neglect by a gorilla. Is this fantasy or allegory?

In the end Dad finally seems to make an effort but do we really think it is going to last? Is it a happy ending?

As a Dad I am not wholly relaxed reading this to my daughter. Just what message is it sending?

But those pictures...

Unthought through
The illustrations are compelling. But the actual text and story show a dispiriting absence of thought - even a lack of a general 'take' on the world, that robs the book of the quality it could have had. So, rather unthought through and essentially disappointing in my opinion. I bought it because Anthony Browne became the children's laureate. But I'm not going to give it to the child I had in mind, which is a shame.