Review by Booklist Review
One bright, moonlit night, the zoo animals leave their enclosures and do unexpected things: an elephant flies, a crocodile and a kangaroo pedal around on a tandem bike, three lions do magic tricks, and so on, adding one more to each group of animals until, as dawn breaks, 10 roosters warn the animals that the keeper is coming. All through the nicely cadenced text, every four-beat line ends in a word rhyming with zoo, and so does the occasional refrain But nobody knew. Young children will enjoy being in on the animals' secret, and, if prompted, they may also enjoy the counting practice offered by each picture. The appended double-page spread shows animals grouped by numbers, one to 10. Suggesting night through muted colors, Kerr's softly shaded pencil drawings depict the beasts and birds with all the charm of friendly animal crackers come to life. Fresh and simple.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-Children can count from 1 to 10 by viewing the antics of zoo animals. The author uses a multitude of words that rhyme with zoo (flew, kangaroo, gnu, stew) to describe the secret nighttime activities of these familiar creatures. However, this constant rhyme begins to sound silly and tedious. "Four bears cooked a squid and squidgeberry stew/Which turned five flamingos/from pink to blue." The culminating spread shows all of the animals grouped by their respective number for a final counting exercise. Pale pastel-colored pencil artwork looks washed out despite the action-filled poses. The text font is large, and words are simple enough for beginning readers. This is merely supplemental to the many outstanding counting books that are currently available.--Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
"One magical, moonlit night in the zoo," relates a monkey, a sequence of astonishing events occurs, beginning with an elephant who "flew." Subsequently, a crocodile and a kangaroo ride a bicycle built for "two," five flamingos turn from pink to "blue," seven tigers "blew" the feathers off a "cockatoo," etc. Yes, each and every end rhyme plays off the word zoo -- and Kerr (The Tiger Who Came to Tea; When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit) manages to make it all seem unforced and as light as that airborne elephant. At the end of the night, the sleepy animals return to their cages ("excepting only one or two"), leaving the zookeepers to wonder what's tired them all out so thoroughly. "But nobody knew... / ...Except you!" Kerr wraps things up with a (non-rhyming) curtain call -- "and here they are again" -- gathering the animals together on one spread and emphasizing the book's counting-book element. Humor-filled, uncluttered illustrations on double-page spreads are more suited for one-on-one sharing than use with groups, as the pages, though large, are pastel-pale. For the youngest readers, this imaginative nighttime-at-the-zoo adventure (with rather more magic than mischief) is also an invitation into a shared secret and an introduction to the delights of wordplay. From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Bright, cheerful rhymes and soft, witty illustrations tell the story of a most curious night at the zoo while presenting the numbers one to ten in this smart and silly counting book. What did the zoo animals do on this particular evening? Definitely not what you'd expect. The imaginative ideas will have children giggling, and the simplicity of the rhymes will encourage readers to come up with their own. As the text dances along, it explains that one elephant flew, a crocodile and kangaroo rode a bike for two, three lions entertained a gnu and so on, until ten cocks cockadoodledoo! to let the animals know the keepers have arrived in the morning. Children will enjoy spotting the mischievous animals that do not return to their proper places and will be deeply satisfied to hear that although the animals seem tired, nobody knew what they were up to during the night ("Except you!"). A recap of all the animals counted is included at the end. A fun-filled selection, great for home and for the classroom. (Picture book. 2-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
