Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Gorillas: they're not all gently mischievous, as in Peggy Rathmann's Good Night, Gorilla, or artistic and pensive, like in Katherine Applegate's The One and Only Ivan. Sometimes they're downright destructive. That's certainly the case for the hulking specimen the young narrator accidentally lets into his family's home, thinking it's the pizza guy. "I didn't invite the gorilla in," says the boy, ostensibly talking to his parents. "He just barged right past me." The gorilla embarks on a path of suspiciously childlike destruction, dumping toys and clothing on the floor, coloring on the walls, and storing DVDs everywhere from a cereal box to the toilet bowl. Bold typefaces highlight the gorilla's worst offenses in Robinson's (Yak Yuk) emphatic prose-as well as the boy's claims of his own innocence. In digital illustrations with the feel of loose crayon drawings, Lord (The Super Hungry Dinosaur) creates mess after mess as the boy explains that the worst news is yet to come. After all the mayhem, the closing zinger doesn't pack enough of a punch, but readers will enjoy debating the reliability of the boy's alibi. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Horn Book Review
I'm afraid I have some BAD news..." Thinking it's "the pizza boy" a boy mistakenly lets a gorilla in. The gorilla makes a mess coloring, playing dress-up, baking a cake, etc., but that's not the bad news. When we get there, the story's punch line isn't much of a surprise. The illustrations capture the humor caused by the nonthreatening gorilla. (c) Copyright 2014. 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
The mayhem begins with a pizza delivery, but blame it all on the gorilla. The inclination to deny culpability is a universal one, and young children are especially good at it. So when there's mischief afoot, a small boy with a very inventive imagination places all the responsibility on a mysterious gorilla who manages to absent himself just as mother appears on the scene. After all, how else to explain toys and DVDs scattered about, crayon drawings on the wall, a pile of clothes on the floor, a broken window and furniture, a chocolate-covered kitchen and other assorted disasters? He describes each episode, emphasizing his own complete innocence, and follows with "But that's not the bad news," indicating there's worse to come. That is left to the conclusion and an empty pizza box. Robinson builds the action with one hilarious explanation after another, seamlessly partnered with Lord's digitally rendered illustrations that fly across the pages. The little antihero's facial expressions indicate that he is appropriately appalled and concerned by this gorilla's outlandish behavior. The gorilla, on the other hand, seems to genuinely enjoy his exploits. The text is peppered with a smorgasbord of typefaces that grow larger and bolder as the events grow more improbable. Read it with a little fibber and just laugh and enjoy. (Picture book. 4-8)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
