Baby Monkey, Private Eye

My grandchildren, ages 3 and 5, loved this book which brings on raucous laughter each time we read it. They illustrations are beautiful and the story is charming. It's great for reading to children, but I envision it becoming to a beloved easy-reader book once the children become readers themselves. The artwork will also entertain adults with not-so-obvious literary and artistic references. Something for everyone.

Delightful, funny, fun, and a perfect book for new readers who want a book with chapters.

This book was recommended to me by a school librarian. She stressed that the various features of the book will be attractive and enjoyable for many ages. Our 2 year loves to laugh at the monkey struggling to put pants on. The older children find other areas of interest in the words and pictures.

I got this book for both our five and six-year old granddaughters. It is so much fun! There are only a few words on each page and several chapters with new "cases". So important for new readers to be able to build up their confidence. This book is thick; the words are few enough on each page to not be intimidating; there is repetition of sight words so young readers can remember them; the illustrations are delightful.

An illustrator's great concept puts the simian tyke in a Sam Spade setting faced with common dilemmas that are solved in careful, clever ways . . . except for that exasperating problem of getting his pants on! I put the book in a room with a 7-year-old and a 4-year-old who dragged their mom out of bed next morning to read it to her twice (!), and their enthusiasm still bubbles. Librarians have said the book is a perfect bridge from children's stories to chapter books. Maybe -- the format makes it so -- but my two guys haven't got past the struggle with the pants yet. There are inside jokes and illustration tricks galore that make it easy for adults accompanying short people's visits to the monkey P.I. office safe for sore eyes.

Brian Selznick's done it again. But this time, he's revolutionized the early chapter book genre. While the book has 192 pages making it seem like a full length chapter book. The text is actually pretty sparse. This makes the illustrations the star of the show, which is awesome when the illustrator is as fabulous as Selznick. Our main character here is a baby monkey who solves crimes. In each of the five chapters in the book, Baby Monkey solves a crime. He gathers clues, he takes notes, and sets out to catch the culprit, but first he has to put on his pants. Unfortunately, Baby Monkey struggles to figure out how to put on his pants creating a running gag throughout the story. The pattern set in the first three chapters makes the changes in chapters four and five stand out all the more. And the detailed black and white illustrations work perfectly to highlight Baby Monkey's office and exploits with just enough splashes of red to catch the eye. In addition to all this though is the changes Selznick makes in Baby Monkey's office for each new case. The art on the walls and the bust on the desk change to fit the subject of the case (opera, circus, space, etc.). Thankfully, Selznick has a key at the end of the book documenting all the changes and where they came from. Interestingly there is also an index and a bibliography (documenting the books Baby Monkey is reading in each office scene)--I also suspect that these books are all made up. All in all Selznick and Serlin have created an adorable book that young readers who want a larger book are bound to enjoy both carrying around and reading.

This is a fantastic book. Shared it with my five year old granddaughter, who not only loved it but also starting writing her own book, using "Baby Monkey, Private Eye" as a template. Selznick and Serlin have created a masterpiece for beginning readers, but everyone should read this book. It's brilliant! I've read all of Selznick's books and his collaboration with Serlin has brought new life to the genre of easy readers. It's pure joy to read Baby Monkey. I smile every time I see the front cover, and laugh out loud with my granddaughter every time we share an episode from the book.

What a joy this book is! My 5 year old loves it because he can read it all by himself. I love it because it is deeply sweet. The drawings are phenomenal--just lovely in their details. But the final chapter (spoiler alert), when baby monkey finds his mama, has so much love in it that it imbues the entire book with joy. I had the pleasure of reading this to my son's kindergarten class and they absolutely loved it! This is our go-to gift this year. Highly recommend!

It is almost impossible to usefully review this wonderful book. It is in the seeing and reading that explains everything. A delight for children young and old.

Awfully sweet and wonderfully illustrated

Livro incrível, como não poderia deixar de ser desse autor. Leitura para crianças e adultos, todos se encantam com o baby monkey. Brian sempre se supera!

Il libro è piaciuto al mio cinquenne - e anche al duenne. Gioca un po’ sulla ripetizione della trama, variando i dettagli ad ogni capitolo, trovo che questo funzioni meglio per i bimbi un po’ più piccoli (appunto, il mio duenne è molto attratto dalle storie ripetitive). Le illustrazioni sono bellissime. In finale, penso sia più adatto ai piccini, oppure ad un bimbo che legge da sé.

Absolutely delightful book! Really fun for the grandkids to get a Real Book with a dustjacket and footnotes. Readable by a 5-6 yr old and, if course, fun to read aloud.