I have read many children books with a zoo theme. A visit to the zoo is almost always a fun experience, the animals are awesome, the family has a great time discussing and admiring the beauties of the God's creations. But this book is different from the rest. The visit to the zoo was lousy, and it sounds more like one of those ordinary, nothing-great visits to the zoo experienced probably by too many families from time to time. A boy goes to the Zoo with his Mum, Dad and brother, where they see a variety of animals and enjoy the delights of the zoo. Poor old mum has to endure Dad’s bad jokes and her two cheeky monkeys messing about, but they all have a good day in the end. It reminds me, on a smaller scale, of the great San Diego Zoo which is about 2 1/2 hours from where I grew up and is the zoo by which I measure all zoos against. Top 10 Zoo Books for Kids

Kids who love mysteries will really enjoy The Secret Zoo. Noah & Megan live next door to the zoo and are noticing the animals’ strange behaviors — then one day, Megan disappears! It’s up to her brother and friends to solve the clues that lead them into the zoo at night to see if they can find her. Two of my kids’ teachers told me that this was an amazing book last year so I bought it but hesitated because I was afraid it would be one of those sad, urban zoo stories. I was so wrong to wait to read this Newbery winning chapter book! If I Ran the Zoo (Classic Seuss) by Dr. Seuss is a classic zoo book! What kid wouldn’t want to imagine all the wonderful things they would do if they were asked to be in charge of the zoo for a day 🙂This picture book often makes the Banned and Challenged book list each year. It’s based on a true zoo story: If I Ran the Zoo (Classic Seuss) was written and illustrated by Dr. Seuss. This classic story follows a young boy named Gerald McGrew as he shares all of the things that he would do differently if he ran the zoo. The funny rhyming story is accompanied by fairly simple illustrations that use color sparingly. The colours along the journey are fairly bright, however, there is a consistent juxtaposition between the colours on the verso -which is where the humans are repeatedly situated- and the animals in captivity on the recto. The clothes that the humans are wearing contribute to the bright colours on the verso. Some of the clothes could be perceived as a representation of the way that humans mistreat animals for our benefit. For example, some characters are wearing leopard print coats and tiger printed trousers, suggesting that zoos are not the only way in which we unnecessarily maltreat animals. But this book has a delightful extra feature. It is a “noisy” book! And I can assure you (because I’ve done this myself) that if you accidentally sit on it, you will find that it might trumpet at you, or chatter like a monkey, or even (and this is a bit scary if you’re not expecting it!) even hiss like a snake! The lions, meerkats, monkeys are lethargic when Max and Mia visit the zoo with their class. When they get left behind at the zoo, they discover that something magical happens at midnight. This is Madagascar meets The Night at the Museum. [picture book, ages 4 and up]

The people featured in the book are dressed in animal patterned clothing, having animal-like features or in some cases they are physically a bizarre mixture of human and actual animal whilst the animals themselves are drawn in an incredibly life-like and realistic way and Browne really shows off his mastery in his gorilla illustration. This book is an excellent example of the essential role pictures can play in a story as we can infer so much from them.

MORE ANIMAL ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS:

Dear Zoo has a good mixture of words and pictures, with uncomplicated, simple sentences, which are perfect for teaching our little ones to read. The language is easily understandable for a child, with descriptive words that may form part of their vocabulary already. The story involves a young child writing to the zoo because they want a pet, which adds a bit of magic to the book, and will capture their imaginations long after the book is put down. Why we like Dear Zoo I wrote to the zoo to send me a pet..." (That's a direct quote from the book) and then I'd pull out a different puppet from the box and bring it to life for a few seconds. It was fun to have the parents and talking kids chant the line over and over with me. And it was even more fun to see the children's excitement when a "live" animal came out of the box. Priceless. These 20+ amazing photos show the details of many zoo animals from their eyelashes to tongues, along with posing some very interesting details about many zoo residents. Great for kids ages 3+ (really, this is a cool book even for adults!)

This very clever twist on “who’s watching who” will leaving kids laughing and wondering if they are the ones on display. Fun for kids ages 3 – 8 years. A talented animal can do wondrous things with colors and circles and it thinks the zoo is the perfect place to live but the two children it befriends convince it that there is an even better place to aspire towards. [picture book, ages 2 and up]Dear Zoo” was written as a lift-the-flap board book in 1982, by the Scottish author, Rod Campbell. It is his most famous work, and thirty-five years later, it is still tremendously popular among the under fives in Great Britain, and has been translated into more than a dozen different languages. This story is a fun introduction to animals and their characteristics. It is written in the first person, with repetitive sentences. The nature of repetitiveness enables young readers to predict and engage with the story. And for some creative fun, take along the At the Zoo Scratch & Sketch (An Art Activity Book for Animal Lovers and Artists of All Ages) (Trace-Along Scratch and Sketch) . Your kids will love to observe and scratch/sketch the animals they see on their visit.