Gorilla, Good Night

This is a delightful book. The illustrations are eye pleasing. There are little unique characters with each page for children to pick out. It is my favorite story to read to my granddaughter. She loves this book.

This is the ONLY book my son will accept for his night time book. When we got rid of the bottle, I wanted to substitute a book for our night time routine where the bottle had been. We snuggle every night and read this book and it is delightful. I've tried substituting other books in some nights, and he pushes them away and points to this one. It doesn't have many words. Many pages are only illustration, so we "read" it more conversationally, just talking about each page. It is a very thoughtfully illustrated book, and we keep noticing more and more little treasures. For example, on the first page a balloon is released from the gorilla's cage, and the ballon is then hidden on every page for the rest of the book getting further and further away.

I'll start off by saying I love the illustrations in the book. They're fun and tell a whole in and of themselves. Which is important since there is hardly any narration. Now don't get me wrong, I can make a story out of the pictures, but it certainly doesn't have a nice cadence like the rhyming stories which I love reading to my son. And when I'm tired, I just want to zone out and read someone else's words, not come up with my own narration. It's too much work.

Awesome book...there are so many things my daughter enjoys to do when reading this book. Whether it be naming all the colors on the keys, counting all the animals, tracking the balloon, figuring out what the mouse is doing different on each page, etc. Definitely a worthwhile purchase...I don't think most people will be disappointed.

This wonderful, oversized board book is fun for children of any age! The story unfolds through the colorful and funny pictures that are meant to be studied and laughed at. This book is sure to get some good conversations going between the adults and children who share it. It's definitely a "go to" book! Enjoy!

My daughter loves this book. My review is going to come with a very large qualification.

If you want a book to actually read, this is not the one. We make up our story as we go. Aside from "good night" there are very few other words. ("dear", "gorilla", "zzz" I think are about it.)

It is effectively a picture book. At each page I will ask her what is going on now? And she tells me "keys, gorilla, steal them". I ask her "what is the gorilla?" and she tells me "incorrigible". So that is how she knows all gorillas now, they are all incorrigible.

She tells me the animals, what they say, what color their enclosures are, and who is sleeping where.

So, if you want a book to read, pick something else. If you want a series of drawings around which you can craft a story, I would recommend it.

This is a wonderful few word but great story book. My son received this book when he was six months old and I have since replaced it because the pages got so worn out from constant reading and looking at the pictures. He loves this story and it has also helped him learn animals. Great cute book to add to any collection.

Good Night, Gorilla is too wonderful for words, of which there aren't very many in this book. But the pictures and the humor of the story told through the pictures is both different and charming everytime you look at it, which with my grandchildren is several times a day, at least. This is a book to buy many times and to give as a gift as often as you need one. Oversized is better.

I have two boys under age 2, and for Christmas my husband and I opted to give them mostly books. I added this one to my cart not realizing there isn't much story in this book, mostly just a picture book. Don't get me wrong, the illustrations are adorable and we can "make up" a story as we go along or play a game of name-the-animal. But it's not exactly what I expected or prefer. I like a children's book with cute illustrations AND a nice story.

There are barely any words in this book. It's mostly pictures. I'll give you a breakdown:

32 pages (23 of them have no words)

47 words total (all but 4 are either "good", "night", or an animal name. The other 4 words are "dear" (twice), "zoo", and "zzzz".

When I buy a book to READ to my son, I expect more than pictures. The pictures are nice, but from the high ratings I was expecting a lot more. It may be better for older children who can talk to their parents about the pictures (my son is 10 months). I like the store prices, but I will be checking out books in person before ordering from now on.

My 18 month old loves this book! We have worn out our old one and are on our second copy. It is a fun board book without many words, but lots of opportunities for your own sound effects, especially a gasp on the page that is all black except for a pair of surprised eyes.

Cute book but meant for children probably a year old or younger. Out of 34 pages there are only 12 actual pages with writing on them and all the writing says is "goodnight _______." Pretty boring for any child over the age of 1. The pictures are cute. Just not what I was expecting.

My grandaughter loves her Goodnight Gorilla and the book. If your baby is between 7 months and speaking age get "Sign with your Baby" and learn how well your child can communicate with you through signing.

This is a cute book about a sneaky Gorilla, but this is a book of few words. At times that is a welcomed change from the 40+ paged Dr. Seuss books I have to keep reading, but it left me wanting more. Our little girl still enjoys looking at the pages, the illustrations are great, but it isn't one she is begging us to read all the time.

I received this book in time and my child and I really like everything about it: nice pictures (especially one where verything is black and only eyes are seen), simple texts. A really good book for a 2year old!

This is one of my grandson's favorite books. He's 5 now and he still loves to read it. Even though it's simple, there is "hidden" teaching; the color of the keys coordinate with the color of the cages, he likes to try to figure out which animal is which on the pages where you can only see their eyes in the dark. It's a "must" read when he spends the night with Nana!

I don`t think this is such a great book. Yeah, ok, funny gorilla takes the keys and lets the animals out..... There are hardly any words in the book and my daughter like it either. sorry, not a fan.

My 3 yr old grandson took this book out of the library every week so I had to buy it for him.He sleeps with it. He has read this so many times...he can now "read" it to us!
Thanks for a wonderful wholesome story book!

This book is even famous in other countries. A very simple and nice story, written with only two words 'good night'. I really like it. But I wish the book was wider , pictures are cut down for the small size of the book. I have seen a bigger book version where the colors were nicer and pictures were full.

The paper in the book is very thin and while the pictures are vivid, it does not stand up to infant grabbing and licking of pages. I think my little one will enjoy this book more when she gets past that stage.

This book doesn't need many words to get the point across. The illustrations are priceless and the creativity is seeping across the pages. My 10-month-old has a favorite board book already -- it's this one!

I ordered this used copy of Goodnight Gorilla and it was supposed to be in Excellent (like new) condition. The book cover was well creased and edges were torn. It is a well used book. Misrepresented the products condition.

The book is very colorful and well illustrated, but there is almost nothing to the story for younger kids. There are so few words and you need to flip through 4 pages of illustrations in some cases. Older kids should be able to read into the illustrations and enjoy the story, but this is not a good book for reading to an infant or young toddler.

Two of the pages were stuck together with a drop of something. That was diasappointing from a quality standpoint. Since it was a small item purchased along with another larger item, it wasn't worth returning. If it had been in a store, I would not have purchased it.

I bought this book because of the reviews and I love all books that have to do with going to bed to read to my 15 month old son. But this book has very little writing in it and is not appropriate for small kids. I find myself adding in words to fill in the story ("and the gorilla takes the keys and says come along elephant...etc) I love the illustrations but it isn't really what I thought it was going to be. Don't buy this for anyone under 2 1/2 in my opinion.

Sorry to burst the good rating bubble but I am SO disappointed in this book and so is my toddler. THERE ARE BARELY ANY WORDS! Yes u can make them up but how does that teach reading or even recognizing letters? Only buy this book If u want it for the drawings if you want a "story" then keep searching! PS. Its nothing like goodnight moon either.

I don't mind picture books and making up my own story to go along with it, but this book has minimal words....it should either have no words or have a story to go along with it. i don't like the inbetween. It would be really nice for it to have a story to go along with it. I suppose I will just make up my own story with the cute pictures, but toddlers love repetition, so i am not impressed with this purchase at all. mY son who is 2 knows words to his favorite books and i was hoping this would become his favorite, but no interest in it for now. I bought the dvd, hoping once he sees that he will enjoy the book more. Cute pictures though. wasn't what i expected based on reviews though.

This book absolutely sucks. I have no idea why everyone raves about it. Most of the pages don't even have words on it so you have to explain everything that is going on in the book. I like books that my toddler can learn stuff from so this one is useless.

I am so disappointed with this book, especially after reading all the rave reviews. There is absolutely nothing to the book. The only words in it are "good night" and an animal name. If not for the illustrations, I would have rated one star. Absolutely not worth the price. I've seen better books at Dollar General for $1.00! Seriously

Do not order the board book!
I almost wonder if this is not an official printing its so bad. All of the pages have images which are cutoff so you can't see the animals or the story on many pages. So disappointing.

Don't get me wrong, the actual story and illustrations are amazing! Our son has the hard bound version of this book and we've read it to him probably 100+ times. We ordered this book to give as a birthday present. It's the soft bound version, which normally isn't an issue. The color and print quality are poor and it looks as if it's been color copied. There's a strange white border around all the inside pages and there are also oddly designed end sheets that add to the "home made" feel. I was embarrassed to have to give this book as a gift.

A zookeeper is followed home by all of the animals he thinks he’s locked up at the zoo for the night. The story begins with the zookeeper locking each of the animals’ cages for the night, wishing each of them a good night. He doesn’t realize that the gorilla has taken his keys and is leading a menagerie back to the zookeeper’s house! When his wife realizes that her house is full of animals, she leads them all back and goes home – but someone may have followed her back. The art appears to be watercolor, with bright colors against sparse white backgrounds. The endpapers lead readers into and out of the story, with the gorilla showing up and holding what we presume to be the zookeeper’s keys as he bounces around the book cover’s frame.

The book is sparsely worded, which makes for great interactive storytime potential as the leader can ask children things like, “What’s happening now?” “What do you think will happen next?” Each animal is identified as the zookeeper says good night, reinforcing different animal names for younger readers. Young audiences may also connect with the animals who resist both their bedtimes and being left in their rooms all night. The animals even have toys in their cages – a fun storytime task could involve asking the children to point out the toys in each animal’s cage. The book is also available as a board book, and would be good to have on hand for the littlest users to be able to see and enjoy.

This book could be part of either a zoo-focused read-aloud or a bedtime stories read-aloud. For a zoo-focused read-aloud, it would be great to bring in some toys – Fisher-Price’s Little People have zoo and animal sets that are easily washable and would be great fun for little hands to play with and act out the story. There are Fisher-Price Little People school buses that could bring “students” on a school trip to the zoo! Decorating the storytime area with plush zoo animals, even small Beanie Babies, would add to the fun atmosphere. There are many fun fingerplays and songs that can be incorporated into the storytime as well.

Zoos are meant to imprison animals, so other people can admire them and possibly learn more about them. They are also bred in captivity in order t save the species from being hunted or becoming extinct, but if we learn more about them by leaving them in cages, shouldn't humans understand that animals need to be left alone in their own habitats? This gorgeous board book illustrates that within the few pages it has. Interestingly enough, the gorilla is the animal that grabs the keys from the man's belt to escape. Gorillas are most like humans and having the gorilla be sly enough to know how to escape is eerily similar to how humans would act if they were trapped in prison. I find this book to be cinematic and realistic simultaneously because although a gorilla most likely wouldn't figure out that escaping his cage is better than what he has, the scenario is probably not impossible. This book is both hilarious and brilliant. Lots of pictures and a secret subplot involving a balloon!
P.S. How did the guard/wife not notice all of these huge animals come through their house and into their bedroom? Could people really be that clueless to their surroundings?

I love this book. It's my favorite little baby bedtime book because the message is so basic and repetitive but it's also got some humor. The zookeeper is putting the animals to bed but the gorilla steals his keys and lets himself out and proceeds to follow him around as he says goodnight to all the other animals, letting them all out as they pass. Then everybody follows the zookeeper to his house. There, when he and his wife say goodnight and EVERYONE answers good night back to them (on a black page...because the lights have been turned out.) The next page is also black and just shows the wife's wide open, surprised eyes. Of course, the zookeeper takes everyone back to the zoo. but....you get it!

I remember reading Goodnight Gorilla in 2nd grade, and it appealed to me just as much then as it does now. It's a pretty simple story but great as a bedtime story. Goodnight Gorilla follows the guard of a zoo as he says goodnight to each animal, one by one. The Gorilla, however, decides to follow him, unlocking each animal from their cage until they humorously end up in the guard’s bedroom. I always thought this story had a funny premise, and it’s likely that any kid you buy this for will too. Each page has little details to look for, and although the book was released in the 90’s, Goodnight Gorilla has an old school storybook charm that comes across beautifully.

This is a super cute little story. When I first got it, I was a little surprised that there are very few words and it's a story told more by describing the pictures. I will admit that my husband is way better at reading it than I am because he comes up with all kinds of silly tales about each animal, but my boys (2 and 5) love it - the younger one especially. The book is good quality and the pictures are vibrant and fun. We get asked to read it over and over, so it's definitely a hit in our house.

This book was quite intriguing to my then 4 month old son. His eyes were always drawn to it and it was one of the few books he would sit still for. I've been reading this to him before he goes to sleep for 2 months straight.

One of the best things about this book are all the subtle details and subplots. I often think the book should be re-titled: "Good Night, Gorilla or The Journey of the Pink Balloon" since both are interesting stories.

While reading the book to my son tonight (probably my 100th read), I noticed something new: the zookeeper works really long days and goes straight to bed after work. Definitely a workaholic.

Good Night, Gorilla is one of those books that I'd always see in the book store, but never read or even picked up for some reason. I always wanted to, but some other book would catch my eye, or my daughter would run up with some of her picks. Yesterday we finally gave it a shot, and she loved it. While I was reading it to her, I could tell that she was a little too old for it (she's almost 4), since this is more of a picture book than anything, but that doesn't change the fact that it's still cute.

The story's an easy one to tell: a gorilla nabs the keys from the zoo keeper one night, then goes around freeing all the other animals. Giraffes, elephants, lions, etc. One by one, they march back to the zoo keeper's home, and sneak into his bedroom. The gorilla goes into the zookeeper's bed, but then him and his wife wake up, and notice the gorilla in their bed, and all the other animals in their room, and take them back to the zoo.

There isn't much to read here- mostly animal names and "good night" a few times. But I'm not one of those parents that requires a story in order for the book to be enjoyable for their kids- just look at Where the Wild Things Are, one of my favorites that has a couple of pages with no text at all, just gorgeous illustrations to enjoy. That's the case here with Good Night, Gorilla, though the drawings are more comical. I -loved- the one where the gorilla had this big sly grin on his face when the zoo keeper's wife realized there was a gorilla next to her in the bed.

I think kids under the age of 4, and definitely under 3 will get the most out of this. Little to read, lots of nice illustrations. 'not much of a book to read for bed time, but there's a good amount to point out on the pages while you're going through it. It's cute, plain and simple.

This is our 13-month old's favorite book. It's the only book he shows a clear preference for, and even has a few favorite pages in the book. One of the things that makes it such a great book is that there are so many neat little details hidden in each page that gives the adult an opportunity to point out to the child, ask questions, etc. For example, the color of keys match the cage, the zookeeper has a name tag - what's his name?, the balloon is hidden in each page, who ate the banana on the last page, who's in the pictures on the zookeeper's wall, etc. It's fun to make up little stories to explain things since the "story" isn't explicitly spelled out, you can name the animals and ask your child for the names of the animals, etc. A superb children's book!

My son loves this book. At first I didn’t care for it because it doesn’t have much of a story. Then I soon learned that children under 2 don’t care for a lot of words. They look at the pictures and point out things. The keys, the flashlight, the moon, the animals, the mouse and banana. We can tell our own story with it. My husband interprets it one way and I another. It keeps it interesting and creative with a different story every time.

Well, our three-year-old grandson came over yesterday and spent the night. We were in the rocker when he told me I needed to read him a book. I should have guessed that he would bring me GOODNIGHT, GORILLA.

He loves to have us read him this book. At the same time letting him tell us what is going on. The stuffed animals in the cages. The movement of the mouse dragging the banana. The sheepish looks of the other animals watching the gorilla behind his back. The fact that the zookeeper is unaware of what is going on around him.

And he absolutely loves to repeat "goodnight....goodnight...goodnight..." Seven times, counting as he goes. When the wife's eyes glow in the dark on the next page we both roll back laughing. Every Single Time We Read It.

One the average we read it five times before I have to say, "Enough, lets try something else." So he'll get me GO DOGS GO or some other title. And then, there it is again. In his little hands with those big eyes and a wide smile. And we start to read it once more.

The end.

Good Night, Gorilla is such an endearing story. It is soothing, engaging, and entertaining all in one. The gorilla certainly knows the ropes; he is clever and stealthy and is able to lead a whole zoo into the zookeeper's home. He seems to thoroughly enjoy his cleverness, and this prank he decides to pull on the zookeeper and his wife. Good Night Gorilla places a delightful story in a child's head before they drift off to sleep at night.

I agree with the other review saying that the illustrations are cut off in the board book. Maybe I wouldn't have noticed if I haven't seen the review, since I'd never read the book before, but it's so glaring obvious now. It really takes away the enjoyment from the book since otherwise it would be a perfect book. The age this book is for, a board book is necessary, so there wasn't any other option. I wouldn't buy this again.
As this is part of a gift, I'm really disappointed and wish there was a solution since it's otherwise a cute book.

I have noticed quite a few people complaining that they wish the book had more words. The lack of words is what me and my 2 year old love. We read the book differently every time. Where's the balloon? Where's the mouse? Notice the color of the keys match the cAges. What's inside the cages. I mean there is just so much going on every page. We have the board book version, but after reading other reviews I'm curious what the hardback version looks like.

I've been reading this book to him for over a year now and it's still one of our bedtime musts. Be creative and get this book for your little. I wish I had it when my older two were little.

This has been a favorite bedtime story since my oldest was 9 months old. Because there are very few words, we make up the story together. Sometimes my kids want the familiar standard script, sometimes they want it silly, sometimes I need it short or long. The pictures allow us to make it what we need--always fun and sweet.

But beware, if you do not like coming up with your own stories, this book might not be for you. Without some imaginative work, it seems to be a series of silly pictures. For someone who wants to entertain and bond with kids, this is a fantastic prop. If you need a book to catch your child's attention so you can finish the dishes (and don't we all sometimes), then keep looking.

My daughter is 17 months, and she already loves this book, hence the five stars. But, I just am not sure that she totally understands what is going on in the story. Concepts like animals in cages, keys unlocking doors, and the animals sneaking into the zookeeper's house (depicted with great charm and humor) might be lost on her. But maybe I am doubting where I shouldn't, because she still loves it. But there is a page that illustrates the zookeeper's wife's shock when she hears all the animals who snuck in her house wish her goodnight. She had just turned out the light, when the next page is black and filled with "goodnight" dialogue bubbles--this is great because you can make all kinds of funny voices saying "goodnight." Then the next page is also black with just two wide eyes in the middle to illustrate the zookeeper's wife's shock. It's obvious to me that she is sitting up in bed with shock. It's funny and super cute, but I am not sure if my little girl gets the convention.

Like I said, I totally give this book five stars, and I am sure that we will read it again and again. My daugher sees the cover and grabs the book and says "book, book, sit, sit." She is way into it. Totally recommend....maybe better for slightly older child though.......

The creators of children's picture books that seek to enchant the viewer always run the risk of sometimes becoming TOO sweet. A book that's dripping with sweetie-pie sentiments is always in danger of disgusting the discerning (and purchasing) parent. "Good Night, Gorilla", on the other hand, balances deftly between sweet and smart, becoming both at once. In a simple story, a night watchman at a zoo bids goodnight to each of his animals as a sneaky gorilla unlocks them one by one. The unwitting watchman goes home (animals in tow) and it's up to his wife to put them all to bed again. If I was a better writer I'd be able to tell you just how cute this book is. It's SO cute! But not stupid in the least. Rathmann has filled this story with clever little subplots that kids will enjoy following. A small mouse with a banana lugs the heavy object from picture to picture. Rathmann even goes so far as to wrap a picture on the back of the book's cover around and into the inner fold where the tiny mouse stands by, patiently. The book also emotes deadpan beautifully. In one scene the watchman's wife says goodnight to her husband and the page goes black. Next we hear each animal in the room (that crept in unbeknownst to her) saying goodnight back. The two page spread that follows is just a single pair of wide open eyes in the black dark room. The deadpan wit will not be lost on either kids or their adult parents. If you'd like a book that you can read fifty times over without getting nauseated or bored, find yerself a copy of "Good Night, Gorilla", and count yourself lucky for having discovered it.

You should buy this book - it will be a treat for you as well as for your little one :) It's really cute and funny and so beautifully illustrated. The colors leap off the page and though my little one still has no idea what I'm saying, he loves looking at the pictures. Even though the story is super simple (i.e. few words), the cheeky gorilla is awesome :)

A weary zookeeper says "Goodnight, Gorilla," on one of his nightly rounds at the zoo. But the mischievous Gorilla reaches out from the cage and quietly nabs guard's keys, tiptoes the guard as he says goodnight to all the animals and opens up their cages. Not suspicious of anything, exhausted zookeeper slowly walks to his cottage followed by a parade of animals: the gorilla, an elephant, a lion, a hyena, a giraffe, an armadillo, and a little mouse.

All the animals sneak into the bedroom and nestle around unnoticed, until the gorilla gives them out by snuggling right next to the guard's sleepy wife as she turns out the light. In the dark of the night, the whole team gets discovered - no words needed here - just an ink-black spread with surprised Mrs. Zookeeper's eyes.

With few words but lots of humor and vivid, bright artwork, this fun and imaginative story will surely be a hit among the observant preschoolers.

Julia Shpak
Author of "Power of Plentiful Wisdom". Available on the store.
For more reviews on children's books visit my blog at: ForwardQuoteDOTcom

We bought this for our little girl before her birth and by time of 6 months we started this picture book.Vibrant colors and picture depiction of each character in the zoo really catch little one's eye. Now she is going to be year old and she know when we ask her where is her Gorilla Book.She can show animals by pointing fingers and she likes flipping pages and goes on story by her own by babbling like she is ready to read.

Perfect book to start for book for babies.Baby usually catch colors,character when we teach them stories and this book really more than worth what we paid for.

This is a great book! Very cute story about animals that want to sleep in the bed with the zookeeper and his wife. A lot of reviewers complained there wasn't enough text and not enough story. I hate to be so condescending, but have some imagination! You don't need text to narrate what is going on. In fact, reading it can be much more interesting because you can alter what you say every time you read it! Older kids who can't read yet can have fun telling you the story too, just by describing the pictures. Currently, my 10 month old loves flipping through this book, and he likes to feel the eyes on the page that is almost all black.

We received this book from the Dolly Parton Imagination Library Program and my daughter absolutely loves it. So much so we bought a copy to give as a gift for a baby cousin of ours. There's not a ton of words in this book but there's a TON of opportunities to talk about what is going on in the story-which I love! My daughter loves when we name off the animals as they walk into the zookeeper's house and back to the zoo with the zookeepers wife. <3

My son loved this book. We started reading it to him when he was about 14 months old and he would always point out the animals and would love flipping to the next page and then start all over again. I'm sure it helped that we were a little animated on how we read it. But this book helped him learn the phrase "good night" by the time he was 16 months. We still read it to him now at 19 months and he still loves it. Highly highly recommend!

In the book, Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathman is a story about a zookeeper at the zoo locking up at the beginning of the night. He first says goodnight to a Gorilla who has a trick up his sleeve and then the zookeeper says goodnight to the other animals then locks up the zoo and goes home for the night. He climbs into bed and thinks says goodnight to his wife. His wife then finds out that something happened at the zoo that she takes care of.

Read More at:
http://authorscreateireview.blogspot.com/2015/08/good-night-gorilla-by-peggy-rathman.html

My 2 year old's favorite book! There are not many words in the book so I whisper to my 2 year old what is going on in each page as I point to the pictures. When we get to the part where the zookeeper's wife open's her eyes after realizing they are not alone in the room, my 2 year old whispers "What was that?" Then when the lights are turned on and the zookeeper's wife discovers the gorilla sleeping next to her, he excitedly yells "GORILLA!" I had my husband read the book with him and he thought it was hilarious how our 2 year old responded to that part! It totally caught him by surprise. We have to read the book over and over again.

This book is one of Dolly's Imagination Library books and my son got it when he was about 15 months old. He's now 20 months and loves this book still. There are very few words, but the story is full from the pictures. My son loves practicing what Gorilla does with saying "Shhhh," yawning by patting his open mouth, and giggling "heee heee heee" when Mrs. Zookeeper (as we call her) discovers him in her bed. His favorite part is identifying all the animals, the balloon, moon, keys, flashlight, Mr. Zookeeper and all the other details. He recognizes the animals in the book when shown real pictures (even the armadillo). He loves following the balloon as it makes its trip to the moon. Just a lovely story.

My two year old (26 mos) adopted from China just LOVES this book. As his grasp of English and French are too minimal to listen to long stories with a lot of words (he just wants to turn the pages faster than I can read), this minimal text storybook is just the thing for him. As an other reviewer noted, you can go through it quickly, or more slowly pointing things out etc. He is very observant and loves finding the mouse and banana, toys, slippers, the keys etc. As I have mimed and pointed out things, he now "reads" it to me, pointing out details, mimicking facial expressions, showing appropriate surprise (the zookeeper's wife), copying the gorilla's sheepish "discovered!" grin, miming the gorilla and mouse climbing under the covers at the end (with his hand under his shirt). He will bring this to me daily and have me "read" it three times in a row. Before this he wouldn't sit through more than a four-spread book without wanting to flip ahead. I highly recommend this for kids "new" to books, not just the suggested 3-6 yr old age .

This is one of the best childrens book ever! Some reviews complain about few words but, come on, this book is about creative thinking, humor, and looking over and over at the hidden details in the pictures.

My three children all have loved this book over the years and recently pulled it out again to discover more little details - and they are ten, seven and five years old and still consider these thier favorites. You MUST get "10 minutes till bedtime" by the same author! My kids aboslutely love the little details in that one. We find new things to dicover almost everytime. The books actually pair together as there are details from both books in "10 minutes till bedtime" - if you look closely.

If you use your imagination, laugh along with your children by pointing out silly and interesting details (like where did the balloon go) in the pictures and making them fun for your child - you should find this book (and 10 min til bedtime) some of your favorites.

My son (almost 3) loves this book. I have been reading it for at least a year. I almost never tell the story the same way twice and that is what I love about the book - the author allows the parent to tell a story and doesn't force a rote recitation of scripted lines. I make up dialog and motivations for the characters, sometimes we focus on the colors of bars and keys, sometimes we compare sizes of the animal versus the mini-stuffed animal version in each cage, sometimes we go and knock on every neighbor's door and have surprise reactions to the sight of all the animals walking across the lawn. This book can be read a million different ways and I honestly have a lot of fun with this book and my son still asks for a new reading of "Gorilla" every night.

Well...I guess you can debate over whether you want to read a book to your little ones where the main character essentially sneaks out of bed and plays mischieviously about, but please take your chances with this delightfully funny and charming books.

The Night watchman at the zoo has just told the gorilla goodnight and turns his back only to have the gorilla pick the keys to his cage from his pocket. Sneaking around, the Gorilla uses the keys to open up the cages of other animals. They form a parade behind the unwitting watchman, even following him home and into bed for the night until the watchman's wife notices and leads the animals back to their rightful beds for the night.

Kids will laugh as the gorilla and other animals sneak around right behind the watchman's back. Peggy Rathman's funny, cartoon-like illustrations are the perfect complement to her text. This one has quickly become a new favorite in our household with my two year old.

A cute picture book with limited words featuring a variety of animals and a tired zookeeper named Joe. This is the board-book version, and perfect for a bedtime story for little ones before or after a trip to the zoo (or both!). The look on the zookeeper's wife's face is priceless, and the story leaves alot to be imagined and told, retold, and shared, even by the youngest talkers. You can't tell it wrong!

Read full review here:
https://ermareads.wordpress.com/childrens-choices/good-night-gorilla/

This book is a keeper for all ages. Young children (and I mean really young, you'd be amazed at who will pay attention to these illustrations) can point out details and ideas with very few prompts. You can simplify your language when telling this story to a 15 month old, and then expand your vocabulary and sentence levels for older children. Even kindergarteners love this book. They can re-tell the story without being able to read. They can answer questions about characters, motivations, predictions. Please do not let the fact that there are not a lot of "written words" turn you off from this story. Every good storytime reader knows that descriptions, questions, and "what's happening here?" are most beneficial to young children.

Please give it a chance. Your child will love it!

(from an early childhood speech pathologist)

If you look at the title "Good Night, Gorilla" and immediately think of the classic "Good Night, Moon," you are not alone. But whereas the latter is about a little rabbit who is putting off going to sleep by saying "Good Night" to everything in the room, this little treat written and illustrated by Peggy Rathmann is about a zookeeper who WANTS to go to sleep and is saying "Good Night" to all of the animals in the zoo. What the weary zookeeper does not know, is that the gorilla has grabbed his keys and there is a growing menagerie following him home to his wife.
"Good Night, Gorilla," is simply a charming little tale, where the drawings communicate much more than the dialogue. I want to think of the art as being a cross between watercolors and pastels, but then what do I know about art? What I love best is to find the mouse with the banana on the string in each picture, and I bet your children will love that too when they discover it on their own.

In viewing “Good Night Gorilla,” by Peggy Rathman through the lens of Jungian psychology, a clear metaphor for the integration of the myriad parts of self, emerges. This simple children’s book is actually a complex psychological allegory.

On its surface, the book has a slapstick tone, set by the hapless zookeeper, Joe, and the mischievous gorilla, actually conceals a more sophisticated adult narrative about the adult journey to integrate the parts of self.

The book begins with Joe making his nighttime rounds, guided by flashlight, to see that the animal denizens of the zoo have been safely put in their enclosures. He is unaware that the gorilla has quietly lifted his ring of keys from his belt. The keys, each a hue of the rainbow, allude to the complexity and diversity of the self to be explored in the pages ahead.

In order for the gorilla to free the other animals, he first must free himself, which he does deftly, and begins to walk behind the zookeeper, who remains unaware of his presence. As the zookeeper’s flashlight shines in front of him, it is clear that the gorilla has become the archetypal negative shadow, standing orthogonally to the light, unconscious to the persona represented by Joe the Zookeeper.

It is worth noting that the gorilla has a bicycle inside his cage, but despite the juvenile appearance of the gorilla, the bicycle is devoid of training wheels, a subtle symbol that the shadow may only make its appearance into consciousness in adulthood. The content of the shadow, aspects of the self that have been pushed out of conscious awareness, but remain evident to those who know the person well. As Robert Bly once quipped on the subject, “you don’t see your shadow, but your friends do!”

As the gorilla lowers himself out of the cage, his sidekick, the mouse, lowers a curious banana on a string from the elevated cage, towards the ground. What should we make of this banana? Is it an obvious phallic symbol in the Freudian tradition? Or might this banana serve to remind us of the sweet fruit that awaits us as a reward for our own shadow work? A signpost in the distance reminds the viewer of the myriad ways that shadow expression can take. Perversion? Repression? Integration? The course is up to the traveller.

In the third page, the gorilla, now holding the ring of keys, has clearly taken the role of the shadow to the self-object that is Joe the zookeeper. Like most of us, his reality is that which is illuminated in the narrow beam of his flashlight, neglecting the other 80% of reality that is not brought into the narrow cone of light. The quizzical look on the face of the gorilla raises questions – what are his intentions? Is he there to cause harm to the zookeeper? It is clear that he is well aware of the actions of the zookeeper and it is his intention to remain unseen. Is he a villain, or a trickster? Perhaps he represents the archetype of the fool, who when seen in the idiom of the tarot, notes Sallie Nichols, in Jung and Tarot, to be “a wanderer, energetic, ubiquitous, and immortal…free to travel at will, often upsetting the established order with his pranks.”

The first animal we encounter is the elephant, an archetypal symbol of wisdom. As we will see in many of the cages, each animal has within the cage a smaller, toy version of itself. What are we to make of this?

If we are to assume that each animal unleashed from its cage is an important part of the developed, adult self, it is also reasonable to assume that each of these parts was once nascent and small, and only developed into its mature self over the course of time. These diminutive versions of each animal serve to remind the reader of the ancestral origins of each part of the self.

The next animal to be released, the zookeeper remaining unaware, is the lion, the archetype of nobility and power. The lion does not have a diminutive version of itself in the cage, instead it gnaws on a bone, suggesting that power and nobility is not something which grows, but rather, is taken from ones predecessors, sometimes with great brutality. The lion looks hungrily at Joe, the zookeeper, suggesting the tendency that comes with power to want to destroy any and all structures (such as the self), which try to contain its reaches.

Quickly, more animals are released, next the stately but quiet giraffe, her long neck and tall perch suggest the capacity for quiet surveillance and observation over the vast plain, searching for both verdant leaves while remaining ever presently aware of the threat of predation. Following the giraffe, the hyena is released. The emergence of the hyena as an aspect of self is a curious choice on the part of the author, for it evokes not only savagery, but also humor, as apart from humans, the hyena is the only animal known largely for its ability to laugh.

The last animal to be released by the mischievous gorilla is the armadillo, the only animal without a cage, being contained only within a pen. Littered within the pen of the armadillo is the detritus of childhood, a baby bottle, a doll, a pacifier. Of course, the armadillo is known for its capacity to protect itself against predators by rolling up and exposing only its external armor plate to the outside world. What are we to make of these objects of childhood within the vulnerable pen of the armadillo? Might the author be suggesting that when our infantile vulnerabilities are threatened, that we roll inward to expose only our hardened selves to the world? Regardless, the shadow-gorilla releases the armadillo, too.

At the midpoint of the book, we approach the essential conflict as all the parts of the self parade, behind the shadow archetype, into the zookeeper’s house. The house, an archetype of the self, symbolizes a container in which all the parts will reside. But here, we are asked the critical question, “can the house successfully contain all the disparate parts of the self or will it rupture under the strain?”

As the animals file into the house, we watch them congregate into the bedroom, where we are first introduced to the wife, a clear anima counterpart to the animus part of the self, represented by Joe the zookeeper. In a clear reference to unconsciousness, all the parts of the self gather in the bedroom, continuing the somnambulism that is a recurring theme throughout the book. The animals rest uneasily, uncertain if their presence will be discovered by consciousness and exiled back into the unconscious. The reader shares this tension as we enter into the 18th and 19th pages of the book and the zookeeper’s wife reaches for the lamp. The animals now feel comfortable enough, settling for the night in the bedroom of the self (a clear metaphor for nascent awareness) to rest easily, the shadow-gorilla having already crossed the liminal edge into sleep. It is only with darkness, presumably representing the theatrical stage of dreams, that the divergent and cloaked parts of the self at last announce themselves. In a comic moment of confusion, the wide-eyes of the anima stare back at the reader in a moment of apprehension and fear regarding what lies in the darkness. In a classic dream-tableau, the illumination of the shadow staring back at the self serves as a kind of silent Hamlet soliloquy on the nature of existence and the meaning of life. One can almost hear the later echo of David Byrne asking “this is not my beautiful wife. This is not my beautiful house. How did I get here?”

Next, in a palindromic gesture that echoes the original parade from the zoo to the house of the self, we next see the zookeeper’s wife leading the myriad parts of the self back into the gates of the zoo, again the positive shadow represented by the beam of the flashlight leading the way through the darkness as the sequestered parts of self follow behind, led by the shadow-gorilla. But just as she leaves the animals behind in the zoo and returns back into the house of the self, we see the gorilla, tailing as close behind her as her shadow would be at 5 in the afternoon on a long-summer day, returning back to the house, the rainbow-key symbol of self-parts still in hand. This time, the gorilla surreptitiously enters the bed and positioning himself between the anima and animus before all parts fall into slumber.

What are we to make of the return of the shadow-gorilla back to the conjugal bed? Is this an intimation to the futility of repression or an encouragement to the reader to surrender to the shadow and invite the integration of even the most disparate parts of the self? The author does not say, but it is clear from the peaceful expressions of slumber on the faces of the anima, animus, and shadow that a kind of integration has been found. If this was not completely made clear by the faces of the characters, we note that the banana, which had been tucked into a corner of each previous scene, only visible to the most observant of readers, now lies eaten, the peel lying prominently in the center of the bed, a clear allusion to the sweetness to be enjoyed by one who attempts at integrating the disparate parts of self.

And what of the red balloon? We are introduced to this curious orb in the foreground of the first page, held by the mouse, and appears on each page, up until the end where it is no smaller than a dot floating away into the night sky. The balloon appears to be inexplicably drawn to the crescent moon that appears in almost every scene. What are we to make of this cryptic symbol? The moon, a clear reference to the sacred feminine, appears to have a magnetic draw for the balloon, which when viewed obscurely, may represent the sacred function of fecundity, of reproduction, by mirroring the shape of the male testicle or possibly the pregnant womb. Do these pedestrian symbols represent the tension between sacred feminine and masculine? What are we to make of the balloon drifting ever higher into the night sky, seeking its divine union? Might this represent the hero’s journey of seeking unity, even if it is never to be found in its complete form?

Truly, the search for union and the tolerance of its imperfections is the meta-theme of the entire work that is “Goodnight Gorilla,” with its reminders of the constant tension between suppression and integration, self and other, darkness and light, masculine and feminine, and shadow and awareness, the reader is left to ponder the complexities of the adult psyche represented metaphorically in a “simple” children’s book.

Parents, your preschooler will delight in discovering details in this charming book. Others have noted the ever-present mouse with the banana on a string. The mouse got the string by gnawing free a balloon, which subsequently appears in every scene (that isn't inside). No one else, however, seems to have noticed the figures in the window in the house next to the zookeeper's. In one panel there is one person, the next has two, and then there are three. Why are these people awake?! By the clock in the zookeeper's bedroom it's ten-thirty at night! This is one book my two year old wants to hear again and again, pointing out where that mouse is, where that balloon is, counting the people in the window. Don't forget to point out that, by the time the gorilla goes to sleep, he has eaten that banana.

My two sons (ages 5 and 4) have enjoyed this book for the last two years. While there isn't much text, the illustrations are so playful that we can't help but read the book as a three-person bedtime performance.

I can't speak for what little girls find funny but little boys find nothing more humorous than a gorilla climbing into bed.

There comes a point in the story when the zookeeper's wife turns off the light and tells her husband, "good night." The next page is pitch black filled with voice balloons from the zoo animals answering "good night." My sons love to read this part, using different animal voices.

In summary, this bedtime book is a sketch on stage. The more you and your kids add to the performance, the more fun you'll all have with the book.

My son loves this book! I think it must be because the illustrations are easy on his eyes. The drawings are very childlike and the colors(mostly primary)are perfect. This is the story of a zookeeper who is closing the zoo for the night, and while he says "goodnight" to each critter, the gorilla, who is first, steals his keys and lets all the animals out. They all follow him home, and he never even notices! His pop eyed wife has to take care of them herself. It's the most adorable little book! There isn't much to read. It's more of a feast for the child's eyes right before he sets off to night nights.
The copy I have is a small board book, and it's small enough for my son's little hands to hold and admire all by himself.
I highly recommend buying this for the child at age 21 month and over.

Our son loves this book! There are so many ways you can read through the book to get a lot of mileage out of it. Early on we just focused on what the animal names were but as our son progressed we got in to things like finding the balloon and moon on each page or what sounds the animals make or the pictures of the zoo keeper and his wife on the wall. Sometimes we find ourselves reading this one multiple times a night. I picked up the full sized board version of the book. It is nice and big and fun to have your kid turn the pages while he sits in your lap. I've seen the smaller version and would recommend that, unless you need one for easy travel, buy the full sized version.

It took me a while to warm up to this nearly-wordless book, but now my daughter and I both love it.

If you like to talk with your little one while reading, then "Good Night Gorilla" is fantastic. The only words are "good night" and the animal names. The illustrations are the best part of the book, and they are full of details. On each page there's a little mouse carrying a banana and balloon that's floating away in the sky. It's fun to hunt for those things and to talk about the funny animals in the pictures.

If you're looking for a unique book to engage your toddler, I'd recommend this one.

This was given to us as a gift for my son's first birthday and we all love It! There is room to narrate on your own as there isn't many words, the pictures tell the story. It's a cute story, I will buy this for a gift sometime for someone else.

we starting reading this to our 11 month old and he took to it almost immediately. so much so, that from the second time we read it to him, he leaned in and kissed the zoo keepers wife - this is something he continues to do each time we read it and he is almost two. he points to all the animals and listens attentively helping turn the pages. it hasn't seemed to phase him that he's heard it every single night for a year and its one of the first books he points too when its bed time. this most definitely is a book for all ages and the sweet little story and lovely illustrations i'm sure will keep our little one entertained for years to come. its now a family favourite.

My students love this book and it is useful for so many goals, I actually purchased a second copy when I couldn't find the first this fall. Now I have two copies and my student get really, really excited when they notice there are two gorilla books.

The version I have is a lap edition, board book, which is extremely sturdy and large enough to read to multiple students.

This is a book with humorous elements, repetitive themes, and so many ways to creatively explore. One thing small children enjoy so much is voices. When all the animals chime in with their "good night", each one can have its own voice.

I, too, add this to a baby shower or new baby gift. It is so versatile that it is a book that can be read to a small baby through kindergarten.

My 15 month old daughter is very active, so it is kind of hard to keep her sitting while you read her anything longer than a sentence. She enjoys books where she can quickly grasp a story, physically turn the page, and something with lots of animals (but not too many on each page, it shouldn't be cluttered). She loves this book! Each page has 1 or no sentence; lots of action on every page (she especially loves the one where the lights are off); its funny, even for her!; and easy to understand. Very cute animals, not too much going on on every page, but very colorful. We just love it! This is by far our favorite book in the house.

We have the board book version at our house. It is a simple book with few words- Gives you a great chance to tell the story yourself and lets toddlers learn to make up a story by looking at the pictures. When the zoo keeper gets in bed and the gorilla climbs in with my 2 year old daughter and I are barely able to contain our laughter! I wasn't sure about this book the first time I read it but my daughter would continue to choose it time and time again. She was very quickly able to tell the story and has had much fun getting more elaborate as she gets older and her vocabulary grows. We buy this for all of our friends having babies and hope they have as much fun as we have with it!

I teach toddlers, and have yet to meet one who doesn't absolutely love this book. Year after year, it becomes a classroom favorite and a teacher's best friend. Having nine 2-year-olds I'm the same room can be chaotic, and when we get in a real frenzy, I pop out this book and everyone races to the rug to sit and laugh and follow the silly monkey around and out of the zoo. It's always finished with a chorus of "Again! Again!" from the children. The only issue I have is that I go through so many copies, because it's so well loved!

My children are all teenagers now, but I am ordering this for a friend's soon to be born child, because it was a family favorite! I see some negative reviews here, stating there "isn't much of a story". We found the fun of the book was acting out the reactions of the zookeeper - how surprising that the gorilla keeps causing trouble! Don't stick to the written word people - have fun with this one! I have so many fond memories of gut-busting laughter from my children over this book...those were the days...

When I first received this book for my baby boy, I was actually a little disappointed in how few words there were. Well, my baby is now 13 months and this book is now one of his favorite books -- and mine. I have realized just how fun it is telling my son the story in my own words. The story is always a little different, depending on the day. This book makes us both laugh when I read it to him, which is almost daily. The pictures are terrific, with great detail. My little boy now sits in his crib, turning the pages of this book, and says "goodnight" in his own little way. This is a wondeful book.

This is more of a picture book than it is a storybook. But the illustrations and the very simple "Good night (whatever animal he's talking to)" per page. A zookeeper goes through the zoo locking up the animals and saying good night to them..only to find out behind him the gorilla is unlocking everyone and they all follow him him and into his bedroom! My 2 year old granddaughter giggled at the pictures so it's a cute bedtime picture book

I love to look at this book with my kids. We like identifying the animals before and after they are busted out of jail by the mischievous little gorilla. I love the scene where the only thing drawn on a pitch black background is the zookeeper's wife's eyes. Too cute!

It's not really a reading book, per say, though. It's fun to look at, but there are many pages with no words at all. I still absolutely love the storyline and the artwork is lush. i just thought you might want to know.

We also like how the gorilla manages to escape again even after being returned to the zoo.

A very fun book, very clever, well-illustrated, and worth looking at again and again.

Wow, I can't believe all the negative reviews complaining about how few words they are and that they must make up the story as they go. Gee, I'm so sorry you must think creatively with your child. Books for babies and toddlers are absolutely 100% NOT about reading skills or letter recognition--they're about instilling a love of storytelling or of learning about the world around them. My 14 month old loves this book, I think probably precisely because I don't tell the story exactly the same every time, and that makes it exciting for her. As she gets older I'll be able point out details in the illustrations and make the story more elaborate to match her interest and development.

I thoroughly enjoy reading Good Night Gorilla with my almost four year old grandson, and he delights in it. Reading perhaps, though, isn't the right word. Indeed, there are few words in the book: good night and the names of several animals and a few words on signs. The charm and the story are in the drawings, and they are wonderful; the detail is enchanting, and they invite discussion and story telling by the "reader." Our favorite character is the animal who's never named in the book: the mouse; look for him on most every page.

In this beautifully-illustrated bedtime book, the gorilla steals the key from the zookeeper, letting out all the animals, who follow the zookeeper home to bed.

The story is cute, but what I really loved about this book was the great illustrations. The colors pop out at you from the page and capture your attention. Also, there are some fun things to look for in the pictures, for example there is a balloon in almost every single picture - can you find it?

This book is one of my new bedtime favorites! This is one of my son's bedtime favorites, along with Goodnight Moon and The Going-To-Bed Book.

This is a great book for children who can't read yet, but want to. An amusing story line, even without many words. This is one of my son's go-to books, and he gets a different version of the story every night. There is plenty of stuff going on in the pictures to discuss and add to the story each time.

The only down side is that some nights I'm so tired I just want to read the night time books on auto-pilot because I'm wiped out. This isn't a book that you can read while thinking about the grocery list. But you probably shouldn't be doing that anyway...

This is a quick read young children's book. We have read other "Good Night..." books before and they are all very similar. My 5 year old was too old for this book but at the time my 2 year old liked it.

My daughter loves this book and I love reading it. A story of a kind zookeeper family and the animals they look after, perhaps its the animals which look after the zookeepers. The illustrations are the book, for they tell the story with minimal dialogue. The richness in detail of the illustrations is especially enjoyable. My daughter has not picked up the detail yet, but I appreciate them as I read. Examples; follow the balloon...how many children are watching in the window...color of the keys and cages...and what kind of dolls do the animals play with? As your child grows older, Goodnight Gorilla will entertain them with new pleasures.

It's nice if you know how to use your imagination i guess. I dont think i woukd recommend it for infants or younger toddlers that don't fully understand whats going on yet by looking at pictures. This book barely has any words but it is cute.

The story's in the pictures: a mischievious gorilla borrows the zoo keeper's keys and as the zookeeper is completing his rounds, the gorilla lets the animals out. The gorilla, with all of the animals following him, ends up in the zookeeper's bedroom.
The pictures are terrific, with a lot going on in the background. There's a little mouse toting the gorilla's banana, each animal's cage has a toy, and, of course, the zookeeper's wife's surprise and familiarity with the animals following him home.
My daughter's definitely picked up some rather complex animal names (e.g., giraffe, armadillo) and picked up on the gorilla's shenanigans pretty quickly.
Very fun book.

This book was a gift and my son LOVES it. There's very little text and a lot of repetition, which is GREAT for little ones learning to read. Also, the wonderful illustrations tell the story in a really fun way.

One of my favorite read aloud books of all times. It makes everybody laugh. The gorilla is so sneaky and funny. I love the illustrations and I love how the guard never does catch on to the antics of the animals. This is a great book for little and big people, too.

Forget the suggested age listing of this delightful book; it it suitable for infants through young elementary-school students (who will want to tell the wordless story to you). The drawings are engaging, the story simple and sweet, and the details (like the balloon, lost early in the story, that appears smaller and smaller in every picture) magnificent. This was my twins' favorite book for months, and every time I give it as a baby gift, I get a delighted call back from the parents within days of first reading. Don't miss this one! --And don't bother with the paperback, unless you plan to purchase more than one copy per child. This one is a keeper.

My 2.5 year old loves this book and has for over a year now. It leaves so much room for creativity, but the details are incredible. I love watching the balloon float away in the pictures, and looking at the pictures on the zookeeper's wall. Beautifully done.

The wonderful illustrations and humorous story are why this is one of our favorites. Minimal text and captivating illustrations make this a great book to introduce story time to very young listeners . The illustrations also make this a very interactive book for more mature children because there is a lot going on on each page. We enjoy talking about the different animals and their part in the story. The climax of the "plot", when the animals plan to spend the night in the zookeeper's bedroom is unmasked, is funny and will get a laugh out of your audience. I think this will become a classic along the lines of "Goodnight Moon".

My 18-month-old loves to look at this this book over and over again. ("Gwa!") But I don't mind at all... "Good Night, Gorilla" is one of my favorites.

The pictures tell the story in this book; there are only a handful of words. I love the stunningly vivid and detailed illustrations. There are little surprises everywhere you look -- a stuffed Babar doll in the elephant's cage; a family picture of the zookeeper's wife holding the baby gorilla. When I read it to my son, I tell him something different every time. He loves to point out the things he knows the words for: "Keys!" "Moon!" "Abido!" (otherwise known as an "armadillo").

Even though I know what's coming, I can't help but smile every time at the animals quietly following the keeper through the zoo, tiptoeing through his living room, curling up in his bedroom, and then finally following the zookeeper's wife back to the zoo. (You get the feeling it isn't the first time she's had to do this.)

This is a beautiful and peaceful bedtime story. I hope you like it as much as we do!

What an awesome, simple story for young children. My sons love the black page with just the zookeeper's wife's eyes. If I start this book with one son, the other comes running over as soon as I say, "Goodnight, Gorilla". They can't get enough of it. This one never gets rotated out of our book bin.

They have learned so much vocabulary from this story even though it is far from being word intensive. They point out the keys, moon, balloon, banana, zookeeper's shirt and the flashlight on all of the pages. Just today, one of my sons pointed out his own shirt after I labeled the zoopkeeper's.

Use this book with older siblings too! I am a teacher too and would use this for children who have trouble writing. So many times students won't write because they don't have a story in mind. Show them the book. The story structure is there, just have the students add the text. I have done it with other books and the technique works wonders.

Hooray, Peggy Rathmann! Keep the good books coming.

I bought this book for my daughter, who was under the age of 1 at the time. The reviews here drove me to buy Goodnight Gorilla and to be honest; I was not impressed at first. My daughter however, had a differing opinion; "Little D" fell in love with it from day one. I believe there is something magical within the pages of this book and KIDS JUST LOVE IT.
WARNING...There are not many words, but that is when a child/parent can use their imagination. I have learned to add gestures, words, and involve my daughter in the actions that is within the books pages. My daughter has now learned to do the actions without my prompting and can say "Goodnight Gorilla"; so there is an opportunity within the pages to teach/learn.
Among the countless books we have, this book is a must read every night in my 16 month old daughter's eyes. I cannot explain why there is such a strong draw to this book; the only explanation is that IT IS MAGIC! So for the sake of YOUR child, bring the magic into YOUR home.

I introduced this book to our twins at around the age of 15 months, after seeing how much they enjoyed looking at gorillas in the zoo. I just wanted something with pictures of gorillas to reinforce the word and hopefully keep their interest.

The book far surpassed my expectations, and is now one of the twins' most requested books. The almost-all-pictures format is great for their age level. The story was also simple enough for them to understand (to some degree) from the very first reading, but the pictures are also detailed enough that they like to look at them again and again, spotting more details each time. My daughter loves to find the gorilla and the keys, while my son is currently obsessed with pointing out the little mouse and banana that are creeping through every page. And both of them laugh like crazy when I act out the surprise of the zookeeper's wife when she finds the animals in her bedroom.

This book actually made my daughter laugh when she was about 7 months old and 7 months later it's still a hit. I can tell her the story even when we don't have the book handy and the spot where the zookeeper's wife discovers the animals always gets a laugh. Sometimes when I have a figity baby on the changing table, I'll tell the story turning off the bathroom light when the wife is turning off the light and saying all the animal "goodnights" in the dark, and my daughter thinks it's hilarious. Even great books can get annoying for the parent on the 100th telling, but because there isn't much text, I can vary the story to keep it fresh. This book is a favorite for both of us.

First of all, I was puzzled to see that this was published in the mid-90's. I would have sworn it was read to me in my childhood during the 70's. It has that timeless quality (which is nice).

My 18 month old son LOVES LOVES LOVES this book (calls it 'Goooood night coco'). It's a hassle for us to read, because there is very little dialog/narration... the parent must make up the story as you go. When asked to read it five times in a row, it gets shorter and simpler each time.

My 14m baby girl loves this book, when I said "good night", she get up and bring this book to me. Nice picture, less words. But the animal is not so obvious to recognize. She like the "my big animal book", can point out elephant, panda, fish, etc. but I don't think she can recognize the elephant in this book.

This book was read at a mixed-age party and I'm sure that the adults laughed as much as the children! It has quickly become a classic, featuring the cleverly pictured sneaky antics of a renegade gorilla.
Our young hero steals the keys from a zookeeper and frees all the animals, who follow the keeper home at night. Hilarious "lights out" confusion ensues with a comical surprise ending!
34 pages, with only ten different words, the expressive, colorful pictures say it all. This playful book is appropriate for infants, toddlers, and the beginning reader as well. A delightful romp, and a surefire hit! One of those few treasured books that you'll keep for years to come.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book! Get it in the larger format so you can try to find the balloon and banana on almost every page...and be sure to look at the pictures on the wall and table in the zookeepers house! I never get tired of reading this book to toddlers to kindergartners....and they notice things Ive never seen .

Most of the books that my baby daughter has loved have been written before I was born, and I am an old dad. But this book, which we received as a gift, was written after 1990, and it is a favorite in the house. If you find yourself reading it more than once, or more than ten times (as you will) you will see little funny details that you miss on early readings. (Check out the balloon's life throughout the book. You don't remember a balloon? See what I mean?)

The pacing is WONDERFUL and the story is genuinely funny. And there is a real love of children that permeates every page.

(I must boast - she's 11 months old and she waves at each animal after the zoo-keeper says "Good night" to it.)

There's so very much for young children to see, learn and imagine in this wonderful book, Good Night Gorilla. The illustrations are as wonderful as the text, suggesting the feelings of the characters as the silly and exciting story progresses.

Every child will be tickled by the idea of all the zoo animals following the zoo keeper back to his little house, much to the surprise of his wife. All the animals in this book are sweetly detailed, and will keep your child coming back to Good Night Gorilla over and over again.

Our daughter (18-months) LOVES this book. It doesn't have many words and the artwork is great. Very colorful. The recognizes most of the animals and makes a sound for each. There are also other toddler favorites pictured at the zoo. I think what I like most about this book is that even thought right now she doesn't understand the story-line she can enjoy the book. I read it to my nephew (4) and he loved the story, so this book isn't one we will be getting rid of and replacing.
-kiki

The zoo keeper makes a round before closing the zoo and says "Good night" to all the animals not knowing the gorilla snatched his key and follows behind and releases all the animals.
This is a great bed-time book and as the child says good night to the animal with you, I think it mentally prepares them for bed. The simple illustration is pleasurable to look at and the reciting of the animal names also makes it a good educational tool.
It is one of our definite favorites to read before turning out the light.

Far beyond my expectations!!! This is a beautiful book! The colors are bright and cheerful. The story is hilarious, yet easy to understand for a small child. I bought the board book edition for my 18 month grandson. I'm sure he will love it! I think the lack of text is a real plus! Only a few words are necessary. The rest is up to the child and the story teller. I highly recommend this book!

This book was given to us as a gift when my daughter was born and it was the first book she seemed to truly enjoy. The tale is silly and easy to follow, and once we noticed that the balloon and the moon could be found somewhere on every page, reading the book was an interactive adventure as my daughter tried to locate the items. As a former zookeeper, I really appreciated the "family photos" on the wall of the zookeeper's house - all animals! Little touches like that make the book a real gem to be treasured. My daughter is now three and she still loves this book.

My son loves this book. While it does not have many words, the illustrations are wonderful. After about 3 times of reading it we began really looking at the pictures and now the book is quite interactive. The Gorilla uses a colored key to match the color on the bars for each animal. My 19 month old is not only learning the animal names and their sounds, he is also learning their colors. He of course has favorite pages that we have to read over and over, but overall, this is the one we have in a small travel size book and the larger library sized board book.

My 20 month old daughter loves this book. Most nights I get "more" from her meaning "read it one more time". She loves this book and the surprise eyes at the end make her smile every time. I'd recommend buying this book and Ten Minutes Till Bedtime by the same author. If you buy that book, on one of the pages you can see the same illustration as in Goodnight Gorilla outside the window. My 4 year old loves to put the two books together so you can see both illustrations side by side.

Our grocery store always give a free balloon to small children if you ask. Maybe because of her familiarity with balloons, our granddaughter was the first to spot the balloon floating in every page of this book (she received the larger size). Once she identified the balloon, she really seemed to understand that the pictures in books were images of real things! We have since bought the smaller Goodnight Gorilla for the car and now we also have the delightful Goodnight Gorilla DVD (by Scholastic Books)

I received this book as a baby shower gift. I didn't open for almost 18 months. I had tried to read several stories to my son and he didn't seem interest. I picked up this book one day and that was it. My son is hooked on books. This is a great book that let's you be creative with the story. It engages your child. I get quite animated when reading it and so does he. If someone else reads this book to him, he will make the sounds that him and I make when we read it. I adore this sweet story.

This is by far my favorite and my 21 month old daughter's favorite. The illustrations are amazing in their detail. I've been reading it to my daughter since she was about 8 months old, and I'm still finding fun "treasures" in the pictures - such as the people appearing in the window of the neighbor's house, the photo on the bedside table. There are so many others, but I don't want to give it away as the fun is in discovering. There is so much to this book with few words - my daughter gets different things out of it at different stages of her development. As an infant she liked the rhythmic "Goodnight Gorilla...Goodnight...Elephant, etc." and the bright colors. As she started learning animals, she loved pointing out the zoo animals. Later she was enthralled by finding the banana on every page. Lately she has been interested inthe different items in each of their cages. She was so excited the evening she realized the doll in the armadillo's cage was "Baby Ernie!". You won't be disappointed.

We call this "The Key Book". It only has a few words, so I narrate the action in the picture and focus on the keys. My son loves keys, so he points to this book when he wants to read it and says "KEEEEEEYYYY!!!!!"

From the balloon that gradually floats off toward the moon to the clock in the zookeeper's bedroom that marks the time it takes to get the animals all back into bed, there is a lot of subtle humor and fun in this book. My 2-year old can't get to sleep without it. She has learned the word "inconspicuous" in connection with the way the elephant looks before he's discovered in the bedroom. This is a special book - right up there with _Good Night Moon_.

This book is magical as it touches the soul and brings one as a parent back to the time when we were young. Oh, wonderful, enchanting, endearing, lovely, amusing, and comical are only a few words that we can use to describe the delight we have felt reading this book to our young sons. God has blessed the author with the gift and craft of not only touching children but touching parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, and friends as well with pure, young, whimsical delight with this beautifully simple book!

Wordless picture books give children the opportunity to create their own story by what they see. My one-year old picked up on items in the story that I never saw. For example, he pointed out that on every page appears the balloon, the mouse and the banana. Perception is wonderful, and I only perceived the primary animals. His perception followed the mouse's escapades as well as the balloon's departure into the night sky.
That's the beauty of wordless picture books - perception.

My now 2-year old son asks for us to read this to him over and over each night - he just loves it. We both enjoy it too, but really can't tell you why it seems to have any almost mythic hold on so many young children. The text is very simple, but it small visual details that our son likes to point out, which must be part of it. This book is like Goodnight Moon - a wildly popular and sweet book that is sort of hard to explain the allure of.

After reading this book to my granddaughter, who was 23 months old at the time, she entertained a room full of people with her dramatic retelling of this story. The pictures are so vivid, and she could fully understand what was being read to her. A WONDERFUL book, and, as a former Reading Specialist and Elementary School Administrator, I can highly recommend this book for all preschool children.

Three kids after we first received this book, we now give it out as a standard "new parent" gift basket. With no words, this book is all about the wonderful pictures and the parent's ability to make up the story to go along with the images. It allows for a personal connection to the story. As the kids get older, they can also move past the main theme of the images and look for little consistencies like spotting the rising balloon or the stuffed toys in each animal's cage.

Goodnight, Gorilla is a delightful book, filled with fun, secrets and anticipation. We started reading it at age 2 and my now 6 year old son still enjoys it! We especially love the dark page with eyes....you will too! It is the perfect companion to '10 Minutes Till Bedtime', also by Peggy Rathmann, because this cast of characters appear in that book as next door neighbors! Together they make a perfect child/baby gift. Thanks Peggy Rathmann!

I have lost track of how many copies I have bought of this title! It is my MUST gift for baby showers. I recently ordered ninety copies for a project called BOOKS AND BIBS. Every child born at our local hospital will receive GOOD NIGHT, GORILLA and a bib that has "Read to Me" on it! I am a retired elementary librarian and I can guarantee a positive response to this book used as a read-aloud. My not-quite-two year old granddaughter came home one evening and went all through her house calling "Rilla! Rilla! Where are you?"

One of the nice things about being a parent is that you get to read good children's stories.
This book is my favorite, and that's after reading hundreds. My son likes it too but I'm the real fanatic about it.
It's full of a charming, subtle blend of mischief and warmth.
And it's funny, too. It always makes me smile.
It's the perfect book to be the last book of the evening right before you kiss your child and turn out the lights...

My son just loves this book -- it has been his favorite ever since he was about a year old. He is now about 2 1/2 and still wants me to read it to him. He loves to tell me what's going to happen next and says things like..."Oh, no...the gorilla took the keys!" or "Oh, no...the gorilla let the lion out!" I have recommended this book to many friends and have given as a gift. There isn't a lot of text, but the graphics are great -- like I said, my son just loves this book.

My 20-month-old and I look at this book at least four times a day. It is the best picture book ever. I am here looking for more like it but first I thought you'd love to have this book for your toddler or baby too.The pictures are so colorful and imaginative, each one is worth a hundred words. We have fun looking at all the animals and child's things that find thier way into the corner's of cages to say goodnight to. There are two side stories as well with the mouse and ballon. Such fun!

This is one of our favorite books at story time. Our son loves how the gorilla unlocks all the doors, and there are fun little details to follow and find on each page (where is the balloon now? Where is the banana on this page?) A couple of pages are blacked out with only eyes visible in the dark- our son loves those! Very cute illustrations, and a sweet, funny story. This is a picture book- not really any words to read- so you just talk through the book with your child, discovering different things each time you read it.

We are a Chilean family, so our native language is Spanish. This is a great book that our 2 year old girl can totally understand, while she learns new vocabulary (some animals she didn't know).
The size Is perfect for her little hands. And, of course, we all know how great this story is.
We love it!!

I was surprised by how easy it was to create my own story as I was reading it to my two year old back then. Today I read it to my almost one year old and to my surprise she laughed when the wife turned on the light to find out who was in the room with her. I never forgot my daughter's expression as she giggled out loud. This book is for all ages and it is sure to be a classic and a highly recommended book.

If you are using sign language with your child, this is a great book! It is more of a picture book, but there are great opportunities to sign gorilla (monkey, banana and key on every page, as well as some good concepts for kids like "light" and "sleep."
Even if you aren't signing, this book is fabulous. There are opportunities to identify animals and colors on every page, as well as finding the mouse and his banana.

I don't quite know what my daughter (age 2 years) saw in this book, but it was her favorite for about 2 months. She wanted it read several times a night, and even slept with it. Perhaps it's the fact that the illustrations tell the story -- the few words are superfluous. She loved it so much I bought her plush toys for each of the animals. Well, actually, not the armadillo or hyena ... come to think of it, the book would probably be slightly improved by leaving out the armadillo and hyena.

Every night, I'll read several stories to my 2-year-old, but he always insists that we end with a reading of "Goodnight Gorilla" - he loves the facial expressions on the gorilla, and thanks to this book, now knows what armadillos and hyenas are...even if he can't quite pronounce 'armadillo' yet.
It's a wonderful, silly book. If your child likes "Goodnight Moon," (s)he will probably get a kick out of this silly story.

This is one of my four year olds favorite books. It doesn't have many words but the pictures do a lot of the talking. Plus it lets my son create his own story. He likes to point the expressions of the animals and the mouse dragging the banana. We always laugh at their faces and add in our own sound effects. This is also a great bed time book because it is so short and sweet! We usually read this twice, first with me reading it then with him telling me the story as he turns the pages. I highly recommend this book for parents who love to share the gift of reading and imagination with their children. Don't go expecting a super life changing story here. It's just a simple story with funny illustrations that most any child would love.

My kids are in high school and I still think about the fun we had making up the stories to go with the pictures. They both found following the balloon entertaining. This is a classic that will be passed down for generations.

This book is so adorable and just plain fun. My son likes the sound affects you can make with it, his favorite page is when the wife realizes how many others are visiting in her room that evening with her reaction being as such that it has happened before! This also gives you the opportunity to use your imagination with your little one, as well as him or her telling you what they think the story is!

We have this book in the board book size. I read the reviews and wonder if we are missing something because the illustrations are not all that engaging. I have four kids and none has ever been particularly interested in this book even given my attempts to engage them with the story and the pictures. Each has had his/her own favorite book and it has never been this one. I should look at a bigger one, maybe that's the ticket.

This delightful little book won me over to the wordless book format. It is useful practice for us parents to explain rather than just recite, and our 15-month-old loves pointing at pictures and asking what they are (her favorite word by far is "that?"). It is one of her favorite books right now.

I bought this board book to read to my 1 year old grandson. There are few words, but lots of details in the drawings. You can embellish the story with your own words or just look and describe the pictures to the delight of your toddler. They won't just be learning animals, they will learn colors as well. This book is humorous and fun. I totally recommend it.

As I read reviews for this and other children's books, good and bad, I am struck by the number of comments in which a parent judges the story, the art, etc., rather than focusing on whether his or her child likes the book. My daughter adores the gorilla and his pals. She likes to color match each key with each cage, she likes to recite the animals names as they tromp back and forth across the park, she laughs everytime she sees the gorilla yawning in bed, and likes to find the mouse with the banana on every page. A must have.

I purchased this book for my 2-year-old son. I had studied the reviews carefully before purchasing, and was convinced this would be a nice addition to his library. When we got the book, I first read it by myself for evaluation & to practice my reading. And...I couldn't help but laugh out laud because it was SO FUNNY! You will love the concept & humor of the story. And how CUTE the illustration of all of the zoo animals!! I was very impressed and couldn't wait to read it to my boy at his bed time. His reaction - he got glued to it! Every time he saw a new animal coming out of the cage he gasped and then screamed! I don't know how much of the humor he can understand but he certainly adores every single page of the book. The only phrase used in this book is a simple "Good night, xxxx (animal name)", and the rest depends upon your story telling & how you want to enjoy the book. But I assure you and your child will love all of the characters in this book!

This book has been a popular gift to children from 17 months old and up. I gave it to a 2-year-old who was recently adopted from Eastern Europe, and she asks each visitor to her home read it to her. She didn't need to know a lot of English to enjoy the story. The illustrations even keep adults amused and lend to embellishing with your own words. Young children gleefully anticipate the zookeeper's wife's discovery of the animals in the bedroom. This book is a must for every child that you cherish in your life.

This sneaky gorilla steals the zookeepers keys. As the keeper says goodnight to all the animals, the gorilla is behind him (with his pet mouse who is dragging his banana for him) letting out all the animals so they can spend the night in the house of the keeper. Cute, colorful illustrations. Repetition of words and known animals allows this book to be an easy reader.

My 14-month old son runs to the bookshelf, grabs this book, and thrusts it in our direction to read to him over and over again - he just can't get enough of it! My husband and I have each read it to him dozens of times and happily we aren't bored of it either; the illustrations are excellent, and the story is creative and funny. I highly recommend this book.

If you want proof your toddler gets a joke, try this book. The pictures are funny and my little toddler laughs everytime we read this book.
The illustrations are charming. You can tell the gorilla is just the trouble maker of the bunch from page one because his facial expressions are so expressive.
Very Cute and well worth the money. One of my personal favorites.

This book is awesome. It has very little words, but my son LOVES it. He can read this over and over and over again. He just loves this book and I do too. Some pages I make stuff up...which is fun.

Given that I'm not a fan of gorillas/monkeys/chimps, I was not expecting to like this book at all when we got it as a baby gift--but I love it! I love the colors, I love the characters, and I love the silliness of the story! The little mouse is great; even the gorilla is cute! It's great to see so many kinds of animals sharing an adventure together.

Riveting.
A next door neighbor had a copy of this book and she said that it was her kids' favorite. Got a copy right here through the store. I've read it to my daughter several times. She loves the pictures especially the "blackout" page with just the eyes of the zookeeper's wife showing.
A great story for any collection of children's stories.

My son and I love this book. It's bedtime-themed, so perfect for reading before bed. And, there's not a lot of words, so you can tell the story however you want to. And now that my son is a little older, he likes to tell me what's happening in the pictures, it's so great. It fosters learning and creativity in a really fun way. Cute story too!

A friend had this book and I just loved it, so I ordered it for my 2 year old. There are few words, but the pictures tell a great story of zoo animals being freed and then following the zookeeper home. Cute illustrations with hidden pictures, will grow with the child from looking at the colorful pictures to learning the animals to counting the colored keys as the gorilla frees each animal. Very sweet!

I've tried reading this book to my 1 year old many times and I think the problem is the repetition and the lack of a story. I can easily make one up, but sometimes it's easier to have something to read on the page so that the child is engaged. The pictures aren't enough at his age. This book gets pushed away and loses his attention easily.

This is one of my favorite Peggy Rathmann picture books. Gorilla takes the zoo keeper's keys as she leaves to go home for the day. He lets out all the other animals and they all go to the keeper's house to sleep. Shows zoo animals as a family with the keeper as the dad.

My 19 month old reaches for this book EVERY NIGHT. She loves the part where the "zookeeper's wife" finds the gorilla in her bed! If your child loves the zoo like mine does, s/he will love this book and all of the animals in it. The simple text and funny pictures are sure to please.

This was the first book that my son really responded to. At 18 months he laughed out loud at the part where Mrs. Zookeeper realizes there is a gorilla in her bed! No words on that page, few words elsewhere, just a funny story with funny pictures. He is 3.5 now and he still gets a kick out of the simple story and hilarious pictures.

My son has been reading this since he was 8 mos old, he loves to look at the pictures (there are minimal words) while I describe what is going on. At about 11 mos, when he got to the page where the zookeeper's wife finds Gorilla in bed, he laughed out loud! It's so cute to see him "get it."

As he gets older, there are many smaller details in the pictures that will catch his attention, so it's a nice book that will grow with him.

This book proves the adage that a picture is worth a thousand words! By looking at all the details on each page, the story unfolds. (We particularly loved to follow where the balloon went off to!) A cute little story with a sense of humor!

My dds are both almost teenagers, but this is still a fondly remembered book!

This story is great now for my 10 month old. He loves the pictures (there's very little text). I haven't made anything up sing songy to go with it, but I could. When he can talk, it'll be even more awesome because he can come up with his own narration and have a new story every time.

This book has very few words but the pictures are what make it so wonderful. My kids love to look through the book as each page has many funny things happening.

A book we read over and over again. But one they look through many times more.

*taken from my review at goodreads

My 1 1/2 year old loves this book. It is one of her favorites. With colorful illustrations and no words, we make up our own story words each time. She will sit for 30 minutes at a time flipping the pages. I would buy it as a gift.

I received this book as a gift and fell in love with it the first time I read it. Then I ordered the board book version so my 12-month-old doesn't rip the pages. "Goodnight Gorilla" is her book of choice when she picks one for me to read--she even "reads" it on her own. The concept of the story is so simple--yet so witty and imaginative. I narrate the pictures so my daughter can learn about animals and what is going on in the book. I even ordered a copy for my niece! I highly recommend this book! :)

My toodler loves this book. The story is simple, which is perfect for his age. He enjoys pointing out the animals and finding the little mouse with the banana. The illustrations are nice and he has not grown tired of it yet after several months in our reading rotation. It is definitely one of his favorites to hear before bed. I think this is a must have for anyone with a toddler.

Beautifully illustrated. My 2 year old loves this book and often requests it for bedtime reading. He also will pick it up and "read" it to himself. With the simple storyline and few words, it's quite easy for him to do (and amusing to us to observe!).

When my toddler (16 months) brings me this book to "read", I get a sinking feeling. Although the pictures are cute, there are hardly any words to the story so I have to make them up. Obviously, from the other reviews, most parents seem to enjoy this. I do not. I love reading to my daughter, or looking at true "picture books" with her (i.e., animals, shapes, colors, etc.), but Good Night, Gorilla simply stresses me out because it is a story without words.

I would like to clarify that perhaps my frustration with this book is simply a product of my own OCD personality (my thought process goes something like, "The words should be the same every time I read the book so I can perfect my script."). As a side note, and to provide further insight into my personality type, I am an estate planning attorney...

If you are not OCD, and if you enjoy embellishing your child's books with your own narrative, then you will probably appreciate and enjoy this book. For me, I'll stick with Goodnight Moon, Giraffes Can't Dance and Superhero Me!

Goodnight Gorilla is a fun, wonderful book to read over & over with a young child. The illustrations are terrific. My sons loved the book when they were young and I recently found a large board book version to give as a gift to my new nephew. His parents are thrilled with it!

this book is one of my son's all time favorites. there is something new to discover all the time--he just noticed that there is always a moon with a balloon. We started learning about the pictures on the MR & Mrs Zookeepers walls. We just noticed that the animals all have stuffed animals in miniature of themselves. What a treat :)

This is one of my all-time favorite children's books to give. It's great for a range of ages. It is a wordless picture book- so parents and children have to create the story. One-to-Two year olds learn by just naming the animals they see; older children can talk about the events. A few reviews shared that there wasn't much of a plot- I think that these reviewers just weren't ready to take their job of reading to kids one step further, making reading an interactive activity. There is a lot to talk about in this book!
Enjoy!

A cute concept and gentle story. However, our 25 month old guy never gets past the second page before casting it aside and going for Duck in a Truck, The Going to Bed Book, Goodnight Moon or Where's My Dog Scruff.

Try as I do to make this story more engaging for him by pointing, asking him to find things, imitating animal noises, etc., it just doesn't appeal to him.

Perhaps when he's older and understands the joke better...

We have probably 100+ books for my 17 month old daughter. She looks at books literally ALL day when we are home and we read together often. This is her favorite book currently and has been on the favorite rotation for several months. She loves the illustrations, laughs when the zookeepers eyes open in the dark, and thinks the gorilla and mouse are the ultimate entertainment. This is a great book. There are few words but plenty to talk about!

My grandsons love this book and so do I. The details of the book are almost magical. The animals have toys and books in their cages. The keys on the key rings match up to the colors of the cages. As the animals follow "Mr. and Mrs. Zookeeper" across the lawn the neighbors in the windows of one of the houses go from one, to two, to three. The colors are beautiful and it is an enjoyable experience for the reader no matter what his age. I am buying this book for all the special people in my life who have children, just like I do the Shel Silverstein books.

My little boy LOVES this story and so do his parents. Peggy is a smart woman who has a keen insight into a little one's mind. Her illustrations are such that you can read the story over and over and still see new things (like the mouse carrying a banana on a string on every page). My toddler yells the words and then gasps and throws his hand over his mouth. I won't spoil the story line for you. PLEASE BUY THIS BOOK for your little ones. Even my 8 month old loves it.

My 1 year old boys love this book so much I had to order a second book because the first one is starting to tear. Easy to create your own commentary to the book while they learn about and point to the animals and laugh at the story line!

Many child development experts now know that if you don't just read a book but embellish on every page, your child will learn more and be much more interested in reading. Good Night, Gorilla is *ideal* for this style of reading and learning.
Each of the first ten or so times I read it to my daughter, I noticed a new detail that had slipped my attention previously. My favorite fun detail is the balloon s-l-o-w-l-y rising into the sky. You can see the balloon or its trailing string on almost every page.
I recommend this book whole heartedly and will continue to read it to my daughter until she tells me to get over it. ;^)

My 10-month-old daughter demands her father and I read only Peggy Rathman books to her before bedtime. Since she was 5 months old, she would choose Goodnight, Gorilla from a pile of books offered to her, even if I hid this book on the bottom of the stack. I have decided that, unlike most baby board books, Peggy Rathman stories have a climax to look forward to -- whether it is yelling "BEDTIME" in Ten Minutes 'Til Bedtime or gasping when the zookeeper's wife realizes there are a bunch of zoo animals in her bedroom in Goodnight, Gorilla. The illustrations keep me interested, night after night. The attention to detail is wonderful. I highly recommend her books, and wish she would write more!