A child, a visit to the zoo, animals--sounds like good, simple all-American fun. But thereLaughs, jokes, and surprises abound in this graphic pictu...
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Oct 12, 2008
Keith
rated it: 
This is the best kid's book I've seen in a loooong time. A little girl has to help a bunch of animals at a zoo with random tasks, which sounds totally lame and sanitized, but that's sort of the point. Her exchanges with the animals get weirder and weirder as they go along, and the climax of the story made my girlfriend's eyes bug out of her head and she talked about it for the next half hour.
The main animals are painted beautifully, and the rest of the zoo is sketched out with rando More...
The main animals are painted beautifully, and the rest of the zoo is sketched out with rando More...
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Jul 07, 2011
Gregory
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Boys like noise. It's a generalization, but when I hear loud tractor noises, block banging and Hot Wheels traffic jams coming from the kindergarten, it's more often Billy than Sally who is conducting the orchestral din. Walk by a construction site and survey who has stopped to watch the cranes and jackhammers disturbing the peaceful horn-honking urban landscape. Guys, I'll bet. (I wonder if anyone has studied horn honking. Wouldn't be surprised if there is a clear gender gap.)
So thin More...
So thin More...
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Feb 04, 2011
Tyler
rated it:
This is probably one of the best Kids' books I've read in a long time. It is intricate and simple, filled with little funny easter eggs.
A little girl goes to the zoo and all of the animals become rather demanding as they ask her for items.
<spoiler>The gorilla wants two tires, just in case.
The skunk pig (javelina) wants trash cans.
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What happens when a bunch of animals have been cooped up for too long?
Pssst!You're about to find out.
A little girl goes to the zoo and all of the animals become rather demanding as they ask her for items.
<spoiler>The gorilla wants two tires, just in case.
The skunk pig (javelina) wants trash cans.
More...
Sep 29, 2009
Kathryn
rated it: 
3.5 STARS. This is a fun, imaginative story about a child (girl? I know there has been debate on the somewhat androgynous artwork; I do think it's a girl, notice the barrettes (?) in the hair???) who visits a very unusual zoo. Or, perhaps, she is the unusual one? In any case, she soon discovers that the animals can communicate with her, and they ask her to collect all sorts of odd items for seemingly individual purposes--or could there be a more communal effort in the works??? The illustrati
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(3 people liked it)
Dec 23, 2011
Barky
rated it:
A little girl goes to the zoo one day and is called over to each of the animal enclosures (by their inhabitants) and asked to acquire certain things. The gorilla wants some new tires (his tire swing is broken), the bats want some flashlights (for their friend the hippopotamus, who doesn’t like the dark), etc. etc. Everyone has a (mostly) reasonable explanation for the thing(s) they want. The baboon hands over a sack of coins (collected by the peacock from the zoo’s fountain) to pay for it all
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Sep 26, 2007
Julia
rated it:
I think for me, Adam Rex is like Michel Gondry - one of those people with really unique ideas who I hope always get to do their own thing - and whether or not each project is entirely perfect, whatever he makes, you know it's going to be interesting, beautiful and like nothing else out there.
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Oct 17, 2010
N_Colleen
rated it:
PSST…would you love to know what things zoo animals secretly want or need? Well this is the book for you. This graphic picture book will take children ages 4-9 on a surprising adventure to find out what happens when a bunch of animals have been cooped up for too long. Adam Rex’s story is funny yet unusual as readers discover the hidden desires of animals and the little girl who is conned into helping retrieve the animals requests for silly things.
This would be a great book to use with More...
This would be a great book to use with More...
Aug 30, 2011
Lori
rated it:
Will be as important to read the pictures as it was to read the text. All kinds of humorous gems are hiding in the illustrations that will bring a smile or giggle to the reader; huge hamster balls so zoo animals can roam the zoo, an aged batman mascot greeting those who enter the bat cave, etc.
The girl is enlisted by various zoo animals to bring something back that will help alleviate their boredom. What they do with the items turns out to be a surprise.
I thoroughly e More...
The girl is enlisted by various zoo animals to bring something back that will help alleviate their boredom. What they do with the items turns out to be a surprise.
I thoroughly e More...
May 12, 2009
Kara
rated it:
This is one of those weird picture books where the story and illustrations are really great, but the action's very detailed and subtle, which makes for a horrible read-aloud. It's also not really a great "lap-read" book, either, in my opinion, because there's no narrative; it's all told in a smattering of speech bubbles. This book is really made for the 3rd or 4th grader who really gets and enjoys subtle humor but would still feel cool picking up a picture book...I don't know. I really
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Oct 28, 2011
An Abundance of Books
rated it:
Featured at An Abundance of Books
Using a mix of colored pencils and paint (can't tell the type, only that the style is awesome), Rex tells the story of a little girl off to visit the zoo. Everything is going along in typical zoo fashion when she suddenly hears someone say "Pssst!". She looks around and all she sees is the gorilla. Surely not... yep, it's the gorilla. He's got a very simple request: he broke the tire on his tire swing and would like her to pick up a new one More...
Using a mix of colored pencils and paint (can't tell the type, only that the style is awesome), Rex tells the story of a little girl off to visit the zoo. Everything is going along in typical zoo fashion when she suddenly hears someone say "Pssst!". She looks around and all she sees is the gorilla. Surely not... yep, it's the gorilla. He's got a very simple request: he broke the tire on his tire swing and would like her to pick up a new one More...
May 14, 2010
Abigail
rated it:
A young girl wanders through the zoo, waylaid by a series of animals, each hailing her with a surreptitious "Pssst!," each with an odd request. From the penguins who want paint, to the sloths who want helmets, the items requested seem to make no sense, adding to the feeling of being in some surreal alternate world. Of course, the animals do have a plan, in this comic-book style story, and young readers will enjoy seeing it revealed.
Recommended by a few of my goodreads frien More...
Recommended by a few of my goodreads frien More...
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Sep 06, 2009
Chandra
rated it:
Another big winner from my new favorite author/illustrator Adam Rex (Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich). He is THE go to guy for kids with a sense of humor (and their parents). Here we have a (slightly androgynous) child whose zoo visit is interrupted by a string of bizarre requests from the inhabitants. Very funny ending with fabulous and elaborate illustrations along the way!
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Jun 24, 2009
TheGiftofaBook
rated it:
Pssst! by Adam Rex is a book that adults will enjoy as much as kids. It reads like a comic with text in cartoon bubbles and wonderful illustrations. What starts out as a girl's visit to the zoo, becomes an escapade for the animals. Each animal calls the girl over with the noise Pssst! My girls quickly caught on to this repeated text and enjoyed saying Pssst! with each new animal. The story builds up at perfect pace for a suprise ending that leaves everyone smiling.
Jul 26, 2010
Cheryl
rated it:
While walking through the zoo, a little girl is summoned by one animal at a time to gather an object for him. This cumulative tale concludes with an unexpected ending that brings the animals and all the collected objects together. the zoo Zany illustrations combining drawing and elements of comics. Funny jokes in the detail, e.g. the sidewalk sale that offers 50% items starting with "T" and other the "koo-koo-kachoo" sign by the walrus.
May 25, 2011
Tamra
rated it: 
Meh. The illustrations were kinda funny but also kinda distracting. And I couldn't tell if the main character was a boy or a girl. I was sure it was a boy until there looked to be hair clips in his, uh, her hair.
Fun idea, I guess, where the animals talk to the kid and ask him, umm, her, to do them favors. My 4-year-old liked it. But I wasn't too impressed. I'm definitely not going to look up Adam Rex's other books.
Fun idea, I guess, where the animals talk to the kid and ask him, umm, her, to do them favors. My 4-year-old liked it. But I wasn't too impressed. I'm definitely not going to look up Adam Rex's other books.
Sep 01, 2010
Sarah
rated it:
A girl goes to the zoo and the animals ask her to get them things. The gorilla wants a new tire to swing on, the penguins want some spraypaint to liven up their monochomatic environment, and the turkeys want some corn to convert into clean burning fuel. Kids will be mildly amused, but adults of a certain turn of mind will find this hilarious. Watch the backgrounds for things like a life-sized narwhal snowglobe.
Oct 03, 2008
Kirsten
rated it:
This wouldn't make a very good read-aloud book, because of the comic strip-style dialog balloons and the small details in the pictures. It is, however, completely hilarious. A young girl goes to the zoo, only to be waylaid by animals who all have perfectly reasonable requests: tires for the gorilla, whose swing is broken; helmets for the sloths, who keep falling out of the trees; flashlights for the bats, because while they like the dark, the hippo doesn't... But what do they REALLY want all
More...
May 13, 2009
Tricia
rated it:
This book was laugh-out-loud funny for the whole family. The illustration style is a mixture of sparse (backgrounds) and detailed (main characters), but there's a lot to see and appreciate in those backgrounds. And unlike Tree-Ring Circus, it has an entertaining plot!
Apr 11, 2011
Ashlee
rated it:
Funny book about a child who visits the zoo and the animals talk him into bringing items to them. This a book that forces you to use your imaginaition. This is a book that will keep you laughing and giggling the whole way through. This book could be used to show how working together as a team can pay off.
Oct 17, 2011
Randie
rated it:
A young girl visits the zoo. The animals say, "psst!" to get her attention and then they proceed to ask for strange things. The young girl seems to be a little annoyed but she keeps her word and buys the animals the strange things they requested. What will the animals do with them?
Illustrations are unusual but interesting. Great book to talk about talk bubbles and dialogue. Rex attempts to create humor but I did not find the jokes to be funny.
Illustrations are unusual but interesting. Great book to talk about talk bubbles and dialogue. Rex attempts to create humor but I did not find the jokes to be funny.
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Jun 07, 2011
Kristin
rated it:
This was a cute book! I love kids books that have jokes only the adults will get. Joe, my 12 year old even enjoyed the Beatles reference. The walrus at the Zoo had sign by it that said "I AM THE WALRUS (Koo-koo-kachoo)" Cute dialogue between the main character and the animals too.
Jan 26, 2012
Alison
rated it:
You'll never guess what all the animals in the zoo really need, penguins looking for paint, sloths looking for bicycle helmets, tortoises that need wheel barrels.
Just be wary of the turkeys....and watch your wallet when you're near that peacock.
Just be wary of the turkeys....and watch your wallet when you're near that peacock.
Jun 17, 2011
Melanie
rated it:
A great story about a girl who visits the zoo and is solicited by many animals to purchase things for them; some rather odd things. In the end you find that the animals have built a car and have escaped the zoo.
Jan 28, 2010
Theres a BUNCH of animals that wanted stuff. The boy thought How am I supposed to get ALL those things they want.Then he saw a store that selled EVERYTHING!Then he got all the stuff they wanted.
Jun 24, 2009
Debrarian
rated it:
"The animals at the zoo have some unusual requests for a little girl who goes to visit."
Funny, oddball.
Early literacy skills: print recognition; print motivation; dialogic reading.
Funny, oddball.
Early literacy skills: print recognition; print motivation; dialogic reading.
Oct 15, 2011
Relyn
rated it:
This is just the kind of book kids love. Love, love I tell you. It has a comic book feel, great illustration, speech bubbles, and a witty story line simply told. Great book.
Mar 26, 2009
Julia
rated it:
A young girl visits the zoo and gets a bunch of crazy requests from the animals there. Great call-and-response for read-alouds everytime the animals call out "pssst".
Sep 05, 2009
Michelle
rated it:
My kids and I both love this book. It has plenty of humor for both children and grown-ups. The illustrations are fun, too. Overall, a fun book for everyone!
Jun 05, 2009
Terry
rated it:
Decently humorous, but the pictures looked like they were only half done. I like the author's sense of humor and will likely look for more of his books.
Mar 17, 2010
Stephanie
rated it:
psst
this is a good book.
psst
adam rex is really cool.
psst
can you get me a donut
make that two,
with sprinkles.
thanks.
this is a good book.
psst
adam rex is really cool.
psst
can you get me a donut
make that two,
with sprinkles.
thanks.
