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Curious George New Adventures
Curious George's Dream
After a long day at the fair George is frustrated. It seems he is always too small! But when George falls asleep and wakes up BIG, he discovers being too large can be difficult, too, and maybe he's the right size after all. The adventures of Curious George continue in an all-new series beginning in fall 1998 with eight new stories. Written and illustrated in the style of Margret and H. A. Rey, the books appear in paperback (8 x 8") and hardcover editions and feature the art of Vipah Interactive, the animators of HMI's Curious George CD-ROMs.
24 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1998
6 people are currently reading
149 people want to read
About the author
Margret Rey
244 books122 followersMargret Elizabeth Rey (May 16, 1906 – December 21, 1996), born Margarete Elisabeth Waldstein, was (with her husband H. A. Rey), the co-author and illustrator of children's books, best known for their Curious George
Although she was born in Germany, she fled to Brazil early in her life to escape Nazism. While there, she met her future husband Hans (who was a salesman and also from Germany). They married in 1935 and moved to Paris, France that same year.
While in Paris, Hans's animal drawings came to the attention of French publisher, who commissioned him to write a children's book. The result, Rafi and the Nine Monkeys, is little remembered today, but one of its characters, an adorably impish monkey named Curious George, was such a success that the couple considered writing a book just about him. Their work was interrupted with the outbreak of World War II. As Jews, the Reys decided to flee Paris before the Nazis seized the city. Hans built two bicycles, and they fled Paris just a few hours before it fell. Among the meager possessions they brought with them was the illustrated manuscript of Curious George.
The Reys' odyssey brought them to the Spanish border, where they bought train tickets to Lisbon. From there they returned to Brazil, where they had met five years earlier, but this time they continued to New York, New York. The books were published by Houghton Mifflin in 1941, though certain changes had to be introduced because of the technology of the time. Hans and Margret originally planned to use watercolors to illustrate the books, but since they were responsible for the color separation, he changed these to the cartoon-like images that continue to feature in each of the books. (A collector's edition with the original watercolors was recently released.)
Curious George was an instant success, and the Reys were commissioned to write more adventures of the mischievous monkey and his friend, the Man in the Yellow Hat. They wrote seven stories in all, with Hans mainly doing the illustrations and Margret working mostly on the stories, though they both admitted to sharing the work and cooperating fully in every stage of development. At first, however, Margret's name was left off the cover, ostensibly because there was a glut of women already writing children's fiction. In later editions, this was corrected, and Margret now receives full credit for her role in developing the stories.
Margret and her husband moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1963, in a house close to Harvard Square. Following her husband's death in 1977, Margret continued writing, and in 1979, became a Professor of Creative Writing at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Starting in 1980, she also began to collaborate with Alan Shalleck on a series of short films featuring Curious George and more than two dozen additional books.
In 1989 Margret Rey established the Curious George Foundation to help creative children and prevent cruelty to animals. In 1996, she made major donations to the Boston Public Library and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. She was also a long-time supporter of the Longy School of Music. The Reys spent twenty summers in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, to enable H.A. Rey to better observe the stars for his astronomy writing. They became an integral part of the Waterville community and their legacy is honored by The Margret and H.A. Rey Center and the Curious George Cottage located there.
Dr. Lena Y. de Grummond, a professor in the field of library science (specializing in children's literature) at The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss. contacted the Reys in 1966 about the university's new children's literature collection. H.A. and Margret made a donation of a pair of sketches at the time. In 1996, after Margret's death, it was revealed in her will that the entire literary estate of the Reys were to be donated to the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at Southern Miss.
Although she was born in Germany, she fled to Brazil early in her life to escape Nazism. While there, she met her future husband Hans (who was a salesman and also from Germany). They married in 1935 and moved to Paris, France that same year.
While in Paris, Hans's animal drawings came to the attention of French publisher, who commissioned him to write a children's book. The result, Rafi and the Nine Monkeys, is little remembered today, but one of its characters, an adorably impish monkey named Curious George, was such a success that the couple considered writing a book just about him. Their work was interrupted with the outbreak of World War II. As Jews, the Reys decided to flee Paris before the Nazis seized the city. Hans built two bicycles, and they fled Paris just a few hours before it fell. Among the meager possessions they brought with them was the illustrated manuscript of Curious George.
The Reys' odyssey brought them to the Spanish border, where they bought train tickets to Lisbon. From there they returned to Brazil, where they had met five years earlier, but this time they continued to New York, New York. The books were published by Houghton Mifflin in 1941, though certain changes had to be introduced because of the technology of the time. Hans and Margret originally planned to use watercolors to illustrate the books, but since they were responsible for the color separation, he changed these to the cartoon-like images that continue to feature in each of the books. (A collector's edition with the original watercolors was recently released.)
Curious George was an instant success, and the Reys were commissioned to write more adventures of the mischievous monkey and his friend, the Man in the Yellow Hat. They wrote seven stories in all, with Hans mainly doing the illustrations and Margret working mostly on the stories, though they both admitted to sharing the work and cooperating fully in every stage of development. At first, however, Margret's name was left off the cover, ostensibly because there was a glut of women already writing children's fiction. In later editions, this was corrected, and Margret now receives full credit for her role in developing the stories.
Margret and her husband moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1963, in a house close to Harvard Square. Following her husband's death in 1977, Margret continued writing, and in 1979, became a Professor of Creative Writing at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Starting in 1980, she also began to collaborate with Alan Shalleck on a series of short films featuring Curious George and more than two dozen additional books.
In 1989 Margret Rey established the Curious George Foundation to help creative children and prevent cruelty to animals. In 1996, she made major donations to the Boston Public Library and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. She was also a long-time supporter of the Longy School of Music. The Reys spent twenty summers in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, to enable H.A. Rey to better observe the stars for his astronomy writing. They became an integral part of the Waterville community and their legacy is honored by The Margret and H.A. Rey Center and the Curious George Cottage located there.
Dr. Lena Y. de Grummond, a professor in the field of library science (specializing in children's literature) at The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss. contacted the Reys in 1966 about the university's new children's literature collection. H.A. and Margret made a donation of a pair of sketches at the time. In 1996, after Margret's death, it was revealed in her will that the entire literary estate of the Reys were to be donated to the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at Southern Miss.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
May 18, 2022
Would Love Some More, Please!
George and the man with the yellow hat spends the day at the park. Once he gets home, George realizes that he’s small.
He is too small for the activities that he wants to enjoy there. But he’s too tired to be sad about it for very long.
He falls asleep and begins to dream. And that’s all I’m saying.
George and the man with the yellow hat spends the day at the park. Once he gets home, George realizes that he’s small.
He is too small for the activities that he wants to enjoy there. But he’s too tired to be sad about it for very long.
He falls asleep and begins to dream. And that’s all I’m saying.
July 18, 2019
In Curious George's Dream students in the classroom can go on adventures with the "too big" monkey and the man with the yellow hat developing importance of togetherness.
November 11, 2019
It’s always best to enjoy the size you are, as Curious George reminds us.
August 25, 2025
George learns that growing big in order to do all the things you want to do comes with a cost. Gabe approved.
October 19, 2018
Love it!
May 25, 2025
This is a weird one. The Man in the Yellow Hat took George to the amusement park, but he wasn't allowed to ride many rides, and the petting zoo manager wouldn't let him hold baby bunnies because "you're too small", even though we know Bill let him hold baby bunnies and even take one home in "Curious George Flies a Kite". She's just bullying the poor monkey!
George comes home feeling that he's too small to do anything... except watch a movie, as tMitYH puts on King Kong and George falls asleep watching it. He dreams that he's back at the amusement park, but big. All the bunnies love him, but now the manager bullies him for being so big he'll scare them! He's too big and heavy to fit on rides and just wishes his friend was there... then he sees tMitYH in his dream because he's calling George's name for real. In an utterly boneheaded bit of parenting, he makes George wake up so he can go to sleep in his bed. As a nonfictional parent, I'd be terrified of the hours my child would stay up from this sleep interruption! Come on, Man, we've seen that George is light enough to carry.
George comes home feeling that he's too small to do anything... except watch a movie, as tMitYH puts on King Kong and George falls asleep watching it. He dreams that he's back at the amusement park, but big. All the bunnies love him, but now the manager bullies him for being so big he'll scare them! He's too big and heavy to fit on rides and just wishes his friend was there... then he sees tMitYH in his dream because he's calling George's name for real. In an utterly boneheaded bit of parenting, he makes George wake up so he can go to sleep in his bed. As a nonfictional parent, I'd be terrified of the hours my child would stay up from this sleep interruption! Come on, Man, we've seen that George is light enough to carry.
November 20, 2021
After a long and tiring day at the amusement park and being told he was too small to ride the rides, or pet the bunnies, George falls asleep while watching a movie and dreams that he is finally big, but realizes that he is now too big to do any of the things he wants to do.
April 21, 2023
One of M's first-ever Curious George books. M requested this one over and over and over...I'm not sure if that's because she knows what it's like to feel "too small" or if she liked that George got to hold bunnies, or if she just wanted to understand the story.
May 11, 2017
Cute story about accepting yourself for who you are. Great illustrations
April 20, 2021
This book was fun to read! This is a "be careful what you wish for" story with fun illustrations and has characters with big lovable personalities.
February 5, 2023
Our last Curious George book. It’s been a good two nights and after the first story where George gets poached, they have aged okay.
April 13, 2019
We love Curious George books!
May 25, 2016
I'd personally give it a 3, but since my son is such a fan, the book gets a 4.
George spent the day at the zoo being told that he was too small to do everything that he wanted to do. At home, after dinner and while watching a movie, he fell asleep. He dreamed that he was huge. He was happy, thinking he could do everything that he'd been told he couldn't do earlier that day. Unfortunately, not he was too big for everything and people were scared of him.
Just when things were hopeless, George wakes up and realizes it's a dream. He realizes there's nothing wrong with him being exactly the way he is.
Moral of the story: be happy with who you are.
George spent the day at the zoo being told that he was too small to do everything that he wanted to do. At home, after dinner and while watching a movie, he fell asleep. He dreamed that he was huge. He was happy, thinking he could do everything that he'd been told he couldn't do earlier that day. Unfortunately, not he was too big for everything and people were scared of him.
Just when things were hopeless, George wakes up and realizes it's a dream. He realizes there's nothing wrong with him being exactly the way he is.
Moral of the story: be happy with who you are.
Read
March 20, 2013Animal Fiction:
Curious George is a wonderful book series for kids. The stories are exciting, funny, chaotic, and often have fable characteristics of lessons that George the monkey has learned. In Curious George's Dream, George dreams about his day and that he was giant since he had been too small for everything at the amusement park. His dream did not end as well as he might have hoped and he woke up realizing he was just the right size. There is also a TV show Curious George that is very cute for younger children and toddlers.
Curious George is a wonderful book series for kids. The stories are exciting, funny, chaotic, and often have fable characteristics of lessons that George the monkey has learned. In Curious George's Dream, George dreams about his day and that he was giant since he had been too small for everything at the amusement park. His dream did not end as well as he might have hoped and he woke up realizing he was just the right size. There is also a TV show Curious George that is very cute for younger children and toddlers.
November 6, 2014
Another Curious George book (my son picks one out pretty much every time we go to the library). This one is definitely not in the model of the usual George story. George doesn't demonstrate curiosity, and he doesn't really get into mischief. Instead, he is disappointed in being too small to do things at the amusement park and he ends up dreaming that he is big (too big, as it turns out). We've only read it once so far, and I think the concept was over my two-year-old's head. I'll be interested to see if he chooses it again.
January 22, 2011
This is one of the odder Curious George books I've read. Instead of following the formula where George is curious and therefore gets into some sort of funny trouble, here he has a dream that he's big so he can do everything he wants to do. My son enjoyed it, but not nearly as much as other George books.
July 17, 2013
July 2013
Melanie likes this book pretty well, but she never has much to say about it. She will pick it out, listen to it, and then quickly move on to the next thing.
March 2012
I don't think Melanie will like this story much yet, but I got it for her anyway since it cost $1. She needs some paper books to practice not ripping the pages.
Melanie likes this book pretty well, but she never has much to say about it. She will pick it out, listen to it, and then quickly move on to the next thing.
March 2012
I don't think Melanie will like this story much yet, but I got it for her anyway since it cost $1. She needs some paper books to practice not ripping the pages.
February 7, 2014
I'm sure most kids can relate to this book. George is sad about his height, he's considered to small for just about everything at the amusement park. When he falls asleep he has a dream about being big. I think this book was actually quite sad and it does teach a valuable lesson at the end. Plus, George isn't causing trouble again because of curiousness.
January 23, 2016
Curious George has a disappointing day at the fair because he is too small. Too small to hold a bunny, too small to ride the roller coaster, etc. He gets home and ends up falling asleep while watching TV. He dreams he is huge, but his enlarged state brings problems of it's own.
Typical Curious George illustrations.
Typical Curious George illustrations.
May 26, 2016
My boy relates to George wanting to be bigger. I think this story relates well to preschoolers who go to extremes. Not just wanting not to just be as big as an adult, but bigger!
I liked that the message of the story. My boy likes Curious George. It gives us a story to read and some ideas to think about.
I liked that the message of the story. My boy likes Curious George. It gives us a story to read and some ideas to think about.
November 18, 2013
Another of our Curious George favorites where George is tired of being too small to do the fun things at the fair and petting zoo. But what happens when he becomes big in his dream? Worthy moral of the story in this one for when we feel too small in whatever we have tried to do.
October 18, 2013
continues the story of the cute little monkey who moves to the city
June 9, 2012
A bit conceptual for a three-year-old, but there was some stuff she really responded to anyway.
November 13, 2014
"Love it!"
December 1, 2016
the best story ever...
March 13, 2021
This book was about curious George’s dream and the book is the most amazing book!’’
October 23, 2018
Great lesson about accepting yourself the was you are
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews