Diana Kizlauskas

Chaos rules as an entire zoo full of animals decides to take over a boy's house and do whatever they please.

A boy and his dog can't believe their eyes when they look out of the window to find all sorts of animals headed to their front door. And these animals mean business. They take over everything, creating mayhem in every corner of the house. While the boy tries to convince them to, at least, calm down, they turn on him and make fun of him instead. Everything is turning into a disaster, and the boy has no idea how to stop it.

While this is a book about bullying, it brings across the message in a very unique...and hilarious manner. The animals do all sorts of things, which will have readers smiling and giggling the entire way through. There are so many details in the illustrations, that there are all sorts of silly things to discover.. Imagination runs free with everything from lions to exotic birds and much, much more.

The text is written in well-flowing rhyme and makes for a nice read aloud. While the text describes the basis, it's the illustrations which carry the zaniness to the next level. These are a mix of realistic images and art, creating unique scenes. The animals are easy to identify and in the oddest situations, which makes it fun to flip through the pages.

At the end of the book, there are several websites and materials listed, where guardians can turn to when helping children dealing with bullying. The message is very direct by the end of the read, but the fun isn't forgotten, either. I received a DRC and found this to be a fun, original way to tackle an often visited theme.… (meer)