Beagles and Books is excited to be part of the blog tour for The ChimpanSNEEZE publishing on November 14, 2023 by Two Lions. Special thanks to the publisher and Barbara Fisch of Blue Slip Media for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Review:
Buttercups are beautiful, but to a chimpanzee, the flowers caused her to sneeze so hard that her friend, a kinkajou, flew into the sky. Zenz’s bright illustrations show how quickly the scene changed from calm to chaotic. Kids will be able to identify kinkajou’s range of emotions through his facial expressions. Zenz introduces his first play on words-CHIMPANSNEEZE.
Having no control over his destination, the kinkajou tries to alert an elephant painting a gate. Unfortunately, his warning is not in time. Kids see the effects of the sneeze in this dynamic illustration and we read Zenz’s next play on words-ELEFENCE.
Of course, the story can’t end there. A bread carrying buffalo trips on the elephant’s trunk, a hippo with mustard in hand rolls on the many BUFFALOAF on the ground causing him to become a HIPPOPOTAMUSTARD, a pink poodle slips on the mustard dropping her hair product resulting in SHAMPOODLE suds. On every page spread, the kinkajou is spotted in the illustration calling CHIMPY? Where is the Chimpanzee or should I say Chimpansneeze?
Don’t worry! The kinkajou does not have to wait long to find his friend. It seems bubbles have the same effect on the kinkajou as buttercups do on the chimpanzee. With one enormous sneeze, the friends are reunited thanks to a KINKACHOO!
With a bouncy, rhyming text, an action packed plot, and word play, The ChimpanSNEEZE is a hilarious read aloud. On the last page spread, the illustration of the elephant, buffalo, hippo, and poodle all dirty and disheveled and glaring at the duo will make kids laugh out loud. Adults will understand and appreciate the humor when they read the final text. Readers of all ages will giggle at the Cast Bios of each character. As a reading specialist, I love that after reading aloud, The ChimpanSNEEZE can be used to teach or reinforce skills such as plot as in a circle story and cause and effect.
About the Author-Illustrator:
Aaron Zenz used up forty-nine colored pencils and broke eighty-one pencil tips during the making of The Chimpansneeze. He is the author and illustrator of more than forty-five children’s books. He wrote and illustrated the Amazon bestseller The Hiccupotamus, as well as Chuckling Ducklings, Monsters Go Night-Night, and Little Iffy Learns to Fly. He has also illustrated books written by other authors, including The Spaghetti-Slurping Sewer Serpent by Laura Ripes and Orangutangled by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen. He lives with his large family in a small town in West Michigan. Learn more about him at http://www.aaronzenz.com, and follow him on Instagram @AaronZenz.
Two-Book Giveaway!
One lucky winner will receive a copy of The Chimpansneeze along with its companion The Hiccupotamus, courtesy of Two Lions (U.S. and Canada addresses). Follow and repost my post on Twitter (X).
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