Book Review || The One and Only Ivan

“Humans waste words. They toss them like banana peels and leave them to rot.”

Genre: Fiction, Children’s
Location: USA
Pages: 301
Publication year: 2012
Average Goodreads Ratings: 4.25
Goodreads // Amazon // Book Depository

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Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.

Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line.

Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better.

Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create Ivan’s unforgettable first-person narration in a story of friendship, art, and hope.

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My Thoughts

I’m not sure how to review this. It was cute. It was sad. It broke my heart. But at the same time it was very uplifting. It was interesting seeing the world from a gorillas point of view. It was just another reminder as to why I hate circuses so much. I think Julia was one of my favorite characters. She was just a pure little soul. The writing was pretty enjoyable. It was a pretty fast read too and the illustrations were amazing. The only thing I wasn’t found of was I felt like this book was a little too deep for a kids book but that’s just my own personal opinion. Overall I’m really glad I read it. I’m super excited to see the movie next! 🙂