  | President of the jungle | |
| Price: $22.58 | ||
Summary:
Unhappy with Lion, the king of the jungle, the animals hold an election to choose a new leader.
| Added Entry - Personal Name: | Rodrigues, Andre |
| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: LG Reading Level: 3.30 Points: .5 Quiz: 510857 |
Reviews:
School Library Journal (12/01/19)
Booklist (11/01/19)
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (A) (00/12/19)
Full Text Reviews:
Booklist - 11/01/2019 Lion is king of the jungle, but the power has gone to his mane. He's rerouted the river so it fills up his new swimming pool, and the other animals are not happy. In fact, after some protest demonstrations, they decide they don't want a king at all—they want to vote for a president. A list of election rules is put together (one animal, one vote; secret ballot; candidates cannot eat their opponents), and then it's campaign season, with Lion, Sloth, Snake, and Monkey giving speeches and participating in debates. Sloth wins, but not everyone is happy, so it's a good thing there's another election next spring! For kids who may be following a real election, this mix of fact and fun is occasionally confusing. But kudos for hitting most of the important election notes, including campaigning, ballots and voting, and how democracy works (a glossary is also provided). Children will be attracted by the lively, brightly colored art, combining cut-paper shapes and loose pencil lines. A clever introduction to a newsworthy topic. - Copyright 2019 Booklist.
School Library Journal - 12/01/2019 Gr 2–4—The animal kingdom decides to replace its monarchy with a democracy after Lion, King of the Jungle, reroutes a public water supply for his own private swimming pool. Candidates for anthropomorphic animal president include Snake, Cobra, and Sloth. As they begin their campaigns, bolded vocabulary words like debate and rally are defined. The back includes a glossary of all the election terms. Colorfully busy compositions of the political creatures are unpolished, but convey bumbling charm. Even though the subjects are animals, their election is a modern one with TV interviews and social media campaigns. The text is nonpartisan and animals come from a variety of real-world equivalent political backgrounds, such as political dynasties or grassroots candidates. However, considering President Obama's 2008 campaign featured numerous slogans that included the word "change," making Monkey the candidate for change is a less-than-thoughtful choice. VERDICT Ironically, a herd of animals may be a smart way to humanize presidential elections for our young future voters.—Chance Lee Joyner, Wilton Public and Gregg Free Library, NH - Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
