Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 08/01/2022 Two cousins, both gorillas, live very different lives. Enormously strong, courageous, and famous throughout their city, Kong is as large as an apartment building. Junior, who exercises, eats his bamboo, and rivals his cat (Bernice) in strength, lives in an apartment building. Kong wrestles dinosaurs. Junior practices piano. Kong performs heroic deeds for city residents. Junior does chores for his mother. “You’re just as special as your cousin,” she assures him, but Junior can’t help feeling that his achievements fall short of his cousin’s. Still, when Bernice climbs up a tree and can’t get down, it’s Junior who rescues her, earning his cat’s gratitude, his mother’s praise, and the feeling that he’s grown a little bigger. Teague’s engaging text, which introduces the cousins through a series of contrasts, leads readers to admire Kong and to love Junior. Rendered in acrylics using black, white, and blue-tinged shades of gray, the dynamic illustrations reference the original black-and-white movie King Kong (1933) in the book's New York City setting. A rewarding picture book that's fun for reading aloud. - Copyright 2022 Booklist.