Official Review: The Wonders of Monkey Mac!
Posted: 29 Jun 2015, 14:01
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Wonders of Monkey Mac!" by Stephanie Harris.]
3 out of 4 stars
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The Wonders of Monkey Mac! by Stephanie C. Harris is a book in the children’s fiction section. It is the first book in the series and it is suited to reading audience aged between five to ten years old.
The story is centered on a monkey, named Mac, who was brought up in America. Julie, a young scientist, saves Mac from an elephant stampede in Africa and brings him to America on her return. Mac is raised as a human and enjoys his life with Julie in the US. Their journey together is short lived, though, when Julie finds out about a conspiracy which could get Mac kidnapped for an experiment. Having no other alternative, Julie is forced to take Mac back to Africa where he was born and leave him there. Mac is understandably unhappy about this, and though he tries hard, he is not able to adjust completely in his new life with his natural family and new friends. So, Mac makes up his mind and finds his way back to the shores of America. Julie is glad to have him back but she can’t keep him with her, so she sets him up in the zoo as a part of a social experiment studying the behavior of wild monkeys vis-à-vis a ‘civilized’ one. Here Mac meets his new family and they have plenty of fun with the local children and escaping from the zoo whenever they can. Will Mac’s adventures get him into trouble? Will he ever reunite with Julie?
The author has packaged a multitude of crisscrossing plots into a single story. The story of the protagonist, Mac, is intertwined with the story of three groups of children. While the author’s effort in combining such variety of adventures should be appreciated, one wonders if the multiple plot lines would be a tad bit confusing for the young audience. On the bright side, the author’s writing style is simple and engaging, with colorful descriptions.
The main storyline is undoubtedly creative, for example, Mac journeying back to America in a hot air balloon with zebra or a turtle who speaks in a rhyme and runs an Herb and Spice store. There is no end to the funny twists and turns in the story. The author has given the young readers some really eccentric, comic and adorable characters like a zoo keeper who is always sleepy and naps frequently in a kangaroo’s pouch. Amidst all the entertainment, the author has also managed to squeeze in a couple of morality lessons about not bullying the weak and owning up to one’s mistakes. Mac is quite a loveable character with his helpful, adventurous and optimistic nature. His unwavering faith in Julie is heartwarming.
My only criticism of this book is its lack of structure and flow, since the story periodically spins off into a different direction without a warning. This factor makes the book rather difficult to follow for young readers. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars for its fairly enjoyable and involving story.
******
The Wonders of Monkey Mac!
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3 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
The Wonders of Monkey Mac! by Stephanie C. Harris is a book in the children’s fiction section. It is the first book in the series and it is suited to reading audience aged between five to ten years old.
The story is centered on a monkey, named Mac, who was brought up in America. Julie, a young scientist, saves Mac from an elephant stampede in Africa and brings him to America on her return. Mac is raised as a human and enjoys his life with Julie in the US. Their journey together is short lived, though, when Julie finds out about a conspiracy which could get Mac kidnapped for an experiment. Having no other alternative, Julie is forced to take Mac back to Africa where he was born and leave him there. Mac is understandably unhappy about this, and though he tries hard, he is not able to adjust completely in his new life with his natural family and new friends. So, Mac makes up his mind and finds his way back to the shores of America. Julie is glad to have him back but she can’t keep him with her, so she sets him up in the zoo as a part of a social experiment studying the behavior of wild monkeys vis-à-vis a ‘civilized’ one. Here Mac meets his new family and they have plenty of fun with the local children and escaping from the zoo whenever they can. Will Mac’s adventures get him into trouble? Will he ever reunite with Julie?
The author has packaged a multitude of crisscrossing plots into a single story. The story of the protagonist, Mac, is intertwined with the story of three groups of children. While the author’s effort in combining such variety of adventures should be appreciated, one wonders if the multiple plot lines would be a tad bit confusing for the young audience. On the bright side, the author’s writing style is simple and engaging, with colorful descriptions.
The main storyline is undoubtedly creative, for example, Mac journeying back to America in a hot air balloon with zebra or a turtle who speaks in a rhyme and runs an Herb and Spice store. There is no end to the funny twists and turns in the story. The author has given the young readers some really eccentric, comic and adorable characters like a zoo keeper who is always sleepy and naps frequently in a kangaroo’s pouch. Amidst all the entertainment, the author has also managed to squeeze in a couple of morality lessons about not bullying the weak and owning up to one’s mistakes. Mac is quite a loveable character with his helpful, adventurous and optimistic nature. His unwavering faith in Julie is heartwarming.
My only criticism of this book is its lack of structure and flow, since the story periodically spins off into a different direction without a warning. This factor makes the book rather difficult to follow for young readers. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars for its fairly enjoyable and involving story.
******
The Wonders of Monkey Mac!
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like ananya92's review? Post a comment saying so!
