This is a cool book. You go to the zoo and see all the animals there.

Charlesbridge and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published March 8th.

There are crocodiles, chimpanzees and lots more animals. The adults see it as a zoo but the child sees it as something else. Can you guess?

The illustrations are great and your child can learn about the animals and how they act. It'a an enjoyable book.

Such a lovely book! This offers so much--kids will be fascinated by all of the animals and will really connect to the message of why animals behave as they do. Additionally, the story is told in verse, which will give young readers the opportunity to identify rhyming words. The text is full of lots of descriptive language that will help build vocabularies.

The illustrations are big and vivid. Students will have fun picking out all the little details and getting a close-up view of favorite animals. This would be a great circle time read and a wonderful addition to pre-K and elementary school and classroom libraries!

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

This cute, educational book about the zoo teaches children how animals relate to one another as a family. The words flow together nicely, making it easy to read aloud to kids. I received an advance copy of this book for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was a cute book with rhyming text, fun illustrations, and a different perspective on animal behaviors.

You See a Zoo, I See. . . is a beautifully illustrated picture book all about how different people see the animals at the zoo. Where a zoo visitor may see animals behaving one way, our narrator (who is a zookeeper’s child) sees the animals in a different light. For example, a zoo patron may see an ostrich hiding out, the child sees a parent caring for an egg. Where one person may see an angry lion, the child sees a protective father protecting his Cubs. The narrator encourages people to see beyond initial appearances and to find out what is exactly behind animal behavior.
This is such a sweet picture book to read aloud to children, especially if they have an interest in animals. I will add this to my classroom library because I always have students who love reading about animals at the zoo.

You See a Zoo Mike Downs

The reader/listener is led by a child who contrasts what visitors see with a view of families and the way they care for their young.
“You see rowdy elephants… I see Healthy Kids at Play”
Scary crocodiles are protective mothers, silly chimpanzees are little ones at school, the angry lion is a dad on the lookout.
The rhyming text is coupled with softly colored inclusive pictures of families at the zoo. This book does a lovely job of accurately portraying animal behavior and then giving simple explanations. The ending is charming - “you see a zookeeper, I see my mom. You see a zoo; I see families like our own.”
This is a welcome addition to books about animals and zoos.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for this honest review

I love how the main character, a little girl, goes throughout the zoo and makes observations of each animal type. The observation is always linked to it being an animal mom/dad doing parental duties. It’s so caring and it makes it very relatable for the reader/listener, with regard to their caregiver. With the variety of animals that they visit, the book goes thorough most of the responsibilities that each parent handles. The illustrations are cute with the different animals.
*****I received an ARC from NetGalley, the publisher, and the author, in turn for my honest review.

This fun book has intricately colorful and detailed illustrations to make the point at each segment. The words and ideas, as well as the basic tenet are well suited to ESL and also for reading with children. I love it and plan to get one for our local library.
*A picture book that challenges kids to think beyond their first impressions* (from the blurb), but I think that ALL ages need this reminder to look past the obvious.
I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from Charlesbridge via NetGalley. Thank you!

This was so cute! As a Librarian when I read children's books I always keep the question of "will this work as a story-time book?' in the back of my head and I'm happy to say that yes! This WILL work as a Storytime book! It was colorful, fun, cute, and easy to understand so all ages can enjoy this. I will be recommending my library purchases this as soon as it is released.

I received an electronic ARC from Charlesbridge through NetGalley.
Downs offers a rhythmic look at animals in the zoo. The narrator first shares the common view that many see when they visit the zoo animals. She then twists it to show what she sees - family units being together. This offers a way to see animals caring for each other in their groups. Behaviors that seem fierce or scary are actually protective of the younger members of the animal's family. The illustrations bring the animals to life and offer a look at human expressions as they visit the zoo. Readers learn that the narrator's mother is a zookeeper and that she gets to help every week.
A great read aloud to make connections to ways human families nurture each other too.

My daughter really liked this book and kept asking questions about the animals throughout. There was a nice little twist at the end that made for a nice ending. The diversity showed in the illustrations was also great for kids to see different types of people. Some that may look like them and some that may be different. But they are all enjoying the same activity.

This was a great tale for children, it was a lovely story with beautiful pictures. We enjoyed reading this at bedtime, it was a lovely tale, we would definitely read more from this author

I l oved this book. The artwork by Maureen O'Brien is beautiful. I felt like I was AT the zoo with the characters. I appreciated the diverse families and this will be a cute book to read to my new niece or nephew when they arrive! If I had to pick a favorite part I would choose the bats becuase bats are one of my favorite animals. I'm so glad they were included. It's a charming book and I'm probably going to flip through it a few more times.

A sweet, rhyming book about looking past your first impressions to see more. I loved thr rhythm and great heart of this book.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I liked the concept of this book and the pictures were awesome. I especially loved the pages with the chimps. So detailed and informative. The rhythm seemed a little off after the first page it changed quite a bit. I don't think it had to be as sing-songy as it was to keep the attention of kids. I didn't mind it though.

You See a Zoo, I See…by Michael Downs is a nicely written and beautifully illustrated book about life at the zoo. The illustrations were my favorite. This would be a great book for any type of story time. Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read this book. (My review is also on Goodreads.)

What a delightful and educational story. I think this is one that children everywhere will enjoy. The illustrations were beautiful and I love a book that rhymes for keeping little ones’ attentions during story time. I loved the message of learning and understanding the reason why animals do the things they do and how it translates to the differences we encounter in the families around us. Definitely one I will add to my kid’s shelves and in my classroom.

When your mom works at the zoo, you have the opportunity to many different things than a normal visitor would see. If your child loves the zoo and animals, they will love the perspective of this picture book. The behind the scenes of the zoo just shows how much we miss when we are just visitors of the zoo.

A special thank you to Charlesbridge and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review

This book was charming, blending entertainment and education in a fun adventure to the zoo. A science based book about a little girl's trip to the local zoo turns into a fact filled, myth-dispelling, rhyming romp. Classrooms should add this to their animal science shelves.

The MC is a young black girl, which is such a great way to have representation of racial groups in children's books. Also, having a girl as the lead in a science book is fantastic too, since women are very underrepresented in the sciences. The girl takes us through the elephant exhibit, then on to the crocs, chimps and bats and more. For each animal she shares some of the typical behaviors or beliefs about that animal and then gives a scientific explanation for why the animals do what they do or why they are that way. For example, for elephants, she talks about how they play in the mud and splash in the water and then explains that doing so keeps baby elephants cool in the heat and keeps bugs off their skin.

The prose flows in rhyme, with simple text. There isn't a whole lot of hard vocabulary which makes it a book that early readers can read independently. The illustrations are beautifully painted and are very realistic too, which is great for this kind of book. Having very cartoonish images would have detracted from the science theme. On many of the animals you can even see all the individual hairs painted in great detail.

This is one for all the animal loving, budding zoologists! Not to miss.

Zoo is a clear winner with kids. My daughter, like most 3.5-year-old, loves animals and adores books about them.
This is a cute picture book about a family visiting the zoo, and we had a great time reading it and remembering the last time we spent a Sunday in the zoo ourselves. Nice illustrations, short text, plenty of animals to talk about.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Charlesbridge for an Advance Review Copy.