Gorilla lives in a zoo but he has a TV, a recliner and eats and drinks from plates and cups. He is lonely, so his handlers give him a kitten (Little Beauty) who becomes his close friend. One day when he watches King Kong on television, he becomes so angry at the story that he breaks the television. Angry at Gorilla and scared for Little Beauty, his handlers threaten to take away his friend. But someone comes to Gorilla's rescue. Who could it be? Its Little Beauty. She learned sign language from Gorilla and tells the handlers she broke the TV. So in the end, Gorilla and Little Beauty live happily ever after. This story is a little bit of a play on Kong and the traditional Beauty & the Beast, and can be used to teach children about using words to express their anger and being loyal in the face of diversity.

I adore Anthony Browne's art. It is more sophisticated looking than the usual children's picture book art, but the detailed facial expressions make the characters relatable. I just fall in love with all of his Gorillas. ( )

I think this book is very cute. It shows children how to try and cope with things, such as a dog running way. It also shows children that sometimes the things we seem to lose are not that far after all. I love the way the drawings become darker when the characters are scared. It adds some factors to the reading. ( )

Lovely illustrations with hidden pictures; tension in the storyline of where is he hiding? A read again book. ( )

Distraught at the absence of their dog, Goldie, who went missing a week before, and bored in their small home, two young children try to distract themselves with a game of hide and seek in the nearby woods. As Cy hides in a wood pile and his older sister Poppy hunts for him, the reader can detect various things in the gorgeous but slightly eerie illustrations. Eventually Poppy finds Cy, but someone else has found him first...

This latest title from prolific British picture-book creator Anthony Browne is a delight! The story is simple, and its ending heartwarming, but the real satisfaction comes from perusing the beautiful artwork. Not only is the splendor of the woods in autumn captured - the sparkling quality of the light, and nakedness of the trees, with the leaves upon the ground - but there is a surreal aspect to some of them that invites a second look. Sometimes the girl's shadow looks like something else, sometimes one sees an unexpected object in the landscape. There is a list of things to look for at the rear of the book. Hide and Seek is one I would recommend to fellow Anthony Browne fans, to autumn lovers, and to anyone looking for children's books that have a "hunt and find" aspect to them. ( )

Once there was a very special gorilla who had almost everything he needed. There was only one thing he didn’t have: a friend. With no other gorillas at the zoo, the keepers try something new. Will the gigantic ape strike a bond with another sort of creature, one as tiny and innocent as a kitten? Sparked by the story of a real gorilla who learned to sign, LITTLE BEAUTY is a celebration of a most surprising friendship. (Amazon)