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Orangutangled

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Click here to post a review on Reading in the UK? Click here to post a review on with wordplay and bursting with fun, this rhyming cumulative tale features two orangutans who reach for some mangoes and fall in a gooey, gummy mess, completely orangutangled. When other animals try to help, the pile just grows and grows, and before long they are all rolling so fast they cannot stop. A great choice for read-aloud storytime.

Paperback

First published February 11, 2014

29 people are currently reading
415 people want to read

About the author

Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen

74 books130 followers
Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen is an award-winning children's book author whose books include Duck Duck Moose, Chicks Run Wild, Pirate Princess, Hampire!, and the forthcoming Orangutangled. She visits schools around the country to talk about the craft of writing to children of all ages. "Every book is an autobiography" is a favorite saying of hers, and a big part of her message is that everyone, grownup or child, has a story that is interesting and compelling—if you can find the right words to tell it. Sudipta lives outside Philadelphia with her children and an imaginary pony named Penny. You can learn more about her and her books on her website www.sudipta.com or at her blog www.NerdyChicksRule.com.

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5 stars
102 (35%)
4 stars
95 (33%)
3 stars
65 (22%)
2 stars
20 (7%)
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2 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
Profile Image for Abigail.
8,035 reviews266 followers
February 28, 2019
"In the jungle, night is falling. / Tigers prowl and birds are calling. / Two orangutans reclining / as the moon above is shining. / 'Need a treat!' 'What to eat?' / 'Something juicy, something sweet.' / They search and seek / and then they see / some mangoes hanging from a tree." So begins this rollicking rhyme of a picture-book, as a series of animals gets tangled all together, in a mango-gooey mess...

With its rhyming text, madcap adventure, and colorful, cartoon-like illustrations, Orangutangled would make an excellent read-aloud selection for story-time. Sudipta Barden-Quallen's text is well-paced, and illustrator Aaron Zenz's artwork, although not to my personal taste, is quite humorous. Recommended to anyone looking for fun new picture-book told in rhyme, and featuring jungle animals.
Profile Image for W.
566 reviews5 followers
April 20, 2015
Good rhymes and a cute concept. I feel sorry for the tiger who was adrift at sea at the end, though, and didn't get to enjoy a meal (even though his meal would have been all the other animals).
Profile Image for Pam.
9,898 reviews55 followers
February 19, 2018
Fun wordplay as the orangutans get tangled up in gooey mangos. Others try to help untangle them and get caught themselves - even the tiger stalking them.
Humor for young to middle elementary readers.
1 review1 follower
May 22, 2020
Great to read on Zoom!

I was looking for a fairly simple book to read to toddlers and preschoolers over Zoom and I found this one and everyone LOVED it! My ECE coworkers enjoyed it as well. It has just the right amount of silliness to make it fun!
Profile Image for Aimee.
406 reviews1 follower
November 5, 2020
Very cute

This is a sweet book about two orangutans getting tangled up with a few other animals. The pictures are well done and enhance the story. The book is well formatted for the kindle and I spotted no typos or errors. 10/10
Profile Image for Donna Mork.
2,150 reviews12 followers
February 7, 2018
The various animals get tangled up together. They keep adding to their number until they fall into the ocean while rolling away from a tiger.
Profile Image for Natalie Anderton.
10 reviews1 follower
June 26, 2018
My baby loves it

Such a cute story with nice illustrations. Words have a good rhythm that is pleasing to baby.one of our favorite reads.
Profile Image for Elizabeth Edwards.
5,551 reviews9 followers
March 23, 2020
wow wee!! amazing, love the illustrations. so great. what more words can you say ... gorgeous. fun. entertaining!!
Profile Image for Maki.
943 reviews
September 9, 2020
Beautiful illustrations and cute story of all the animals getting tangled up as they try to pick the mangoes from the trees.
Profile Image for Carole.
1,631 reviews
March 5, 2024
Orangutans get tangled up with the two of them and other animals when they try to get mangos for a snack.
347 reviews9 followers
August 12, 2016
I received this book in a give away.

Already on the outside this book looks like fun entertainment for very young children, and this promise is delightfully fulfilled. In a gentle, humorous rhyme, Sudipta Bardhan- Quallen tells her take on the Grimm fairy tale "The golden goose" by letting two hungry orangutangs fall onto a pile of sticky mangoes. Glued together by sweet smelling mango juice they attract other animals, who in turn get stuck to, what becomes a ball of animals, including a tiger, who would like to eat them all. In this case there is no princess as reward, but the ball rolls in to the ocean and the animals are freed. As the tiger is carried away by the waves, the other animals swim back to the beach, and find...mangoes! They eat until their bellies are full, and fall asleep in one big ball again.

I liked that the book was in simple rhyme, even though it was sometimes a little contrived. A rhyming story is risky business for a writer for this reason. The story needs to be told with the correct rhyme, rhythm and grammar, and remain a logical sequence. Sentences like "Two orangutangs reclining as the moon above is shining" sounds hokey. First of all why did the author leave the word "are" out of the sentence? The rhythm would still be intact. Secondly, it feels like the shining moon is only mentioned for the sake of the rhyme. There are other similar, not quite flowing, sentences in the story.

The illustrations are relatively simple, clearly outlined, and explain the situation succinctly to small children. They also add to the story. The adventure is witnessed initially be a frog, who is soon joined by a bird and a baby yak. Their reward for not getting "tangled" in the intrigue is, that without getting dumped into the ocean, they still get to eat mangoes on the beach, and to fall asleep with their friends. Children will enjoy finding the frog on many of the pages.

The one thing I questioned about the pictures was that the story starts in the dark, but after everybody rolls into the ocean it is suddenly sunny and warm. I would have preferred a gradual lightening of the sky as time goes on, just like to room gets darker and darker in "Goodnight moon" by Margaret Brown.

Overall, this is a great book to read with 2 to 4 year olds. I am looking forward to reading it to my students.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
12 reviews1 follower
February 22, 2014
I was so excited to win this book in a free giveaway! As an elementary school teacher I am always looking for great books to share with my students. While I haven't had the opportunity to read Orangutangled to a class yet, I just know that when I do the children will LOVE it. I couldn't stop smiling while reading this light-hearted and endearing story. Two orangutans try to pick a couple of mangoes only to fall out of the tree and find themselves in a very sticky situation. I found the story very reminiscent of one of my childhood favorites, The Mitten. The story reads wonderfully aloud and lends itself to many valuable lessons for any grade level. I can't wait to share this with my students!
Profile Image for Erin.
72 reviews6 followers
September 1, 2016
This wild romp of a book is perfect for any jungle themed storytime! Two orangutangs wake up, craving a snack, in the middle of the night. They find some delicious mangoes in a tree, but when they reach for them, they lose their balance and the mangoes and monkeys come crashing crashing down and end up orangutangled! Several other jungle animals attempt to free the primates but end up being orangutangled as well! The illustrations, rendered in ink, brush, and photoshop, fit well with this silly story that kids will love.
Profile Image for Carrie Charley Brown.
307 reviews309 followers
August 21, 2015
Orangutangled will be sure to evoke the "read agains!" It is kid-style-silly to the core featuring building chaos at every turn! The forward motion of this story is enhanced with spirited rhyme and onomatopoeia. The cartoon animal illustrations are funny and relatable with expressions you will find on any child's face.
Profile Image for Carol.
1,771 reviews22 followers
February 8, 2014
Read this silly rhyming tale aloud to little kids and everyone is sure to be giggling. Can you even say the word "orangutangled" without smiling? As the animals arrive they keep sticking to the mango goo bringing to mind such stories as The Enormous Turnip and other progressive tales. The illustrations are colorful and bold, sure to engage your listeners.
Profile Image for Samantha Brown.
3 reviews
February 20, 2014
I received this book in a giveaway.

This is a very cute rhyming book. The illustrations were great and both of my (5 & 7) enjoyed the book. We immediately lent it to my 5 year old's pre-k class and they loved it also!
Profile Image for Samantha.
4,985 reviews60 followers
February 26, 2014
Two orangutans become entwined when they jump for the same mango. Other animals are pulled into their tangles when they try to help them separate.

Rhyming text features some fun wordplay set against brush and ink illustrations colored digitally. PreK-2.
298 reviews1 follower
March 18, 2014
I received this book as a free giveaway from Goodreads First Read. It has cute illustrations and the text is funny and rhymes. It is a fun book to read to grandchildren who especially like the tangled mess that ensues.
Profile Image for Beth.
1,632 reviews26 followers
March 25, 2014
I love Aaron Zenz's illustrations, so that's why I picked up this book. The text (not written by him) was very reminisenct of The Hiccupotamus and The Chimpansneeze, both by him, which I found very interesting. However, it was a lot of fun, and would be great for a story time.
Profile Image for Sheila.
3,387 reviews58 followers
December 2, 2016
Cute story of orangutans who want to eat mangoes and end up in trouble along with other animals who get in their way. The illustrations are adorable. The story is rollicking. Children will love this book.
Profile Image for Jo Oehrlein.
6,361 reviews9 followers
December 26, 2016
A silly rhyming story about 2 orangutangs who end up in a mango tangle and the various other animals that get tangled with them. Not sure about the yak being in the same place as the other animals....

I could see this being a favorite to read again and again with a preschooler.
2 reviews2 followers
February 27, 2014
I got this book through the Goodreads First Read giveaway and when we got it my children asked my wife and I to read it to them over and over. This is a silly book and my children loved it.
Profile Image for Natasha.
29 reviews
April 21, 2014
I won this book through a goodreads giveaway.
My daughter enjoyed the book and the pictures. She is now very familiar with how to pronounce Orangutan!
603 reviews
June 26, 2014
I think of color blocking when I look at some of the illustrations. This is a silly rhyming story. Preschoolers and kindergartens will probably be taken with the giggles.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews

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