Eight Silly Monkeys

by Steve Haskamp (Illustrator)

Get set for romping and rhyming fun! Young ones will love counting backwards as they watch eight monkeys disappear one by one with each turn of the page in this delightful tale. Eight Silly Monkeys features full-color illustrations, charming verse, and innovative die-cutting to reveal silly, touchable monkeys on each page. As fun to read as it is to listen to, this enjoyable rhyming adventure is a perfect read for ages 3 and up.



Book Board BookPublication 1/1/2003 18Reading Age 3 and Up

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Animals, Mathematics, Counting, Number

18 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2003

Reviews

[Matthew Selby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monke.... 🐵🐵🐵🐵🐵🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eight Silly Monkeys is a chilling socialist commentary on the dangers of parental negligence and the skyrocketing costs of private healthcare. It opens with a bold statement, a grand juxtapostion of the darkness of the narrative with childhood innocence. But soon it would take a turn for the worst. Each child begins dropping (quite literally) like flies--symbolizing the deaths of those neglected by our self-centered, capitalist society--while the mother tries in vain to stop them from jumping to their own dooms, symbolizing the brave few who dare to stand up to this institution. The obvious promotion of a socialist narrative in a children's novel was surprising, but welcome; it breaks new ground--after all, indoctrination of the young is most effective. And it continues to represent healthcare equity in terms children can understand, with the constant metonymy of ineffective common household remedies for the stark ineptitude of American hospitals, as well as even more ineffective self-treatment for lack of money to seek healthcare in a more official capacity. Overall, the social commentary is scarily accurate, and brings the needed attention of the next generation to the world's important issues. Our world fars further into hell every day--it's never too soon to get the next generation to clean up the mess we began. They're our only hope.

[Zandie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The plot was a little dry but it had a good plot twist at the end!

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this version of the rhyme the most. The monkeys' faces are 3-D and the pages are cut out for the faces. Illustrations are bright and eye catching.

Also they are not just jumping on the bed. Different verbs are used as the monkey countdown progresses.

[Marshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Needless to say, my three-month-old daughter's face lights up each time I hold this book up over her and say "monkeys!" She really enjoys the bright colors and (I think) the silly monkey faces that gradually disappear from the pages as we go along. To be honest, now that we've read it dozens of times, she tends to get distracted by the time four monkeys are eating on the bed, but it remains one of our favorites. Neither of us cares for the ending, which neither rhymes with the rest of the book nor offers us any clues that the monkeys have learned their lessons after they fell off the bed one by one. Still, we enjoy Eight Silly Monkeys: it's a quick read, brightly illustrated, and I can now repeat it in its entirety in my sleep.

[Ezi Chinny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book for my daughter's friend's birthday but after I read it to her, she wanted to keep it. And we read this book every night.
This book helps with counting, it helps with memory and association and it helps reminding her things not to do in bed.

We love this book. It's easy to read, remember and it is fast. Even if you read it twice like I sometimes have to do, it is a quick read.

[The Book Box]

Re-read February 2018: I love this silly book! I say the doctor's lines each time, and count all of the monkeys.

Re-read March 2017: Mama and Daddy have read this to me several times because I'm on a big monkey kick right now! I like saying the doctor's lines along with the story.

Originally read 4/28/16: Oma read this to me while I played at her house this morning, then let me bring it home so I could "read" it myself!

[Miss Pippi the Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

An expanded version of the classic song - Five Little Monkeys jumping on the bed! They also do more than just jump on the bed each time. Their actions include jumping, skipping, tumbling, dancing, eating, swinging, sliding, and spinning. It was fun to share at storytime. Everyone joined it because they either were familiar with the classic song, or they got comfortable with the repetition of each verse.

2018 storytime theme: eight

Reviewed from a library copy.

[Amanda Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a gift to my son when he was about a year old. We read it many times and donated it to his daycare when he entered kindergarten. We still talk about those monkeys sometimes.

[Paige Blair · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a version of the classic song “monkey jumping on the bed.” Eight monkeys are jumping on the bed, and one by one, each fall off and bump their head. The mother monkey calls the doctor and the doctor says, “no more monkeys jumping on the bed!” This illustrator uses 3D features on the monkeys throughout the book which adds a unique feature to the story. This is a great story to introduce counting and numeracy by counting backwards from eight. It uses monkeys and various actions to intrigue children as well as a rhyming song that they can remember and sing along with. I have a one-year-old who LOVES when I read him this book. He loves my voice and tone that I use as well as the singing pattern throughout the story. He also loves to touch the 3D pieces. It’s a great story to introduce to babies and toddlers because it holds their attention and gets them recognizing how reading works.

[Kelly Wickham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an old traditional song that has been the theme of many children's books. Kids love the rhythm and sing-songy flow of this song. This is currently Marcos's favorite book and he just shines went you sing the part "Mama called the doctor and the doctor said,". Marcos struggles with speech, but when we get to this part he perks up and sings along with a huge smile on his face. He likes to count the monkeys on each page, realizing there is one less monkey on each page. A fun book to read with small children that delights and engages them.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book among my sister's belongings, after she died. She loved to read to her children, and grandchildren. I thought this book would be fun to read to my grandchildren, but haven't had a chance yet. This book is a different from the song, about the little monkey's jumping on the bed, so that was fun. This book has holes in each page, so the monkey's can be counted by the children, as the number grows fewer.

[Byron Snapp · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arthur likes this book and will pick it out. He likes that we will sing the book to him. The book is pretty much the same as the traditional song I heard growing up although the monkeys are doing different things on the bed every time as opposed to just jumping on it.

As a parent, I am not really thrilled with the end which implies they can jump on the couch.

[Kara Laidig · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this version of monkeys jumping on the bed. Instead of all the monkeys falling off the bed, they slip off and fun things like that. Every kid loves this story! And at the end after all of the monkeys have bumped their heads, they go jumping on the couch.

[Jude · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure we needed eight calls to the doctor if he's just going to give the same exact advice every time. I wonder if the doctor is like, "Oh, mama monkey AGAIN?" (Long sigh.) "Okay, put her though."

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The plot is basically non-existent.

It is all about the artwork.

And the artwork and the monkey
figure heads are quite excellent
and striking.

No doubt this book with its silly
plot but stellar artwork would
greatly appeal to a lot of young
children.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book to read to my 5-year-old grandson at nap time since our visit was coming to an end. OMG I remember singing this when I was 5-years-old. It's one of our favorites and we sang it together at the beginning of my visit. So of course, it was the perfect way to end the visit.

[Dianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit too long for her now, but she seems to enjoy the rhythm. Until she gets bored. :)

[Sasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very catchy rhyme although the monkeys' faces slightly frighten me.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very silly book. Good for very young toddlers.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book and exactly the same as the nursery rhyme. Very cute!!

[Shelby Rollenhagen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute.

[Asher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like counting.

[Kelly Chester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute book super cute book

[Mary Teske]

Would be super cute to read to a kindergarten class as a fun read aloud!

[Stefanie Bevins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute version of the classic monkeys jumping on the bed. My 16 month old son liked the dimensional monkeys 🙂

[Jaime T · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brod Fav

[Blakely Pierson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silly monkeys!!!

[Debbie Reads · Rating 1 out of 5]

Eh it was okay the pop-up monkey heads were cool.

[Lucy Willoughby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not as good as ladybug book but still fun