Jorge el Curioso (Curious George) Book

* Read and reviewed by me and my niece Emma *

What is it about this monkey that so enthralls readers? This introductory story by Rey is not terribly memorable or particularly exciting, yet the kids are drawn to it, I absolutely love it and my niece - a first time reader/listener - was mesmerized.

For those who forget what happens in this first Curious George book, a poacher the Man With The Big Yellow Hat captures George in the wild, illegally keeps him in his city apartment, smokes a pipe with him, neglects to give him proper care so that George goes bad and ends up in prison, and then gets transported to the zoo, a slightly less dreary internment.

As you see, it's a mean streets existence for our little simian friend.



He's taken from one jungle and forced into another. The society he inhabits changes, but his habits within society do not. George, you see, is curious. Some would call it his one great failing. He likes to check things out and that gets him into trouble. If it weren't for his curiosity he never would've been captured in the first place. And that right there is why we become entranced by Curious George.

But why the fascination in the first place? Why did my niece see the cover of this book and decide "this one!"? My guess is that, well, who doesn't love a monkey? In the past, when Emma has done something silly and flopped about all crazy like kids do, I would occasionally call her a monkey. So I think she just was curious to see what her brethren were up to. These days she also has a strong interest in chickenbutt and getting people people to answer "what" to her question "Guess what?!". Rest assured, I am doing yoeman's work in the uncle department. But I digress...

Other than that she liked it, Emma didn't have much to say about Curious George when we finished, yet she was riveted the whole way through. Heck, I didn't even do funny voices and her eyes were still glued to the pages. I have no doubt she'll want to return to the adventures of Curious George in the future and I will be happy to! George is my dawg! He was my favorite stuffed animal as a child. I carried him all the way up a mountain in a tiny backpack as boy no older than 4-year-old Emma, because I couldn't bare to leave him behind. George and I were inseparable and I wouldn't be surprised if he found a new bestie in my niece.