100 Books Like The View at the Zoo

This book is full of unexpected delights from beginning to end.

The first spread states, “ROAR!! Goes the…” opposite a cutout that shows a tiger driving. The next spread says, “…TRUCK that rumbles up the road,” and shows the tiger driving a truck with a crate of tacks tumbling onto the road.

Likewise, “Hiss…goes the CAR that gets a flat tire,” driven by a snake. A parade of vehicles gets held up behind them until a coyote-driven police car (Awooo!) and beaver-driven tow truck (chomp!) save the day.

Cushman’s illustrations contain even more visual jokes. The sloth passing the pile-up on the sidewalk while pushing a tennis-ball-footed walker made me laugh out loud, even without a vehicle- or animal-loving toddler to read it to.

A lifelong cat person, I was drawn to Betsy Lewin’s light-hearted illustrations and lilting rhyme featuring an orange tabby.

It starts, “Everyone knows where Tippy Toes is/ when the sun is up and the day is his.” The next spread shows a mouse’s view of a paw through its hole followed by one from the cat’s viewpoint showing the mouse’s tail through its hole. More clever cutouts add to the fun as we follow Tippy Toe through an adventure with a garden hose, a nap in a drawer, and a dash through a blueberry pie.

The final text reads, “No, nobody knows where Tippy Toes creeps/ when darkness falls and the whole world sleeps…”. The last page turn reveals the cat curled up under his boy’s covers, finishing “…except me.”

My daughter, a children’s librarian, says this storytime favorite is sure to delight the toddler crowd.

It’s packed with interactive fun, with invites to hi-five various animals. “Hi-five a lion. Hear him GROWL. YOO-HOO-HOO! Hi-five an owl.” Each one’s paw or wing is sized just right for toddlers to do just that on this sturdy board book (A Never Bored Book!). They can hi-five both antlers on a moose and, at the end, “Hi-five an octopus, I say. But only if you have all day!”

The final spread encourages the toddler to high-five the reader.

Parents and older siblings will join me in identifying with the sleepy-eyed family members shown here, while toddlers will cheer on the wide-eyed baby.

The text is a litany of everyone and everything that is sleepy, with the title repeated throughout the day’s wind-down. “Sleepy moon,/ sleepy stars,/ sleepy night sky./Everyone’s sleepy/ but the baby,/ why, why, why?” In the final spread, the baby joins both dozing parents in dreamland. Parent readers can only hope their little one isn’t giggling too hard to follow suit.

I grew up in NJ, so I visited the Central Park Zoo as a child.

I still remember when I first learned about Silo and Roy adopting Tango. Who knew such a sweet story would turn into one of the most banned books of the last two decades?

I still get teary-eyed when reading this heart-warming story. I’ve been hoping for years that they would create a follow-up story about Tango, who grew up and cared for an egg with another female penguin!

I suspect that this book has inspired the many zookeepers around the world who now give other same-sex penguin couples a chance to adopt eggs. 

The vibe is: Saturday morning cartoons (the olden-days kind)!

The premise is simple and adorable: Tig (a small, yellow cat) and Lily (a much bigger feline with orange-and-black-stripes) both think they're tigers – but they can't both be right! The setup is funny, but the real joy is hanging out with Tig & Lily as they attempt to work through their issues.

The art is crisp and clean, and the comic timing is so spot-on that reading feels effortless. You might see the ending coming...or, like me, you might be taken delightfully by surprise. Either way, this book will lift your spirits in the most wholesome ways. (First in a series!)

Since primates make the best mischief-makers, it was inevitable that this book would end up on the list. As with Olivia, these animals, led by their fearless friend Gorilla, are driven by their curiosity. Just what is it like to sleep in a house? Their downfall comes because they are too polite and wish Mrs. Zookeeper a good night. I love that she’s so patient with them that she walks them all back to their enclosures, even holding Gorilla’s hand. 

Penguins are adorable! Used in children’s books, they are the perfect stand-in for children. In many cases, using a non-child character makes it easier for a child to enjoy the story without focusing on the message. So, when a penguin announces to its zoo pals that it wants to explore space, kids just want to go along for the ride! The subtle messages of self-esteem, friendship, and community play off each other in the climax (no spoilers!)

Toddlers will adore this fun novelty board book about animal mouths and chewing. My kids enjoy using the large, sturdy pull tabs to make the animals chomp and nibble. With fun rhymes and a slew of really expressive animal characters, this book, along with the other two board books in the series, Sniff! and Lick!, have become favorites in our household.

In this interactive picture book, every other page is cut to look like a blanket. My kids love tucking in each animal by turning the page. This simple, gentle bedtime book also features repeated lines, so kids can join in the reading. “Who else needs to be tucked in?” / “I do!” It’s a wonderful way to get toddlers engaged in the story (but not in a rambunctious way) before settling into bed.