Voices in the Park

Wow, what a great story is "Voices in the Park!" What a delight to find such a clever presentation of point of view and how the companion attitude changes setting and dynamics of character. Wow again!When I first opened the book, I thought, oh no, Planet of the Apes revisited. The anthropomorphic characters are gorillas; their offspring look like chimpanzees. But once in the story, the reader forgets the "color of their skin" to see into their hearts. That's where truth lies, as Martin L. King, Jr. so accurately told us long ago.The literature teacher in our small Catholic school asked, not long ago, for a book on point of view. I gave her Goldilocks and the Three Bears: Bears Should Share! (Another Point of View) and The Three Billy Goats Gruff/Just a Friendly Old Troll (Another Point of View), both written with another perspective, Goldilocks and the Troll. However, "Voices in the Park" is much better!Anthony Browne utilizes color, objects and setting to demonstrate point of view. The first voice is that of staid, uptight gorilla mom, well-to-do, with a pedigree dog and well-groomed little boy. She is none too happy to share a park bench with a seemingly down-and-out gorilla man. His is the second voice, one of despair, but he takes his son and dog to the park anyway. Then the two children have voices, the boy gradually cracking open his shell, the "rough" girl alive with energy and gaiety.Here's an example of Browne's use of artistry to display emotion: Gorilla mom looks at her son at the moment when he hands something to the girl (the scene on the book cover). All she sees is her son. During the girl's voice, that same scene is aglow with warmth and light because of the touching gesture."Voices in the Park" will well serve our literature teacher, but more so bright children who will see and understand point of view and attitude and friendship and dogs running free in the park! Oh yes, this book is a keeper!

This book is a day in the park as seen by four separate voices. Reading it feels a bit like being part of a musical quartet--each voice adds something different to the overall story line. As always with a book illustrated by Anthony Browne, you will be rewarded as you study the pictures on each page. Magical and whimsical images are everywhere. If you read this book to a child, have fun varying your voice as you read each of the four characters--it makes it even more fun! The story line in the book is appealing to a child and also speaks to adults. This book is a special and beautiful creation!

Many mention the writing convention of "point of view" as a strong point of this book,and it is, but few reviewers mention the complex themes and issues that arise from this book. The illustrations are worth more than the cost of the book, as one reviewer put it. However, I found that the subtle ways in which this book invites the reader to ponder socio-economic class, child-parent relationships, financial struggle, and the innocence of childhood to be much more thought-provoking. I appreciate how the characters are not people--they are not of any certain ethnic background. I appreciate the detail to diction. Mostly, I appreciate the simplicity of the ending and what it says about how we all might view things when all is said and done at the end of the day.

Amazing and beautiful illustrations that show exactly how the character feels! Even the font changes to show the personality of the character! Perfect book for studying character point of view and perception for any age group!

I ordered this book to teach different perspectives in literature in elementary school. It is told from 4 different points of view. Each point of view has its own mood, font, and illustrations. I would highly recommend this book.

This book is so odd. And I love that about it, but get your white-out ready if you don't want your kid reading that one of the characters thinks another character is a "twit" and maybe one other place with startling language like that. I read it to my 7 year old stepdaughter (with the weird parts whited out) and she loves it. I don't regret buying it in the least. It offers what few other books do--change in character perspective and uniqueness in general. We laughed so hard at how a few of the primates have "human" arms while most don't.

This is a great book that, together with its artwork, could even be used as a high school literary analysis assignment. For younger kids, it is a cute story with a good moral, and for older students even deeper meanings could be drawn from it. I work as a substitute teacher for mostly middle and high schools and I often use this book for "filler" lessons. The students seem to really enjoy reading it and interpreting its meaning.

Great book for teaching my 2nd graders different points of view. 4 different people go to the same park at the same time but all have a different experience.