Curious George Goes Camping

Rey’s, M. & H.A. (1999). Curious george goes camping. New York: Houghton Mifflin.

        Many of us are already familiar with Curious George, the precocious little monkey, and his friend, the man with the yellow hat.  George’s stories have survived decades alongside many other wonderful children’s books, and remain as popular as ever.

        One of the Curious George series of picture books, the plot of Curious George Goes Camping follows George’s adventures at a campsite and in the woods, after he naturally gets distracted from his assigned task.  He finds himself lost and all alone, far from camp.  Distracted once again, he tries to pet a black and white kitty…  Next, he must try to get rid of the awful perfume the “kitty” left with him, which evolves into his being in a treetop where he spots smoke that is not from the campfires.  Once again, George emerges as an unlikely hero.

        The delightful pictures, line drawings colored in, illustrate the narrative on every page, and include many details not mentioned in the text, for example, an array of forest animals and scenery.

        An ongoing question for the George stories could be: What if he had asked permission first?  Of course then he probably would not have so many adventures, or they would be of a different kind, but it merits discussion.

        Based on my experience as a mother and grandmother, I recommend any of the Curious George books for babies, preschoolers, and young readers.  Not only are the stories informative and humorously entertaining, each one includes a related activity.