Murilla Gorilla And The Hammock Problem

Description

Meet Murilla: the messiest, hungriest and hairiest detective around, and her jungle friends, who constantly need her help to solve their mysteries. In this third mystery of the Murilla Gorilla Detective series, Okapi discovers that one of his hammocks has a hole in it. What could have happened? It is up to Murilla to find out, following a set of strange-looking prints leading away from the hammock.

Reviews

The New York Times "Murilla Gorilla" is, above all, a pleasure to read and look at. Like the cheeky rascal who stole the muffins, readers will be hungry for more. Publisher's Weekly Murilla Gorilla joins a proud tradition of sleuths whose cases are solved as much by dumb luck as by skill. Over five chapters, Murilla tries to figure out who ate the banana muffins that Ms. Chimpanzee had been planning to sell at the Mango Market. Readers will quickly get the sense that Murilla isn't a conventional detective. In the first chapter, she goes back to sleep after getting Ms. Chimpanzee's phone call, and it takes her some time to track down her backpack and badge ("It was in the bathtub!"). Lloyd (Ella's Umbrellas) works lots of deadpan humor into her trim sentences. "Do you like bananas?" Murilla asks Ms. Chimpanzee, getting an idea. "Murilla! I am not the muffin thief!" shouts the increasingly frustrated baker. While this is a charming debut for Murilla, it's also a strong one for Lee--her sherbet palette and friendly characterizations are an ideal fit for the book's blend of mystery and comedy. When Murilla dons a banana tree costume and tries to stay awake long enough to catch the perpetrator, she's nothing short of a vision. Ages 5-8. (May) Booklist There is mischief afoot at the Mango Market, and Murilla Gorilla is on the case. In this first entry in a new series of early reader mysteries, Murilla is hired by Mrs. Chimpanzee to solve the case of her missing banana muffins. Readers won't need to borrow Murilla's magnifying glass to follow along with the clues, which establish a motive and possible suspect early on. Murilla's meandering detection allows readers to meet several supporting characters who represent the variety of exotic animals living in the jungle. And though Murilla may wander, the text does not; the chapters are succinct and the vocabulary focused, keeping new readers on track and interested. The illustrations are awash with

Author description

Jennifer Lloyd is the author of "Ella's Umbrellas," "One Winter Night" and "Looking for Loons." When she is not at her writing desk, she works as a kindergarten teacher in Blainville, Quebec. Her students provide her with a wealth of ideas, as do her own two children. Jennifer loves teaching beginning writing to her students, many learning in a second language. She also gives workshops in classrooms around the Laurentians and Montreal. Jennifer lives in Blainville, Quebec. Jacqui Lee graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design with a Bachelor of Design, and currently lives and works in Vancouver, BC. This is her first book.