DiscoverMiddle Grade

Rumble at the Zoo

By

Loved it! 😍

Rumble at the Zoo is a dynamic book and a fun and colourful story about a mystery at the Zoo.

"Rumble at the Zoo" is a dynamic, fun and colourful book about a trio of kids, working to solve the mystery of why the animals in Skywalk Zoo are behaving in a strange (and not always safe!) way. The unusual behaviour of the animals begins to scare away visitors, causing concern and putting operations at risk.


Lisa Moser helps her mom, Vicki, at their Zoo. She is passionate about the animals and sees them as friends. She likes them more than people and have great admiration, respect and love for them. Her father passed away and the Zoo is his legacy. When the animals start acting weird and scaring visitors, she contacts Matt and Ethan. The boys are famous for solving mysteries, and they come right away.


Using simple and direct language, with a sharp sense of humour that engages the young reader, the story flows with a very good rhythm, and it becomes hard to put the book down. The reader is constantly surprised by unexpected events – even a fight between a large gorilla and an enormous bear!


Betrayal is also in the mix, and comes from characters the young reader won't expect at first. And they definitely won't foresee the reasons behind it. Dialogues are clever and very relatable to middle grade readers. Through the word choices, as well as the characters' reactions and points of view, the author ensures connection and engagement.


Lisa, Matt and Ethan (the narrator) have to face dangerous people with greedy interests, wild animals, and their own fears to solve the mystery and ensure the zoo is safe. The characters are well-developed. Within the first chapters, we get to know about each of the lead characters and their stories. We also learn about their personalities and personal tastes. By the time we get to chapter seven, the three children are our best friends! And we do not like some of the other character... but I won't spoil it, so won't say who and why!


At the end the mystery is solved, new friendships are made and the reader gets the feeling that another adventure is on the way!


Perfect for individual reading, or for caregivers/teachers to read a chapter or two at a time, creating more suspense and engaging the young readers. A good book for children to find pleasure in reading. Recommend for 7 years and up.

Reviewed by

I’m a mother, teacher and book lover/advocate. My goal with the Book Bug platform is to increase interest in reading, especially picture books, and assist parents and teachers. Also to provide resources, story telling, book reviews and advice. Above all, I want to connect our bookworm community.

Prologue

About the author

David is a stay-home dad and an author of middle grade adventure books and for anyone who still feels like a kid. In his quest to entertain the young audience, David aims to take his readers on an action-packed, fun-filled and mysterious ride in the world created for his thrill-seeking characters. view profile

Published on July 14, 2020

Published by

30000 words

Genre: Middle Grade

Reviewed by