In a spare, powerful text and evocative illustrations, the Newbery medalist Katherine Applegate and the artist G. Brian Karas present the extraordinary real story of a special gorilla. Captured as a baby, Ivan was brought to a Tacoma, Washington, mall to attract shoppers. Gradually, public pressure built until a better way of life for Ivan was found at Zoo Atlanta. From the Congo to America, and from a local business attraction to a national symbol of animal welfare, Ivan the Shopping Mall Gorilla traveled an astonishing distance in miles and in impact. This is his true story and includes photographs of Ivan in the back matter.

 

This book is the winner of numerous awards. It was recognised by the Florida Book Award. It was recognised by the Buckaroo Book Award. It also was recognised by the Washington Children's Choice Picture Book Award. It was recognised in the Picture Book category by the North Carolina Children's Book Award. Also it was recognised by the Charlotte Zolotow Award.

This book has been graded for interest at 4-7 years.

There are 40 pages in this book. This is a picture book. A picture book uses pictures and text to tell the story. The number of words varies from zero ('wordless') to around 1k over 32 pages. Picture books are typically aimed at young readers (age 3-6) but can also be aimed at older children (7+). This book was published 2014 by Clarion Books .

K. A. Applegate is the author of the bestselling Animorphs series, as well as the Remnants and Everworld series, Home of the Brave, and the Roscoe Riley Rules series. She lives in Tiburon, California. G. Brian Karas (www. gbriankaras. com) is the popular author and illustrator of numerous picture books, including On Earth and Atlantic (both ALA Notable Books). He lives in New York's Hudson Valley.