About the Book
Inspiration for the Netflix series Chico Bon Bon!
Whether you need a beebersaw or a chisel, Chico Bon Bon's your monkey. He can build or fix just about anything—from a dock for the ducks to a clock for the Clucks, even a small roller coaster for local chipmunks. But will his tools and his sharp wit save him when an organ grinder sets his sights on making Chico a circus star? Chris Monroe's quirky hero and detailed illustrations will absorb readers in an entertaining adventure that shows there is an inventive way out of every problem—if you have the right tools.
About the Author :
Chris Monroe is an award-winning author, illustrator and cartoonist. Her picture books include Sneaky Sheep, Bug On a Bike and the Monkey With a Tool Belt series, which inspired the Netflix show Chico Bon Bon: Monkey with a Tool Belt. Chris is also the author and illustrator of the comic strip Violet Days, which has been in print for more than 20 years. She lives in Duluth, Minnesota. Chris Monroe is an award-winning author, illustrator and cartoonist. Her picture books include Sneaky Sheep, Bug On a Bike and the Monkey With a Tool Belt series, which inspired the Netflix show Chico Bon Bon: Monkey with a Tool Belt. Chris is also the author and illustrator of the comic strip Violet Days, which has been in print for more than 20 years. She lives in Duluth, Minnesota.
Review :
"Slightly edgy, highly detailed comics-style art will have readers poring over the pages of Monroe's (illustrator of Totally Uncool) latest. Chico Bon Bon, a monkey, loves to build and fix things with his tools. An early picture of the monkey nonchalantly modeling his brilliantly complex tool belt, its contents neatly labeled on white space, gives a clue to the upcoming daffiness: 'screwdriver/ nutdriver/ nutcracker/ squeegee/ ouija/ planer/ strainer/ grease container.' The story itself, a cliched affair about an organ grinder who abducts Chico and Chico's subsequent use of his tools to escape, gets its oomph from the art. Laid out in panels, some numbered, some boxed; laid out in loops; arranged as vignettes; or composed like a maze, the illustrations command a reader's attention. Chico, looks sophisticated--he's a grown-up cousin of Julius the sock monkey. Look past the jacket; not only gadget jockeys will enjoy this visually polished tale."
--Publishers Weekly
"Chico Bon Bon builds and fixes all kinds of things for his friends and family. Suddenly, lured by a banana split sitting on a small table, he is trapped by an organ-grinder and taken on a long, rough ride to the circus camp. Held captive in a box, he uses his trusty tools in a 12-step plan to escape. After catching a bus and getting home safely, he puts on his pajamas - and his tool belt - before dreaming of more things to build. The story is told with occasional rhymes, as when Chico builds 'a dock for the ducks/and a clock for the clucks.' The art is much stronger than the text. Monroe's watercolor-and-ink illustrations enlarge Chico's adventure. Maps show twisty roads, a busy village, and a handy bus stop, and captions label the tools in Chico's belt. Small pictures show the pipe organ he builds for a ladybug and a go-kart to transport skunks. The escape of Bobo, the organ-grinder's previous monkey, with the help of several tigers, is a real treat for observant readers. These same observant readers may also ask where Chico got the big rubber hammer to hit the organ-grinder's big toe. Because there is so much to see in the tiny, detailed pictures, this is better suited to independent reading-and looking-than to group sharing." --School Library Journal
"Despite his somewhat frou-frou name, Chico Bon Bon is the most tool-savvy monkey around. He has quite a collection of helpful gadgets, from wrenches (monkey, turkey, and donkey) to hammers (claw, tack, pajama, banana, and clam) and everything in between, all of which he keeps in his spiffy tool belt that he wears everywhere, even to bed. When the mechanically minded monkey is captured and taken to the circus by a nefarious organ-grinder, his tools come in mighty handy, and clever Chico manages to simultaneously escape from his wooden crate and inflict revenge upon his foe, thanks to, among other things, a file, a utility-knife/lemon-squeezer/flashlight/banana-peeler, a bit of spackle, and a rubber mallet. This is a delightfully odd and enjoyable story, and while the offbeat plot is a bit thin, the silly gizmos and endearingly confident and industrious Chico easily compensate for that shortcoming. There's a bit of Daniel Pinkwater in Monroe's drolly matter-of-fact narration of ridiculous events ('He builds a go-kart for Go-Go to transport the skunks') and young readers will get a kick out of her comical and detailed line-and- watercolor illustrations (humidifier-using kids, for example, may recognize Chico's frog-shaped model). Wide-eyed and widow's-peaked, Chico is a very likable little guy, vaguely spider-monkey-ish in appearance, and his attachment to his tool belt is clearly evident (he all but pats it lovingly as he tells it goodnight). Some of the tiny captions and illustrative details may be missed in a large group readaloud, but this would be an ideal readalone for fans of weird picture-book humor; just be sure to have the tool kit (or belt) ready and waiting for subsequent simian-tics."
--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
