Monkey That Had No Tree to Climb

Do you like being scared? Maybe not in real life, but do you like to occasionally read scary stories and watch movies that can send shivers up and down your spine? If so, you are not alone.

Author Frank Simmons's The Monkey That Had No Tree to Climb is a scary story. At least it is to the animal characters whose adventures he shares. Sam the monkey and his friends are riding to the next city in their circus train when it crashes. The animals escape the crash -- including the meanest lion in the world. Like the other animals, he's hungry and eyeing Sam and his friends as his next meal. And because much of their surroundings have been destroyed by fires, there's little for them to eat and few places to hide.

The Monkey That Had No Tree to Climb is an entertaining story that encourages young readers to expand their vocabularies. But it is also a cautionary tale of how humans can put animals at risk when they're not careful in the animals' home territory.