As a class assignment, New School Montessori 5th graders read and discussed two of Katherine Applegate’s books.
The first title, “The One and Only Ivan,” a Newbery Award winner, describes the friendship between a captive gorilla (Ivan) and his fictional animal friends. Based on Ivan’s real-life experiences, and written from his perspective as a gorilla, it tells how he and his twin sister were captured and of his years of hardship. Ivan became a renowned animal artist, living in a more natural habitat at Zoo Atlanta where he painted and created works of art until his passing in 2012.
The original book was released as a film in 2020 with a sequel to the book picking up where the last one left off as it continued its telling of the story of friendship, family, home and courage. The sequel is titled, “The One and Only Bob.”
Student reviews:
- Of the two books, Molly liked “The One and Only Bob” better because there were more action scenes and reunions and because Bob was less serious and made more jokes. Most of the class seemed to agree. Molly noted, “It is amazing how Bob saves a life near the end of the book, yet at the beginning of the book he always said to look out for yourself.”
- Brynnlee agreed with Molly and preferred the sequel because it had more action, saying “There was a hurricane and you got to see some of the characters you already knew.” Brynnlee found “The One and Only Ivan” to be sad but said it got better by the end.
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