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Bryan Chick

The Secret Zoo Kindle Edition

by Bryan Chick (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

1,921 ratings

Book 1 of 6: The Secret Zoo

in Children's Detectives Books

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A fast-paced and exciting read for middle grade fantasy, mystery, and animal buffs. Something strange is happening at the Clarksville City Zoo. Late at night, monkeys are scaling the walls and searching the neighborhood—but what are they looking for?

Noah, his sister Megan, and their best friends, Richie and Ella, live next door to the zoo. Megan is the first to notice the puzzling behavior of some of the animals. One day Megan disappears, and her brother and their friends realize it's up to them to find her. Their only choice is to follow a series of clues and sneak into the zoo. But once inside, they discover there's much more to the Clarksville City Zoo than they could ever have guessed...

The author originally had the idea for The Secret Zoo when he was nine and wondered what would happen if zoo exhibits had secret doors that allowed kids to go inside—and the animals to come outside. He brings that sense of adventure and excitement to this story, making it a favorite for home and classroom reading along with such middle grade fantasy favorites as The One and Only Ivan.

Reading age

8 - 12 years
Print length

308 pages
Language

English
Grade level

3 - 7
Lexile measure

800L
Publisher

Greenwillow Books
Publication date

May 18, 2010
Page Flip

Enabled
Word Wise

Enabled
Enhanced typesetting

Enabled
ISBN-13

978-0061987519
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Books In This Series (6 Books)

Complete Series

The Secret Zoo

Kindle Edition

Page 1 of 1Start OverPage 1 of 1

1
The Secret Zoo
Bryan Chick

(1,921)

Kindle Edition

$5.99
2
The Secret Zoo: Secrets and Shadows
Bryan Chick

(598)

Kindle Edition

$3.99
3
The Secret Zoo: Riddles and Danger
Bryan Chick

(388)

Kindle Edition

$5.99
4
The Secret Zoo: Traps and Specters
Bryan Chick

(308)

Kindle Edition

$5.99
5
The Secret Zoo: Raids and Rescues
Bryan Chick

(278)

Kindle Edition

$5.99
6
The Secret Zoo: The Final Fight
Bryan Chick

(274)

Kindle Edition

$6.99

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“An action-packed and breathless story about teamwork . . . the story should appeal both to animal-lovers and a broader audience.”

From the Back Cover

Something strange is happening at the Clarksville City Zoo. Late at night, monkeys are scaling the walls and searching the neighborhood—but what are they looking for?

Noah, his sister Megan, and their best friends, Richie and Ella, live next door to the zoo. Megan is the first to notice the puzzling behavior of some of the animals. One day Megan disappears, and her brother and their friends realize it's up to them to find her. Their only choice is to follow a series of clues and sneak into the zoo. But once inside, will they discover there's much more to the Clarksville City Zoo than they could ever have guessed?

--This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

ASIN : B003MVZ3WE
Publisher : Greenwillow Books; Reprint edition (May 18, 2010)
Publication date : May 18, 2010
Language : English
File size : 954 KB
Text-to-Speech : Enabled
Screen Reader : Supported
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
X-Ray : Enabled
Word Wise : Enabled
Print length : 308 pages
Lending : Not Enabled

Best Sellers Rank: #1,532 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1 in Children's Zoo Books (Kindle Store)
- #1 in Children's Detectives Books
- #1 in Children's Mystery & Detective Adventure

Customer Reviews:
1,921 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		79%
4 star		13%
3 star		4%
2 star		1%
1 star		2%

How are ratings calculated?

Top reviews from the United States

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Amazon Customer

Beware!

Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2020

Verified Purchase

I found this book very much intended for a young adult reader. We used this as a read aloud for homeschool and the vocabulary was a bit advanced for my 2nd grader. Also, it took a long time to actually pull you in. The author detailed just about every aspect of a situation in a way that really had the book drag on. Last, beware! There are not only one, but TWO deaths in this book, pages apart! One being of the mother who dies in the little boys arms and then the little boy dies in his sleep before his birthday!!!! I could not believe what I was reading! I was aware of the mother’s death and had planned to just redirect that page, I appreciate the person who mentioned it in a prior review. However, I had to redirect the story again after reading the second death and make up a storyline considering I was literally reading that part before bedtime. How traumatizing for young readers! We will not be continuing on with the series and I do not recommend for younger kids!

98 people found this helpful

Helpful

A Customer

A Caution

Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2013

Just a caution. My 11 year old was enjoying this book, until he came to this part: page 198: "...his mother fell down the stairs... [she] was hurt so badly that she couldn't move; she'd broken her legs and an arm, and she had other internal damage. Little Frederick was the only person who could help. but being so young [9] and frightened, he didn't know what to do. He simply held his mother at the bottom of the stairs and screamed. By the time they were discovered, Frederick's mother had died."

I felt that was a little unnecessarily traumatic. If your child is a gentle soul, or a hero-type like mine, this may be a little disturbing. It gave him bad dreams. I would have liked to have known about this before he started reading it, so maybe another parent will benefit from the fore-knowledge.

4,261 people found this helpful

Helpful

David N. Groshans

Poorly written story

Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2019

Verified Purchase

The story was predictable and a lot of cliches. The writing was poor, even for a children's book. But overall it was a good read. There was death in the story that might upset some parents. I am sure a good parent will work this out without freaking out their child. Areas that defy physical laws was covered by claiming "magic" or just ignored. The overall worse concept is that adults put children in danger that the adults could have done them selves.

49 people found this helpful

Helpful

Fantasy series for readers of Fablehaven, etc.

Reviewed in the United States on January 21, 2018

Verified Purchase

My rating of 3 stars is probably lower than what my 4th and 5th grade readers of animal-fantasy will give it. For them, the ability for animals, zoo and those thought to be extinct, to travel between the natural world and a more fantastic one is likely to grab their attention immediately. Throwing in a group of four friends with a treehouse fort who seek out adventure, a missing club member, developing relationships between humans and animals, evil Sasquatch creatures, and some magic means that I will buy this series for both my libraries. It is my hope that in future installments that Chick backs off the over-describing and the grandstanding/gushing done by Mr. Darby as he pleads his case for the saving of the Secret Zoo and the council that supports its existence. I am also hoping for a bit more depth in the character development of our four Action Scouts and more subtlety in setting us up for subsequent books. With this being his first book and it having such a unique premise, I am looking forward to watching the series unfold and improve in literary quality. But I will purchase them one at a time as I read them to be sure that aspect does improve. I recommend this book for readers in grades 4-8 who enjoy series such as Mull’s Fablehaven and O’Hearn’s Pegasus.

46 people found this helpful

Helpful

Chad Baker

Perfect for reading to kids at bedtime

Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2019

Verified Purchase

Short chapters, engaging story. Curious obsession with animal heads "rolling" and the word "rump" on the part of the author which induces giggles, but otherwise very enjoyable book broken into short chapters for reading at bedtime. My kids love it. A little spooky in places, but not so much that we had to stop reading. Even Disney movies have spooky themes. It's a multiple book series, so the story doesn't move much in each book. We're on book 3 now and hooked. Kids won't go to bed without it.

25 people found this helpful

Helpful

Felicia

Great!

Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2017

Verified Purchase

I read to my children each night age ( 7 & 9 ). I don't normally purchase a book with this many chapters but this book has held more sons attention nightly, they can't wait for me to read to them which make bed time much easier. P.S. I enjoy the story line as well, I highly recommend it.

22 people found this helpful

Helpful

Grandma B who reads

She loved it. Parts she read herself and parts I ...

Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2015

Verified Purchase

I bought this book for my 7 (almost 8) year old Granddaughter. She loved it. Parts she read herself and parts I read to her. For her there were parts that were 'kinda scary' and parts that made her laugh out loud. She is thinking about passing book 1 on to a friend. I just ordered her book 2; to quote my Granddaughter, "I can't wait!".

26 people found this helpful

Helpful

realkaren

Fresh treatment of an old theme

Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2020

Verified Purchase

The appeal of zoo animals in the context of a youngster's disappearance was a novel approach to the main theme... appreciating the bonds of family and friendship. There was enticing mystery, enough danger suggested to be engaging but not too disturbing for young readers, and characters both flawed and redemptive. On balance this author did a stellar job writing to the targeted age, which I am guessing is 9-12. Characters could have been more fully drawn to make them more relatable but it was adequate and that additional development might have slowed the pace and overtaxed the story line.

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Vironment

Christmas present

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 20, 2020

Verified Purchase

Christmas present for granddaughter , hopefully she’ll enjoy it

Fizzymonkey

Bought as a present - but liked it so much I bought two.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 10, 2017

Verified Purchase

I bought this after a recommendation through TED. The first I gave as a present and it was a big hit. So much so I have bought a second copy.

N Max

Would recommend

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 26, 2014

Verified Purchase

Both my 7 and 9 year old love this story. They are enchanted by the story and beg for more chapters every night! Some chapters are very short making it ideal for a bedtime story. The story is gripping keeping me as interested as them!

Poppy

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 15, 2017

Verified Purchase

Loved by my granddaughter!

Mr Matthew S Twyford

the best book in the world

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 17, 2015

Verified Purchase

This book is the beat book in the world and it is even better than Harry Potter.this book is the best!