Willy and Hugh

Written and Illustrated by Anthony Browne (1991)

I wanted to finish all of the stories about Willy because I really enjoyed Browne's other books written about Willy. This book is about Willy and a gorilla named Hugh, and they become good friends that look for each other. As in all of Browne's books the gorillas are very well drawn and express emotion extremely well. I liked the story of this book because it is always nice to see people stick up for the "little guy" and then the "little guy" being able to use his strengths to help out the "big guy". I think its important to teach students to use their strengths to help each other out, which will help maintain the community feel the classroom aims to achieve.

I think I would use this book with younger children, especially to drive home the aforementioned principle. Also, Browne uses italicized letters or phrases to help guide the reader in their emphasis on voice inflection. This is something I know a lot of young readers struggle to do, so having this book clearly stress how the book should be read is a good starting place for young readers. As with a lot of Browne's books the illustrations work hand in hand with the text to help tell the story. Another activity I would use would entail having the students write about a time when someone helped them and a time when they helped someone else, including the emotions they felt in both situations.