Willy the Dreamer (Willy the Chimp)

We found this book at a thrift store when my son was only 2 months old. The first time we read it to him he went nuts!!! This is our go to device whenever he is upset. Once he sees willy he just stops in his tracks! After months of use and torn pages we decided to purchase a new willy for our now 18 month old. He still loves this timeless book just as much if not more than when we first started reading it to him. The illustrations are beautiful pieces of art and my husband and I always find something new on the page that we hadn't seen before. Def. recommend!!!

My daughter learned to read with this book. I love Anthony Browne's books.

Don't be fooled by the reading label of this book, 4-8; the real reading label, or shall we say the enjoying label is 4 to 100 because this book is an homenage to culture on the 20th century. Willy is a little monkey (Anthony Browne's alter ego?), with all the vulnerabilities of a sensible child(you must read the four previous Willy's books), but in Willy the dreamer he doesn't have to face the problems that a sensible child must face in his every day's life, in Willy the dreamer our heroe just falls asleep in his confortable chair to be the king of rock and roll; a character of a favorite movie; or of a favorite fairy tale; a sumo wrestler; or just a father. If you're an art lover you will love the homenage to great artists of the century: Magritte, Dalí, De Chirico. Don't worry if you're not an art conossieur because this book has so many readings, so many hidden messages, so many bananas, so many dreams that it can fit any child and grownup imagination. If you want to encourage your child to be a dreamer, you must give him this book. If you're a dreamer yourself, this surely will be the book for you.

This children's book has more than meets the eye. While the book itself on the surface is a clever treatment to a child-aged gorilla's fantasies of having adventures flying, exploring and morphing into monsters, there is definitely a deeper level.The treatment of gorillas and bananas is so thorough- a mermaid's tail becomes a banana, a hot air balloon becomes a gorilla's face. You could read this book over and over again to count the secret bananas, and also, for older readers, to compare them to great works of art in many mediums, including those by Rene Magritte, Salvador Dali, Charlie Chaplin, Lewis Carroll, Norman Rockwell, Maurice Sendak and more.

This is one of those splendid books that offers something to every age group. Willy the monkey, like all of us, has rather bizzare and equally fascinating dreams. Through Browne's brilliant illustrations, we see Willy's awesome visions - so whimsical with the hidden references towards works of art, storybook characters, even movie stars. There are bananas slipped in everywhere - from noses, to tails, to microphones, even in the grin of the Cheshire Cat. Hilarious! In my opinion, this is what makes a phenomenal picture book - one that speaks to all, from the very young to the young at heart. This is truly a work of art!

I really liked the book and many of the references to other famous artists, but there were a few images that were downright creepy, such as the picture of Jekyll and Hyde- the monster had weird marble-like eyes that really bothered me. My 2-year-old daughter didn't seem to mind it, but I thought it was a little too scary looking for young kids. My husband, who isn't a big fan of surrealism, found the book very disturbing, because some of the pictures were right out of his nightmares (like having trees growing out of his head). He refuses to read the book to my daughter, but I like it enough that I haven't yet returned it to the library. I do think the illustrations show a lot of talent and in general I find lots of things I love about the pictures.

Different is good! Willy dreams of being everything from Elvis to a Sumo wrestler. There are so many different things to look at in Anthony Browne's books, it's almost a shame to read them quickly. I do so at our library's storytime but the real way to read this book is laying on the floor with a friend. I showed this book to my 20 year old son yesterday, now he wants a copy. I told him to check it out, and you should too!

My 22 months son loves it! And keep saying “again again, I want it again” I think is a bit short but if he loves it so much I have to give 5 🌟 then

This was one of those books I borrowed from the library and then had to buy. Every page is a masterpiece, with brilliant links to great works of art. Because of this book, my 2 year old daughter now recognises 'Persitence of Memory' and says "Salvador Dali painted it". The book is also great for understanding feelings and compassion and I can imagine it would lead to some interesting chats with older kids esp. on topics such as homelessness and fear. I wish there were more children's books like this.

Another super book by Anthony Browne

My 2 year old loves Anthony Browne stories. I can’t get what appeals so much, but it does. Fascinating to see the connection between child & book.

arrived quickly and a great book kids loved it! kids loved this especially at bed time ! love all the hidden bananas you find along the way whilst reading the story in the weirdest places