Monkey Magoo and Annalise

Grandma gave Annalise a book when she was eighteen months old which quickly became her favourite. “Monkey and Me” by Emily Gravett tells the story of a little girl and her toy monkey visiting the zoo. The language is simple, rhythmic – I find myself almost singing it to the kids –

Monkey and me,

Monkey and me,

Monkey and me,

We went to see,

We went to see some ….

Bats!

It’s lovely and repetitive for toddlers to say. The little girl leaps from the page with enthusiasm, as there’s no background to distract the eye.

Annalise loved this book so much that I decided she needed a monkey of her own. I used the pattern Monkey Magoo from Melly and Me – Magoo looked so much like Emily Gravett’s monkey! It was my first attempt at sewing a softie, but the instructions were so clear that it was easy to follow. The only change I made was to leave out the boxer shorts and add a tail to make Magoo match the monkey in the story. Magoo has been much loved by Annalise.

There's a lovely door plate on Emily's website featuring the little girl and her monkey which you can print out, colour in, cut out and stick to a bedroom door.