The One and Only Ivan

Literary awards - Newbery Medal (2013), California Book Award for Juvenile (Gold) (2012), Pennsylvania Young Readers' Choice Award for Grades 3-6 (2014), Vermont Golden Dome Book Award Nominee (2014), Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award Nominee (2015), Bluestem Book Award (2015), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Middle Grade & Children's (2012), SCBWI Crystal Kite Member Choice Award for California/Hawaii (2013), Oklahoma Sequoyah Award for Children (2015), Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award Nominee (2015).

Ivan is a laid-back gorilla, residing at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, where humans peer at him through glass walls. He has grown accustomed to this life, hardly reminiscing about his days in the jungle. Instead, Ivan's thoughts revolve around TV shows he's watched and his close companions – Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But, most of all, Ivan's mind is consumed by art, as he contemplates how to encapsulate the flavor of a mango or the rustling of leaves with the stroke of a brush and a well-placed line.