This was such a cute children’s book! I received a eARC from NetGalley and read it to my toddler. So fun, educational and cute. I found myself smiling and I want to read a few more of Ashley’s books now that I know about them :) thank you!

🦁 The Day I Had a Zoo — A Playful, Heart‑Full Review
Luke, Emma, Mikey, and Noah step into the zoo expecting one of those easy, wonder‑filled days where you point out stripes and spots and everyone debates which animal has the funniest face… but instead, the whole visit bursts into delightful chaos when a band of cheeky monkeys accidentally frees every creature in sight. Suddenly the zoo becomes a swirl of paws and trunks and feathers, and the adventure takes off at full speed.

What follows is a buoyant, joy‑soaked romp through unexpected animal encounters — lions padding through places they absolutely shouldn’t be, elephants lumbering with gentle confusion, zebras zig‑zagging like they’ve just discovered freedom for the first time. The kids jump straight into action alongside the zoologist, using creativity, kindness, and teamwork to guide each animal safely back home.

The story keeps its pace lively without ever feeling frantic, and there’s a warm heartbeat under every moment. It’s the kind of picture book that invites kids to lean in close, laugh out loud, and imagine themselves as brave helpers who can turn a wild day into something wonderful. Fans of Good Night, Gorilla and Dear Zoo will feel right at home, but Ashley Wall adds her own spark — a bright thread of friendship and imaginative problem‑solving that makes the whole adventure glow.

Perfect for bedtime, storytime, or those cozy homeschool afternoons when you want something lively but still sweet, The Day I Had a Zoo celebrates helping others… even when “others” happen to be a lion, a zebra, and a very opinionated elephant.

This is a fun book that kids will love.
The illustrations are great, and it isn't just a story, but includes facts about different animals.
Just be prepared for your kids to ask to go to the zoo after reading this!

A happy, fun read for young kids that will get lots of giggles with the antics when the animals get loose.
The Day I Had a Zoo is bright, colourful and very cute.
Perfect for bedtime reading!
Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.

This story was really cute! I loved the friends riding in on the elephants. I laughed at the end where the kid was describing his day helping wrangle zoo animals and the parents were just like "that sounds fun dear". The kids used thinking skills on how to get the animals to cooperate.

This was soo cute!

I read this with my daughter and we were giggling away! This captures children in by the funny pictures and hilarious storyline. Dancing flamingos, face painting lions and slushie slides!
I loved how there were sneaky facts throughout the book about the animals as well.
This is a book I’m certain all kids will love!

I watch my 4 year old niece once a week and we are working on her reading. I use NetGalley to find new books for us to read together.

This book was great — provided us with some new words to work through and the illustrations were clear and colorful to help supplement the reading. When we are reading together, the illustrations can make or break the book. We need the book to provide a clear picture of what she is reading. It helps keep her focused and provides her context.

This book is adorable, fun, and so cute.

While I was reading this, I couldn't help but smile and think of the children in my class and their faces, the way they would laugh and point at things as we sat on the carpet doing story time. Not only is the story adorable, but the artwork itself adds a layer of humour, which is so important when you are reading to young children; they might not always understand the words, but the pictures can make them light up.

This was such a great book, and I can't wait to incorporate it into my classroom.

Ashley Wall combines science and silliness in a cute story where young children work together to help get escaped zoo animals back to where they belong. She uses the term habitat and makes sure the animals are returned to the right type of area. But kids will enjoy the silliness of animals in sunglasses and animal conga lines while they are learning.

This is a gorgeous children's book which my daughter and I really loved reading. It has beautiful, colourful graphics and lovely text which make each page stand out and be attractive to children. The characters are really fun and the story is so cute. I highly recommend this lovely book!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book.

This is a fun, educational and really cute story. Thought the end was quite funny as well where the kid told about his day and his parents responding like it's the most normal thing in the world.

I did think the different colors for the text were a bit confusing at some times, but I get the choice and still a five star read.

What a delightful book!
Young readers will especially enjoy this action-packed zoo adventure experienced by Luke and his friends. There's a winning combination of humor, imagination and action that will have them laughing and laughing. Add the vivid and creative illustrations and it's a winning tale!

Join these fun friends for another epic adventure, this time at the zoo!

This children’s picture book series is so lovely! The kids find themselves in these whimsical adventures that they can only get out of by leveraging creative thinking and teamwork. I love how each kid contributes to the team mission in each book!

I love that these books encourage kids to use their imaginations! Just what kind of adventure can happen at the zoo if things get crazy?

I can’t wait for the next installment of this charming and creative series.

Thank you to Netgalley, Edelweiss and MamaBear Books for the opportunity to read and review this book for my speech students. I think this one is my favorite of the books to date, due to the fact that it felt like an everyday trip to the zoo as a zookeeper. It did not really show that the children were pretending to have a zoo until the end (unless I skipped a page which could happen you never know). But I truly enjoy these books to show to my students on a varying theme I am interested in for the week etc. Overall, I highly recommend. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

This is a really cute book, our kids love the zoo and especially books about the zoo. The illustrations are quite cozy and the animals escaping is very imaginative.

The Day I Had a Zoo is a silly story of Luke and his friends who end up helping corral a bunch of escaped zoo animals back to their enclosures after the monkeys helped them all escape.

Equal parts silly and informative, this silly story is also full of lots of fun animal facts, keeping readers engaged while also teaching them fun facts.

A great story for reading practice or story time animal loving kids will love this book.