Good Morning, Gorillas

Good Morning, Gorillas is a book in the Magic Tree House series, a collection of children's adventure novels following siblings Jack (age eight) and Annie (age seven) as they travel through time and space using a magic tree house filled with books. The tree house belongs to Morgan le Fay, a magical librarian from Camelot, the legendary kingdom of King Arthur. In this installment, Jack and Annie continue their quest to discover different kinds of special magic for Morgan.

At five in the morning on a dark, rainy day in Frog Creek, Pennsylvania, Annie wakes Jack and urges him to visit the tree house. Inside, they find scrolls from their previous adventure, proof that they already discovered "theater magic." Morgan has left them a new book titled An African Rain Forest along with a secret rhyme: "To find a special kind of magic / in worlds so far apart, / speak a special language, / talk with your hands and heart" (6). Annie points to the book's cover and wishes them there, and the tree house spins and transports them before Jack can object.

They arrive in a foggy, high-altitude rain forest. Jack reads that this environment is called a "cloud forest," a rain forest so high in the mountains of central Africa that it sits among the clouds. The book lists the forest's inhabitants, including black leopards and gorillas. Jack wants to study gorillas scientifically, but Annie is eager to explore. He stops to sketch a moss-covered tree, setting the umbrella and flashlight beside it. Annie calls him over in a whisper, and they spot a small gorilla peeking through the leaves, saying "Bu, bu?" The little gorilla plays peekaboo, claps her hands, and sticks out her tongue. Annie names her Bu-bu and chases after her.

Annie and Bu-bu climb trees together, imitating each other. As darkness falls, Bu-bu swings to another tree and Annie tries the same move but falls to the ground. She is winded but uninjured. Rain begins, and Jack drapes his jacket over Annie, telling her to rest while he retrieves the umbrella and flashlight. In the growing darkness, he cannot find the right tree among many similar moss-covered trunks. Night and a storm arrive simultaneously, and he loses his way entirely, eventually curling up between a tree's roots and falling asleep cold and miserable.

At dawn, Bu-bu tugs Jack's sleeve and leads him to a clearing where at least 10 gorillas are sleeping, including a giant with black and silver fur. Jack reads that mountain gorilla families are led by a large male called a "silverback" and that gorillas eat plants rather than hunting. He spots Annie asleep at the far edge of the clearing and tries to sneak past the sleeping gorillas. The silverback wakes and glares. Jack picks up a stick for protection, which makes the gorilla growl and rise to his full height. Jack drops the stick. The silverback advances, forcing Jack out of the clearing, and when Jack raises his hand, the gorilla erupts into a dramatic display: hooting, beating his chest, roaring, charging back and forth, and pounding the ground. Jack scrambles behind a tree, terrified.

After a long silence, Jack peeks out and sees the silverback sitting calmly, as though the display was a bluff. The research book advises that to safely approach wild gorillas, one should crouch on one's knuckles, keep one's head down, and act friendly. Jack crawls on his knuckles with a smile into the clearing, where Bu-bu screeches with joy. He reaches Annie, who is fine. She explains that Bu-bu led her to this spot when Jack did not return, but it was too dark to see the gorillas around her.

The silverback, whom Annie names Big Guy, barks and leads his family out of the clearing. Bu-bu holds Annie's hand in one hand and Jack's in the other as the gorillas forage through the forest. Jack tries to take scientific notes, but Big Guy growls whenever he sees the notebook. Jack puts it away and begins acting like a gorilla instead. A small gorilla Annie names Ho-ho offers Jack a twig, which he tucks in his backpack. Other gorillas feed Jack berries and offer him rainwater. Bu-bu hugs him, and Jack realizes he is having fun. He no longer minds the rain or feels like an outsider.

When the rain stops, Big Guy leads the family to a sunlit clearing for nap time. Annie holds the baby gorilla, whom she calls Little Guy. Jack reads aloud from the research book about a captive gorilla named Koko who learned sign language, a language using hand gestures primarily used by people who cannot hear. Annie connects this to Morgan's rhyme about speaking a special language and talking with hands and heart. She demonstrates the sign for "I love you," raising her thumb, index finger, and little finger from a closed fist. Jack makes the sign too, and Bu-bu and Ho-ho try to copy the gesture.

Later, while playing with the young gorillas, Jack and Annie discover that Little Guy has crawled to a tree where a huge black leopard sits on a branch, staring hungrily at the baby. Annie scoops up Little Guy, and the leopard leaps down and stalks toward her. Jack remembers Big Guy's aggressive display and imitates it exactly, hooting, beating his chest, roaring, and bashing the earth with his palms until the leopard retreats. Big Guy emerges from the brush, takes Little Guy, and gently touches Annie's cheek. As the silverback passes Jack, he pats Jack on the head. Annie says Big Guy must have watched Jack scare off the leopard and is proud.

Annie tells Jack it is time to leave, but Jack is reluctant; he now loves the gorillas. They stand before Big Guy and the gathered family to say good-bye. The gorillas murmur soft, sad sounds. Big Guy lifts his hand and signs "I love you," raising his thumb, index finger, and little finger. Jack is stunned. He and Annie sign back. The silverback barks and leads his family away. Bu-bu is the only one who looks back, screeching and waving, before disappearing from sight.

Annie leads Jack back to the tree house, gathering his belongings along the way. Inside, Annie points to a picture of Frog Creek in a book about Pennsylvania and wishes them home. A joyous screech rings out through the mist, piercing Jack's heart, but the tree house is already spinning.

Back in the Frog Creek woods, Jack tells Annie he misses the gorillas already. He reflects that his scientific lists cannot capture what really matters; one has to love gorillas to truly know them. He pulls Ho-ho's twig from his backpack to save for Morgan as proof they found a special magic. Annie says the magic they discovered belongs to all animals. Walking home through the rain, Jack feels as though a bit of gorilla remains in him, and the siblings softly exchange gorilla sounds as they head home.