Parents' Guide to

Belly Up: FunJungle, Book 1

Book Stuart Gibbs Mystery 2011
Belly Up: FunJungle, Book 1 Poster Image

Common Sense Media Review

Tracy Moore By Tracy Moore , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 8+

Clever, action-packed zoo mystery has some graphic parts.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 8+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

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age 12+

Based on 4 parent reviews

M L.
M L. Adult
October 1, 2023
age 9+

Fat-shaming alert

My fourth grader loves these books- they do have solid ecological messages and good mystery storylines. However-This series is so full of fat shaming and making fun of people (even the main character’s best friend) for their eating habits and inability to find clothing that fits well. It distracts from the storylines and feels almost like bullying to read it. The eighth book finally didn’t have any fat shaming so I am thinking the author got the the message that kids these days just don’t find that funny anymore, but several of the the other books have some pretty extreme descriptions and I would hesitate to recommend them especially to a kid who may already struggle with body image issues .
sjsubity
sjsubity Parent of 14-year-old
July 12, 2022
age 13+

An inventive and fun mystery with a few caveats

An inventive and fun mystery set at a new zoo / theme park in Texas. Due to the animal theme, I was expecting the story to be targeted at a younger audience. However, like the author's other main series, Spy School, this first entry contains a surprising amount of swearing from the adult characters in the book. But Gibbs dials that back a good deal for the later books in the series. Still, I plan to skip this series for my younger daughter until she's a few years older. Also as the Common Sense review mentions, there is a scene where the main character (12) and an older teen girl strip down to their underwear to enter a pool as they investigate a hippo's murder. There are also a variety of gross out scenes describing dead animals being autopsied, and one where a hippo's carcass drops from a height and explodes in a gory wave over a bunch of bystanders.
See all 4 parent reviews

What's the Story?

The star animal of FunJungle, Henry the Hippo, has turned up dead. The zoo claims he died of natural causes, but 12-year-old Teddy Fitzroy's convinced there's a better explanation, and a slew of suspects await, all with their own motive: Large Marge hates Teddy. Charlie Conroy was once bitten by Henry. And the Animal Liberation Front could be trying to sabotage the zoo. With the help of zoo owner J.J. McCracken's daughter, Summer, Teddy tracks down clues and learns a lot about zoo animals, ethics, and uncovering the truth in Texas whodunnit style.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (4 ):
Kids say (13 ):

From Stuart Gibbs, the same author who wrote the clever, madcap Spy School and Spy Camp, BELLY UP offers just as much thrill, suspense, and teen boy hilarity, only this time, at a zoo. Here, Teddy Fitzroy's another precocious kid who's misunderstood or whose talents are quite recognized in his particular setting, but who works to earn respect, overcome assumptions, and win the day. There are graphic descriptions here that could be off-putting to the faint of heart, and a few fat jokes that don't quite seem necessary. At times Fitzroy's voice is a bit more adult-like than one might expect from a 12-year-old boy, and the jokes can be a little dated, but this is a fun, engaging read that moves through suspense as if it written for the big screen.

Kids interested in animals, research, or science will find a lot to engage with here, and parents can appreciate a book that continually reasserts the importance of research, ethics, and science in the treatment of animals and dealings within the adult world.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how lying figures in Belly Up. Is lying ever justified? How do Teddy and his dad discuss lying as a last resort to gain entry for research? Do you think that's a good reason to lie?

  • If you've read other book by Stuart Gibbs, how do you think this one compares?

  • Do you think zoos are a humane place for animals or an infringement on their rights? Why or why not?

Book Details

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