If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone – Perfect Picture Book Friday – Jilanne Hoffmann

Some picture books entertain. Some are beautifully illustrated. Some stir the imagination. Some strike a chord of childhood authenticity. This book fits all four of those “somes.”

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First, the cover. Who could resist opening a book with a gorilla using a banana phone? Not me. And not any kid I know. Then on the first spread, the reader plunges into the child’s world.

If you make a call

on a banana phone,

somewhere, deep in

the jungle…

Oh, the tease! What could possibly follow the page turn? I’d ask kids to predict what comes next. Maybe go back to the cover before turning the page? Draw out this question! See what kind of answers you get.

a gorilla will probably answer.

Of course that’s what MIGHT happen in a world filled with possibilities. But, given that a gorilla has now answered in this story, what might happen next?

And if they do, they will have some questions.

Like, Who are you?

and, Why are you calling?

Of course that gorilla would have questions if someone calls them out of the blue. And now that I’m thinking about it, this book may also teach a little about phone etiquette, LOL.

The narrator suggests things that the child who placed the call could say. First, their name, then the option to say “just because” in response to why they’re calling. Or to answer with things of interest, like what they’ve eaten or a funny joke.

Go ahead, ask the kids you’re reading to what they would say to that gorilla.

But then the gorilla has more questions, ones that bring the child to imagine themself as a wild animal. (note that I’m not assigning a gender to the child)

Of course the parent and older sibling in the room want to know what the child is doing. When they answer honestly, no one believes them. But who cares? Not this kid or the gorilla.

The conversation continues. I love the similarities shown in posture and mannerisms between the child and the gorilla. Yes, we are related!!! And there’s a touching spread (literally and figuratively), that shows the child and the gorilla reaching toward each other.

Page turn after page turn, the pair develop a friendship that brings other animals in the jungle into the conversation. Love that this kid is still on the phone, even in the bathtub! And sharing secrets with so many animals!

But sometimes it is kind to just listen and say,

Yes, I hear you.

Yes, I understand.

This is a moment where you can linger. Ask kids what they think the animals are sharing. Why might they want someone to just listen kindly. It reminds me of The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld. Listening is a skill, one that’s so important for successful and empathetic communication.

When the book arrives at an inevitable conclusion, what do you think it might be?

Ha! You’ll have to read it yourself to find out. Suffice to say, this story is about connection. Making a friend. Perhaps more than one, and how those friendships develop through communication. Love that the “about” is not didactic. It’s done in a playful, creative, and heart-filled way. The illustrator, Emily Hughes, gives humans and animals enough facial expressiveness and body language to make this story work without words.

A terrific book for a read aloud that would also work as a lovely bedtime story. Great book!

Activities:

Pair this book with On Account of the Gum by Adam Rex. How are these two cause+effect books similar? How are they different? Does one take you more on an emotional journey than the other? Are they funny in different ways? Does one surprise you more than the other?

Make a paper cup telephone, using this video from Hungry SciANNtist.

Make up a joke that you think would make a gorilla laugh. Would an elephant laugh, too, or would you make up a different joke for them? Share your jokes with friends.

Pick an animal from the jungle and imagine having a conversation with them. What would you ask them? What might they ask you? Using these ideas, write a poem in the form of a conversation that reveals something special about you, and the special thing you’ve learned about the other animal.

Title: If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone

Author: Gideon Sterer

Illustrator: Emily Hughes

Publisher: Clarion, 2025

Themes: friendship, jungle animals, cause and effect

Ages: Pre-k through elementary school

For more perfect picture book recommendations, please visit Susanna Hill’s website.