Never Touch a Noisy Monkey!

Never Touch a Noisy Monkey! — the monkey goes ROAR, and that's the point

Something has gone wrong in the jungle. The monkey roars, the lion doesn't, and nobody sounds remotely like themselves. Press the squishy silicone touches to hear each animal's noise and find out what on earth is going on.

The mix-up is the book. Little ones spot straight away that the sounds are in the wrong places, and being the one who knows better is exactly what makes them press every button again.

🐵 A joke small children actually get

Knowing that a monkey doesn't roar is one of the first pieces of proper knowledge a toddler owns. This book hands them a chance to be right about it, loudly, over and over.

It's also a sneaky way in to animal sounds: by the time they've explained to you what each animal should say, they've learned the lot.

✋ Squishy touches that do something

• Textured silicone touches on every spread
• Each one doubles as a sound button — press to hear the noise
• Bumpy, squidgy surfaces to explore even before the noises start
• Sturdy board pages built for enthusiastic pressing
• Battery included and fitted — noisy from the moment it's unwrapped
• Screw-secured battery compartment, and the LR1130 battery can be replaced when it eventually runs down

📏 Book details

• Format: board book with silicone touches and sound
• Pages: 10
• Size: 233 x 193 x 25mm
• Suitable from: birth+
• Battery: LR1130 button cell, included and fitted, user-replaceable, in a screw-secured compartment
• Written by: Elena Rodgers
• Illustrated by: Stuart Lynch
• ISBN: 9781836429203
• Features: noisy textured silicone touches throughout

❓ Frequently asked questions

Why does the monkey roar?
Because that's the joke. The animals deliberately make each other's noises, and working out who should really be saying what is the whole game. If you're after a book where each animal makes its own correct sound, this isn't that book — and happily, we have others that are.

Does it need batteries?
No — the battery is included and already fitted, so it works straight out of the box. No hunting through the kitchen drawer on Christmas morning.

Is the battery compartment secure?
Yes. It's closed with a screw, so it needs a screwdriver to open — not small fingers. You'll need that screwdriver yourself when it's time for a new battery, which is rather the point.

Can the battery be replaced, and what does it take?
It can — it takes an LR1130 button cell, easy to find in supermarkets and newsagents. When the noises eventually give out, the book carries on rather than going in the bin. As with any button cell, keep spare and used batteries well out of reach and leave the swap to a grown-up.

What age is it for?
From birth. Babies enjoy the textures and the noises; the mixed-up joke lands from around eighteen months, once they know what a lion is supposed to sound like.

Is it loud?
It's a noisy book and it means it. Lovely in a playroom, a consideration on a quiet train.

Are the touches safe to chew?
They're silicone panels set into board pages, made for hands and mouths at this age — though as with any book, it's one for supervised exploring.

Does it make a good gift?
It does. The Never Touch series is well known enough that it's an easy gift for someone else's toddler, and the noisy one always gets opened first.

📚 More Never Touch books

This is the noisy jungle one. The rest of the range:

• Never Touch a Noisy Cow! — the same mixed-up joke, down on the farm.
• Never Touch the Zoo Crew! — quiet zoo animals, made with London Zoo, a ZSL conservation zoo.
• Never Touch a Tiger! — wild animals, silent, if you'd rather skip the noises.

See the whole range in our Never Touch books collection.

Our guides to why sensory play matters and the best toys for babies under 6 months go into more detail.

❤️ From our family to yours

Carefully chosen products for babies, toddlers and parents. Browse more baby books and the rest of the Make Believe Ideas range — free UK delivery on orders over £25.