Mr. Ape — Dick King-Smith

Archibald Peregrine Edmund Spring-Russell ("Ape," for short) is thrilled to be living alone for the first time in his life. Now he can finally fill his fifteen-bedroom house exactly as he pleases -- with twelve big brown hens! But Ape doesn't stop there. Soon there are guinea pigs in the dining room, canaries in the music room, and a talking parrot in the kitchen.

Lucky for Ape, he has friends like Joe and Jake -- two Gypsies whose caravan is parked nearby -- to lend a helping hand. But when an accident leaves his mansion in ruins, Ape will have to decide what's truly important... his old house or his new friends.