Cazet’s cows are back (Minnie and Moo Meet Frankenswine, 2001, etc.), charming as ever, in an easy reader that is as loopy as ever. Minnie and Moo are soaking in the summer sun when a spaceship plows into the adjacent field. At first they think it might be a new type of tractor, but then the pilot, a one-eyed potato with green bristles whose name is Spud, pops out. Spud tells them the alarming news that he is in the process—after stopping for donuts and then getting lost—of delivering some anti-bump cream to prevent the planets from bumping themselves to bits. Now he needs to repair his spaceship and secure some space fuel. Repairing the rocket is no sweat—Minnie and Moo let Spud cannibalize their farm tractor for parts; they know it has the necessaries because they took the tractor to the Moon on a previous adventure. But the space fuel, that’s a tickler, until Minnie has a brainstorm: Could Milk be space fuel? Yes, cries Spud, though it must have high-cream content. Minnie’s the cow to deliver just such, which she does, demurely, as a barnyard chorus warbles “Home, Home on the Range.” Spud blasts off and all is right in a bump-free solar system. Weird in all the right ways, from the strange little verbal asides to Minnie’s mop of blond curls. Another mooover from Cazet. (Easy reader. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-06-623750-5
Page Count: 48
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2002
What if the market was closed when you wanted to bake a pie? You could embark for Europe, learn Italian en route, and pick up some semolina wheat in Italy, an egg in France, kurundu bark for cinnamon in Sri Lanka, and an entire cow in England (butter) before coming home via Jamaica (sugar) and Vermont (apples). The expertly designed illustrations in which a dark-haired lass journeys by various means to these interesting places to get her groceries are lovely and lively, and the narrative, too, travels at a spritely pace. The journey is neither quite logical enough to be truly informative nor quite bizarre enough to be satisfyingly silly, while the rich, sweet recipe that's appended will take some adult assistance. Still, fun. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 2, 1994
ISBN: 0-679-83705-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1994
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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