A wild and silly tale is told in rhyme. Farmer Brown enjoys a calm before a storm, listening to the happy sounds of his animals: “Pigs that oinked,/Cows that moo’d,/Sheep that baa’d,/ Doves that coo’d.” A twister hits the farm, scooping up the animals and setting them down gently; while they are not injured, all the languages get mixed up. Farmer Brown can only utter rooster cries, and the rooster, in English, is calling the shots. Cows oink, and clucking sheep are assumed to be laying eggs. It takes another twister to set things right, although the farmer occasionally still crows. The clever and expertly written story will tickle the funny bones of the nursery-school set, although the clutter of the comic illustrations—with dialogue balloons, lines indicating movement, and frenetic action—makes this better for lap-sharing than story hours. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-7894-2512-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: DK Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PLB 0-688-15542-1 My Day In The Garden ($16.00; PLB $15.93; Apr.; 24 pp.; 0-688-15541-3; PLB 0-688-15542-1): The creative heroines in this gentle story of easy companionship show that rainy days can be full of fun. “Berry-picking with the birds./Lunch with the ladybugs./Under a tree for a nap,” are among the scenes; with the aid of costumes and the girls’ imaginations, the foursome create their own party, dressing up as butterflies, ladybugs, crickets, even worms. They eat, wriggle, sing, and play hide-and-seek. As darkness falls, the girls disband, and one child is seen asleep, with more dreams of the garden dancing in her head. Lobel’s idyllic illustrations are as lovely as a sunny summer afternoon, while the lyrical text demonstrates inventive simplicity. Charming. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-688-15541-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999
From Rylant (In Aunt Lucy’s Kitchen, 1998, etc.), a gentle rhyming book for the very young. Mrs. and Mr. Bunny and their numerous offspring find a charming bungalow in a deep gully near a river and move right in. The bunnies set about making the house a home: painting it a pale green, planting a garden, and installing a carrot weathervane. Soon the interior is cozy too, as Mrs. Bunny knits bunny quilts, moves a comfortable rocker into the parlor, and invites bunnies to snuggle on a big couch while she reads poetry aloud. Mr. Bunny helps with bath time, takes the little bunnies fishing, and finds time to sit on the porch swing with his offspring, watching fireflies. The story ends as softly as it begins, in watercolors that are warm and full of childlike humor. Children will identify with the thumb-sucking middle bunny, the bed-bouncing bunny in striped pajamas, and the baby who tosses his bottle out of the crib for the father to pick up. A fetching bedtime book, as snug as they come. (Fiction. 4-6)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201092-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999
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