Sonderling Sunday – Unusual Musical Instruments

Der Orden der Seltsamen Sonderlinge, Sonderling Sunday 0

It’s time for Sonderling Sunday! That time of the week when I play with language by looking at the German translations of children’s books. Sort of a handy phrase book of things you never knew you wanted to know how to say!

This week, it’s back to the book that started it all, James Kennedy‘s The Order of Odd-Fish, otherwise known as Der Orden der Seltsamen Sonderlinge. I left off right at the start of a short section about an extremely unusual musical instrument, which is on page 175 in English, Seite 221 auf Deutsch.

Jumping in to some fun phrases and interesting words:

“specialties” = Fachgebiete (“practice areas”)

“expertise” = Fachwissen (“specialist knowledge”)

“odd musical instruments” = seltsamer Musikinstrumente

“strange animals” = sonderbare Tiere

“milling around” = strömten (“flowed”)

“at the top of the stairs” = auf dem oberen Treppenabsatz (“at the top stairs-section”)

“blubbery thing” = blubberndes Ding
(Hmm. A little disappointing, that. Who knew it was almost the same in German?)

“dark yellow” = ockerfarben

“wriggling tubes” = windenden Röhrchen

“a single bored-looking red eye” = einem einzelnen, gelangweilt blickenden roten Auge

“as it cascaded down the stairs” = als es die Treppen hinabglitt

“shocking enough” = schockierend genug

“most shocking thing” = das Erschreckendste

“huge jaws” = gewaltiges Maul

“orifices” = Körperöffnungen (“body-openings”)

“can emit sounds” = Klänge erzeugen können

“a full-grown man may fit comfortably in its esophagus!”
= In seiner Speiseröhre findet ein ausgewachsener Mann bequem Platz!
(“in its meal-eyelets finds a grown man easily place!”)

“climbing” = geklettert

“most unusual music” = ungewöhnlichste Musik

“Out of the question” = Das kommt überhaupt nicht infrage
(“That comes at all not in-question”)

“squeeze or pinch” = drücken oder kneifen

“couldn’t hurt” = Das kann ja nicht schaden.

“most horrible noises” = der schrecklichsten Geräusche

And as a climax to this section:

“a howling, farting crescendo of gurgling belches and groans”
= ein heulendes, furzendes Crescendo von gurgelnden Rülpsern und Gestöhne

“Of course, it needs a little work.”
= Selbstverständlich bedarf es noch einiger Übung.

Lovely! Won’t it be handy, the next time you visit Germany, to be able to describe ein heulendes, furzendes Crescendo von gurgelnden Rülpsern und Gestöhne? Or at least to say it’s ungewöhnlichste Musik.

Sometimes I feel like I’m developing Fachgebiete nearly as useful as that of der Orden der Seltsamen Sonderlinge.

Be sure to mention in the comments your abundant opportunities to use these phrases this week!

Review of Raven Flight, by Juliet Marillier

Fantasy, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Raven Flight

A Shadowfell Novel

by Juliet Marillier

Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2013. 406 pages.
Starred Review

When my copy came in for Raven Flight (no waiting on the library — I knew I had to have one.), it made a wonderful excuse to reread the first book, Shadowfell. This book is a continuation of the story, so, yes, you need to read the first book first.

And the story doesn’t finish with this one. But it does give you another chance to immerse yourself in this world. Neryn is already in love when this book starts, so the exquisite process during which she falls in love happened in the first book. She doesn’t see a lot of the man she loves in this book, and he’s in great danger, but they do get some time together, much to the reader’s satisfaction.

But most of the book is about Neryn trying to get training in her uncanny gift as a Caller. She’s been told she’ll need the help of powerful lords of the West, North, East, and South. But finding them is not easy, and traveling to them is difficult in an environment where any uncanny gift is reason for horrible death, and the king’s men know to look for her to try to use her as their own weapon. Right at the start of the book, the rebels learn that their time is limited. If they confront the king the summer after next, a powerful chieftain will join them. But if they wait, they will lose his support. Can Neryn get her training in time?

During the process, Neryn must go right into the king’s camp to try to help her friend. But that’s not the only time her life’s in danger, or that of the rebel leaders at Shadowfell.

This book is full of magic, intrigue, romance, and suspense. Our heroine is challenged in multiple ways as she tries to carry out her training. Juliet Marillier writes rich, lovely prose that will keep you spellbound.

Here Neryn tries to wake some of the Good Folk to ask for their help:

As I stood there in silence, I felt the strength of stone pass into me; I opened myself to its deep magic. The call woke inside me, rising from my heartbeat and coursing blood, forming words I spoke almost despite myself. “Folk of the North! Folk of deepest earth!” The call was bone and breath, memory and hope, the past and the future. In my mind I held the many faces of stone: the roots of great trees deep in the earth; the cliffs where stanie men stood in their long, silent vigil; pebbles in the riverbed, each different, each a small, lovely miracle. Crags raising their proud heads to the sunrise; mountains under blankets of winter snow. “In the name of stone I call you! Come forth! Show yourselves! I have grave need of you, and it is time!”

JulietMarillier.com
randomhouse.com/teens

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Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on my personal copy, purchased through Amazon.com.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Hoop Genius, by John Coy and Joe Morse

Children's Nonfiction Review, History, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

Hoop Genius
How a Desperate Teacher and a Rowdy Gym Class Invented Basketball

by John Coy
illustrations by Joe Morse

Carolrhoda Books, Minneapolis, 2013. 40 pages.
Starred Review

Hoop Genius is a simple picture book about the invention of basketball. The story it tells is pretty much summed up in the subtitle: James Naismith was a desperate teacher who’d taken on a gym class that had already forced two teachers to quit. But the author and illustrator dramatize that story in an exciting way (showing the young men in the class with progressively more injuries, for example). Then they show where Naismith got the idea (from a childhood game) and how he worked out the rules with his class. Then briefly, we’re shown how basketball took off. (James Naismith met his wife when she played in a women’s game he refereed.)

I love the endpapers – with copies of the first draft of the rules of basketball.

The story’s simple, but so interesting! This marvelous presentation of the story of how Basketball began will captivate readers of all ages.

lernerbooks.com

I’m posting this review tonight in honor of Nonfiction Monday, hosted today at Shelf Employed.

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Nonfiction/hoop_genius.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Sonderling Sunday – Harry’s Birthday Edition

Sonderling Sunday 1

It’s Sonderling Sunday! That time of the week when I play with language by looking at the German translations of children’s books.

And tonight we get a special bonus. In honor of Harry Potter’s birthday this past week (July 1) and the fact that my son is home from school, with the German edition of HP#1, I’m going to look at the one book I own in English, German, and French, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter und der Stein der Weisen, Harry Potter à l’École des Sorciers.

When I started with Harry Potter, I didn’t get very far, but we learned that in French, Dudley has a “was suffering from a small crisis of choler.” And that the Germans don’t thank you in the first line, like everyone else.

Oh, and before I get started, I have a Special Bonus Word of the week. My son and I were learning a new game, and he grabbed the English rules, so I was trying to read along in the German ones, and I learned a brilliant word, Fingerspitzengefühl. It’s translated “balancing act” in the English rules, but it literally means “finger-peak-feeling.” You know, that feeling in your fingers when you put a block on the top of the pile? I love it!

Okay, back with Harry Potter. Think of this as useful phrases in case you’re ever traveling in Germany or France. Have you ever wondered where the phrase books get the phrases they choose to translate? Why not from a children’s book?

I’m starting on page 9 of the British version, page 8 in German, and page 9 in French. (Must be from less front matter that German is the lowest page number. Can’t be that it’s shorter!)

I’m beginning with the line:
“The Potters, that’s right, that’s what I heard –”
= »Die Potters, das stimmt, das hab ich gehört –«
= –Les Potter, c’est ça, c’est ce que j’ai entendu dire…

“Fear flooded him.”
= Angst überkam ihn.
= envahi par une peur soudaine (“overcome by a sudden fear”)

“whisperers”
=Flüsterern
=les gens qui chuchotaient

“snapped at his secretary”
= fauchte seine Sekretärin an
= ordonna d’un ton sec à sa secrétaire

“stroked his mustache”
= strich sich über den Schnurrbart
= se caressa la moustache

“he was being stupid”
= ich bin dumm
= il était idiot

“grunted”
= grummelte
= grommela
(all so onomatopoetic!)

“squeaky voice”
= piepsiger Stimme
= petite voix perçante

“You-Know-Who”
= Du-wei?t-schon-wer
= Vous-Savez-Qui

And this sentence needs to be translated in full so we can use it some day:
“Even Muggles like yourself should be celebrating, this happy, happy day!”
= Selbst Muggel wie Sie sollten diesen freudigen, freudigen Tag feiern!
= Même les Moldus comme vous devraient fêter cet heureux, très heureux jour!

“hugged Mr. Dursley around the middle”
= umarmte Mr. Dursley ungefähr in Bauchhöhe (“hugged Mr. Dursley around in belly-height”)
= prit alors Mr Dursley par la taille et le serra contre lui (“then took Mr Dursley around the waist and squeezed against him”) (Have they no word for “hugged”?)

“imagination”
= Einbildungskraft (“picturing-in-craft”)
= imagination (I might have known. “-tion” words tend to be from French.)

“tabby cat”
= getigerte Katze
= le chat tigré

“the same markings around its eyes”
= dasselbe Muster um die Augen
= Il reconnaissait les dessins de son pelage autour des yeux.
(“He recognized the drawings of his coat around the eyes.”)

“Shoo!”
= Schhhh!
= Allez, ouste !

“pull himself together”
= sich zusammenzurei?en
= reprendre contenance (“regain composure”)

Here’s another nice handy phrase:
“Mrs Dursley had a nice, normal day.”
= Mrs. Dursley hatte einen netten, gewöhnlichen Tag hinter sich.
= Mrs Dursley avait passé une journée agreeable et parfaitement normale.
(“Mrs. Dursley had passed an agreeable day and perfectly normal.” Again, the French are so refined.)

“Mrs Next Door”
= Frau Nachbarin
= la voisine d’à côté

“Shan’t!” (Dudley’s first word)
= pfui
= Veux pas!

Well, I didn’t get far, but I shan’t go any further, because I’ve already spent an hour, pfui!

May my readers have a freudigen, freudigen Tag, or at least one that is agreeable et parfaitement normale!

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Fiction/help.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of Another Piece of My Heart, by Jane Green

Audiobooks, Chick Lit, Contemporary, Fiction Review, General, Light Reading 0

Another Piece of My Heart

by Jane Green

Macmillan Audiobooks, 2012. 11 CDs, 13.5 hours.

Another Piece of My Heart is chick lit for grown-ups, which I suppose I should give the label “women’s fiction.” The story begins with a woman who got married late in life and is dealing with facing the fact that she’s not going to get pregnant. Add to her troubles a truly awful teenage stepdaughter, and she’s not sure if she’s going to be able to stick it out, even though she loves her husband.

The story continues with more perspectives, including the stepdaughter, and even the view of the alcoholic first wife. There are complications when Emily, the stepdaughter, gets pregnant.

This audiobook was read by the author. Since the author has a British accent but the book is set in California, that seemed a little odd — but I am never one to complain about a British accent, and listening to the author’s delightful voice kept me listening toward the beginning when I wasn’t sure I was terribly interested. (That was a brief moment toward the beginning when I was afraid the main character was going to cheat on her husband. She didn’t, and I never was tempted to quit again.)

In spots the book did go on a little longer than it might have. But overall, it was a richly layered story about what it means to be a family and about the negotiations that go into giving your heart.

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Fiction/another_piece_of_my_heart.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on an Advance Listening Copy I got at an ALA conference.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Have You Seen My New Blue Socks? by Eve Bunting and Sergio Ruzzier

Animal Characters, Picture Book Review 0

Have You Seen My New Blue Socks?

by Eve Bunting
illustrated by Serge Ruzzier

Clarion Books, 2013. 32 pages.

I’m afraid I tend to cringe with most rhyming picture books. But here’s one that’s done well, with just a touch of tongue twister. Add to that a charming and recognizable situation, and you’ve got a winner.

Here’s a page toward the end:

“Peacocks? Have you seen my socks?
I did not put them in my box.
I asked my good friend Mr. Fox.
I asked my good friend Mr. Ox.
Peacocks? Have you seen my socks?
They are such a pretty blue!
I just got them. They are new.”

I recently used this book at a Baby Storytime where I was focusing on Phonological Awareness. I’m sure the babies didn’t understand the situation, but they could enjoy the rhymes. At the same time, the parents gave a chuckle of delight when it became apparent that the duck was wearing his new blue socks all along.

Now, I admit that the rhymes aren’t quite up to a Dr. Seuss level. But they aren’t bad, and the story makes for a delightful book good for reading aloud or for independent readers to tackle on their own.

hmhbooks.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/new_blue_socks.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of First Cameraman, by Arun Chaudhary

Nonfiction Review, Starred Review, True Stories 0

First Cameraman

Documenting the Obama Presidency in Real Time

by Arun Chaudhary

Times Books (Henry Holt), New York, 2012. 306 pages.
Starred Review

This book was simply fun reading. A fascinating look at an ordinary guy (or so he seems) who got to look behind the scenes of power, and also had the fun of doing a job that had never been done before.

Arun Chaudhary was the first official White House videographer. He was a film student, and interjects things he knows about filmmaking along the way. He had a different perspective from journalists, and his story of his years with this fascinating job are filled with thoughts about what it all means and how video has changed how we see the world.

Here are some of his thoughts expressed in the Introduction:

I should say that I have more than a passing interest in how political videos work because I spent four years filming Barack Obama pretty much around the clock. As the first Official White House Videographer, I was sort of like President Obama’s wedding videographer if every day was a wedding with the same groom but a constantly rotating set of hysterical guests.

If there’s one thing I learned over those years, it’s that videos don’t lie — on the contrary, they are the most reliable gauge of truth we have. The basic narrative told in a shot is true, despite the ease with which some elements of motion picture can be manipulated. No one can deny the power of editing to influence a viewer….

In our age of media supersaturation, videos have an ever more direct impact on how we judge and elect our politicians. This, at the end of the day, may be a very good thing. Given enough screen time, all candidates reveal who they really are. No matter how carefully scripted and choreographed their media appearances and stump speeches, no matter how skillfully edited their official videos, eventually — for better or worse — the camera will catch them out….

So just to let everyone know, the following pages won’t be about what my lousy childhood was like or what the president eats for breakfast. I’m not going to complain about getting thrown out of Indian Parliament by my belt, or getting trapped in the White House library bathroom while POTUS conducted a forty-minute YouTube town hall with Steve Grove on the other side of the door. (Curse you, noisy automatic toilets!) I’d rather explore the complex interplay of politics and media, and art and government, and audio and video, in the new millennium, and discuss what I’ve learned as the first-ever cameraman to train his lens on a president around the clock.

Arun Chaudhary delivers on his promise. Though he does throw in a lot of fun and quirky anecdotes, this book isn’t so much about him as it is about the ground-breaking job he had and what it means for American politics and government. I sent a copy to my film-major son because it highlighted a cool job that a film student came up with, and I thought he might find it as fascinating as I did.

firstcameraman.com
henryholt.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Nonfiction/first_cameraman.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of That’s a Possibility! by Bruce Goldstone

Children's Nonfiction Review, Mathematical, Starred Review 0

That’s a Possibility

A Book About What Might Happen

By Bruce Goldstone

Henry Holt and Company, New York, 2013. 32 pages.
Starred Review

A book about probability for kids! Hooray! What’s more, I find it tremendously impressive, because Bruce Goldstone keeps things far, far simpler than I could possibly have done if I were trying to write such a book.

Back in my college-math-teaching days, I often taught Introduction to Statistics. That’s probably why it never would have occurred to me that it’s possible to write a book explaining probability without even using fractions. In fact, the only place where he comes close at all is in the explanation about flipping a coin: “So the odds that the coin will land heads up is 1 out of 2 possibilites. (You can also say 50%, because 50 out of 100 is the same as 1 out of 2.)”

He manages to explain every fundamental concept with pictures. The pictures are vibrant, colorful, and interesting – and they so beautifully get across the concepts.

He begins by talking about possibilities. For example, there’s a picture of a kid holding 7 animal-shaped helium balloons. He asks, “If one of these balloons POPS, will it be the monkey? That’s a possibility!”

Then he goes on to talk about when things are impossible. And then what it means to be certain. Then the concepts of “likely,” “probable,” and “improbable.” Those are easily showed with pictures. He uses colorful pictures of flowers, parrots, and gumball machines.

And he goes on beyond the concept of “equally likely outcomes” (which he doesn’t mention, but didn’t I tell you I don’t know how to keep it as simple as he does.) There’s even a page that says, “Your imagination can help you think of possibilities, too.” It shows a girl jumping into a swimming pool, and asks, “What will probably happen when this jumper hits the water?”

Then it goes on to odds and flipping a coin. He explains “independent outcomes” without using those words – the idea that no matter what has already happened, your odds of getting tails on the next toss will always be 1 out of 2.

Then he looks at colorful spinners and a simple game that uses them. Then he looks at the classics of probability theory: playing cards and dice. Instead of listing all the possibilities of a 2-dice roll, he puts pictures of all the possible rolls in a chart, using one white and one black die. Kids can see at a glance that it’s more likely to roll a 7 than any other number.

Then he takes on Combinations and Permutations, again keeping it beautifully simple. Squidgy the Bear has 10 shirts and 10 pairs of pants. We see a picture of all 100 combinations before the author asks us what are the chances he’ll wear one particular outfit.

And the culmination (about permutations), before the notes at the end, is especially fun. Rabbit, Ribbit (a frog), and Robot run in a race. What are the possible results? They’re all pictured for you. I especially like the final questions:

Can you say all the possibilities together without getting your tongue twisted? That’s a possibility, but is it probable?

The notes at the end explain some activities kids can do at home, and then define some terms (like permutations) he didn’t use earlier. This is only very slightly more complex than what went before.

So, what makes me rave about this book? He keeps it so simple! The design is magnificent, and the pictures are beautiful and colorful – and helpful at the same time. But having taught probability to college students, let me tell you, his ability to explain the concepts at an elementary-school level is nothing short of genius. Magnificent!

brucegoldstone.com
mackids.com

This review is posted today in honor of Nonfiction Monday, hosted this week at Sally’s Bookshelf.

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Nonfiction/that’s_a_possibility.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of Speaking From Among the Bones, by Alan Bradley

Fiction Review, Historical, Mystery, Starred Review 0

Speaking From Among the Bones

by Alan Bradley

Delacorte Press, New York, 2013. 378 pages.
Starred Review

Hooray! Another installment in the detective novels about Flavia de Luce, eleven-year-old genius and poison aficionado.

In this book, the locals are celebrating the quincentennial of the death of Saint Tancred by opening his tomb. Along the way, they find a dead body that is not five hundred years old, but rather that of their missing organist. Naturally, Flavia ends up gathering the clues to find the murderer.

I enjoyed this book immensely. There’s another clever puzzle for Flavia to solve while bicycling around the neighborhood. This time, she and her sisters weren’t nearly as mean to each other, and I enjoyed the respite. It looks like their beloved Buckshaw will have to be sold, which pulled them together. The book did end with a bombshell regarding their family, which stresses that these books should be read in order. Those who have read so far will be delighted as I with the latest installment.

Here are a few fun sections:

Ordinarily, anyone who made such a remark to my face would go to the top of my short list for strychnine. A few grains in the victim’s lunch pail — probably mixed with the mustard in his Spam sandwich, which would neatly hide both the taste and the texture . . .

It wasn’t until I was nearly home — not, in fact, until I was sweeping past the great stone griffins that guarded the Mulford Gates — that I realized I had overlooked two very important things. The first was that business of the bat, and how it had managed to get into the church. The second was this: If the tomb in the crypt was occupied by the remains of Mr. Collicutt, where on earth, then, were the bones of Saint Tancred?

Whenever I’m a little blue I think about cyanide, whose color so perfectly reflects my mood. It is pleasant to think that the manioc plant, which grows in Brazil, contains enormous quantities of the stuff in its thirty-pound roots, all of which, unfortunately, is washed away before the residue is used to make our daily tapioca.

I knew that the instant life ends, the human body begins to consume itself in a most efficient manner. Our own bacteria transform us with remarkable swiftness into gas bags containing methane, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and mercaptan, to name just a few. Although I had for some time been making notes toward a future work to be called De Luce on Decomposition, I had not had until that moment any real, so to speak, firsthand experience.

There you have it: An old-fashioned cozy mystery with a precocious and delightfully bloodthirsty sleuth in postwar England. Tremendous fun!

flaviadeluce.com
bantamdell.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Fiction/speaking_from_among_the_bones.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Moo Hoo, by Candace Ryan and Mike Lowery

Animal Characters, Picture Book Review 0

Moo Hoo

by Candace Ryan
illustrated by Mike Lowery

Walker & Company, New York, 2012. 28 pages.

This book just makes me laugh. You can figure out the pattern from the first three double-page spreads:

Cow and Owl are friends.

Moo Hoo.
Hoo Moo.

They make music together.

Moo Hoo.
Two coo.

They fix things together.

Moo Hoo.
Glue shoe.

Cow and Owl each have a superhero toy. Owl’s superhero’s shoe broke when he hit it against his drum set on the second page.

But then a kangaroo shows up and wants to play. (Roo new.)

Roo wants to play, but Cow and Owl are hesitant to let him join them, and he feels bad. For this entire exchange, the same two-word rhyme structure is used.

At the end?

They discover that three is better than two.

Moo Hoo Roo.
New true crew.

I can’t decide if this humor and cleverness is a little beyond the usual preschool storytime set. I suspect that they would enjoy the simple language and the simple friend-making plot, while their parents would get a kick out of the clever wordplay. And I’m sure that early elementary school kids will enjoy it. It’s easy to read, and tells a clever story in a tightly-constrained format. A lot of fun.

candaceryanbooks.com
argyleacademy.com
bloomsburykids.com

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/moo_hoo.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.