{"id":31913,"date":"2017-03-01T23:12:22","date_gmt":"2017-03-02T03:12:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=31913"},"modified":"2017-03-01T23:12:22","modified_gmt":"2017-03-02T03:12:22","slug":"review-of-the-cow-said-meow-by-john-himmelman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=31913","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Cow Said Meow, by John Himmelman"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The Cow Said Meow<\/em><\/p>\n

by John Himmelman<\/p>\n

Henry Holt and Company, 2016. 32 pages.
\nStarred Review<\/p>\n

This book makes me laugh. I think even toddlers who have learned their animal sounds will get the joke. Older kids will have fun explaining all they see happening.<\/p>\n

The story is told through pictures \u2013 with the only words being the sounds the animals make shown in speech bubbles.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s raining. A cow is grazing in front of a house. We can see a warm living room inside the window. A cat stands at the door and says, \u201cMeow.\u201d On the next page, a little old lady with thick glasses lets the cat in as it purrs.<\/p>\n

Then we\u2019ve got a close-up of the cow\u2019s face. It\u2019s wet and its face droops, but it raises one eyebrow, clearly thinking.<\/p>\n

On the next page, the cow goes to the door and says, \u201cMeow.\u201d The little old lady with thick glasses and squinty eyes lets it in, too. The cow is sure to purr as she goes in \u2013 and we see a pig in the foreground.<\/p>\n

A close-up of the pig\u2019s face shows the pig thinking. It mimics the cow. Followed by a chicken, a donkey, a goat, and a duck. There\u2019s also an element of the Telephone Game, because each animal from the donkey on says Heeow instead of Meow.<\/p>\n

Finally all the animals are in the house, saying variants of Meow and Purr, with the cat behind a curtain saying Hiss. But then it all falls apart, and the animals start making their own noises. The little old lady\u2019s eyes get opened, and they\u2019re sent back out into the rain.<\/p>\n

Then we see a dog say \u201cWoof.\u201d The lady opens the door\u2026.<\/p>\n

You might be surprised how good wordless books are for getting little ones to use their own words. This one has the added attraction of silly animal sounds and situations.<\/p>\n

Wonderful silly fun.<\/p>\n

mackids.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Picture_Books\/cow_said_meow.html<\/a><\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Tweet<\/a>