Customer Reviews

A Birthday for Cow!

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It's funny to think that even though we have all been kids, so few adults amongst us actually get them. Grown-ups like to think that children are merely shrunken versions of themselves. They forget that a child's sense of humor is a difficult thing to determine. It's easy to say, "Well kids think farts are funny so I'll just write a whole book about farting," and leave it at that, but in the end it's the lazy way to do things. Certain picture book author/illustrators have figured out how to speak to a child's sense of humor without dumbing things down or patronizing the kids they are presenting to. Mo Willems is a good example of this. Jules Feiffer has his moments. Mara Bergman knows her stuff. And one of the newest additions to this laudable crew is Jan Thomas. Thomas burst onto the scene last year with her seemingly simple, What Will Fat Cat Sit On? and it proved an immediate success. Now she's back with another book that is, shockingly, as good and maybe even better than its predecessor. "A Birthday for Cow!" shows that even when Jan Thomas GETS kid humor, she also knows how to write a tale that'll charm adult readers as well.

Open the book and the first thing you see on the endpapers is a two-page spread of Duck carefully crossing out the days on the calendar until he has reached "Cow's Birthday". You see, cow's birthday is today and Mouse and Pig have got everything under control. They're gonna make the best cake ever with flour, and sugar, and eggs . . . . "AND A TURNIP?" Duck whips out a turnip to the shock of his friends who inform him, very patiently, "No, Duck. We will not put in a turnip." Fair enough. So next they mix it all with . . . "A TURNIP!" Again, Duck has to be told that turnips are not a part of the process. On it goes until the cake is ready. Cow walks in the room, takes one look at his friends and the cake, and exclaims with sheer heartfelt love and glee, "A TURNIP!" All works out well in the end with Pig and Mouse devouring the cake and Duck discussing with Cow his favorite methods of using turnips. "Sometime I brush my teeth using a turnip." "Really? Me, too!"

Like "What Will Fat Cat Sit On?" this puppy is built for reading aloud. You just hunker down, get ready, and when you get to the word "Turnip", you let rip for all you're worth. Now there was some concern here in New York that some kids who will be read this book won't know what a turnip is. That's a legitimate worry, I guess. You get a lot of kids around here that are not exactly as well versed in their root vegetables as they might be. The concern, however, is minor because it really doesn't matter what kind of food Duck is promoting. First of all, until you read the book aloud you're never going to notice how funny the word "Turnip" is. We all knew that "rutabaga" was funny. And maybe if Duck kept throwing the word "rutabaga" in everyone's face it would have a charm of his own, but there's something that feels just right about that blatant word "turnip". It's the "er" sound, I think. It's funny. And as long as you see Cow eating it later (which you do) then it doesn't matter if kids are intimately familiar with turnips or not.

The art of Ms. Thomas is done entirely on computers with text types set in names like "Eatwell Chubby and Chaloops". The book retains the manic glee of its predecessor, though many will be sad to find that the Fat Cat is unfortunately absent from this story. Still, it has the same gleeful goofiness present in the first book. These animals sport big round eyes and grins that make them look just a little too happy. Like those people you meet at parties who are so intense and focused on what you're saying that you suddenly loose your train of thought. It's that look. And for a picture book for small children, that's exactly what is going to capture the attention of even the most ADD of kids. The color scheme is fabulous as well. These characters are all thick black lines against blue, green, pink, and purple backgrounds. A graduate course in children's literature would do well to examine exactly why it is that Thomas uses one color or another at certain points of the book (particularly the purple).

Like all sequels, there will be people who moan that "A Birthday for Cow!" doesn't have the same sense of manic danger that Thomas' first book had. Pfui. As a sequel I tell you that it doesn't disappoint. If you liked her first book, you'll love the second and if you never even read the first you will ADORE the second. For an artist who works in a misleadingly upfront style, it's clear that Jan Thomas has a few aces up her sleeve yet. Just a great creation.

A while back we worried what Fat Cat would sit on. Now Jan Thomas has us concerned about Cow's birthday. She sure keeps us on pins and needles, that Jan Thomas!

Things start out beautifully in this short, short picture book. It's cow's birthday, and her friends Pig, Mouse and Duck are going to make her the best birthday cake EVER. Pig and Mouse put the necessary sugar, flour and eggs in a big bowl. But just as they are about to stir, Duck asks if he can add a turnip. Who ever heard of a turnip in a birthday cake? Pig and Mouse know this is just plain wrong, so every time Duck suggests it they turn him down.

Duck is a bit obsessed with that turnip. Which is of course what makes the book so hysterically funny. On just about every page he's asking if he can add that silly turnip, much to the dismay of Mouse and Pig, who are sensible creatures. They keep refusing, until a twist in the simple plot causes them to rethink turnips and birthday cakes altogether.

Jan Thomas has a real talent for writing and illustrating super short books. Do you know how hard it is to tell a story in less than 100 words? Trust us, it's tough! We admire her for that alone. But the woman can draw funny pictures as well. And while we don't know too much about text type, we do know that we love the text type Eatwell Chubby and Chaloops. Because honestly, how can you NOT love the something called Eatwell Chubby and Chaloops?

This is the perfect birthday gift for the preschool crowd. Serve it up with milk and turnips!

You have to love this book, one about the goofily smiling cow on the cover about to celebrate a birthday. Kids will love the fun graphics, the expressive characters, and the surprise turn taken at story's end. As with other books by Jan Thomas, I like that every page is used productively, including both inside covers.
Adults looking for a good read-aloud book need look no further than Birthday for Cow or other winning stories by the same author.
I like the continuity of using the same characters in subsequent books that may add or delete one character but mostly keeps the gang together. Be sure to read this book before Thomas' "The Doghouse" to fully appreciate a hilarious turn taken in that book. For fun and creativity, this book takes the cake.

I agree with the more in depth reviews that other posters have left here. I just want to add that since March when I shared this during read aloud time with my kindergarten inclusion class, at least 2 children have read it everyday. They wanted me to re-read it weekly. I had to break up fights over this book--seriously, there is no higher compliment than that. It was one of the 3 most popular books of the school year for my 5 and 6 year old students, typically developing as well as those with special needs. My 3 1/2 year old at home loves it too.

Jan Thomas does it again in A Birthday for Cow. Duck wants so badly to give him a special gift. Kids love it, and it's fun for parents too.

Here's another book about the lovable animal characters we first met in What Will Fat Cat Sit On. Jan Thomas has done it again. This time Pig and Mouse are in the kitchen happily whipping up a birthday cake for Cow, but they are constantly interrupted by Duck who insists that they must add a turnip to the recipe. It's a ridiculous and really funny situation. Thomas' skill at drawing facial expressions adds to our pleasure in these delightful animals. The surprise ending is wonderful and the final picture a gem. It is another witty and charming story guaranteed to please both children and adults. I look forward to the further adventures of these appealing characters.

First of all, this is NOT a sequel to "What Will Fat Cat Sit On?" I have no idea where the previous reviewer got that idea. Second, this book isn't nearly as earth-shattering great as it's made out to be. It's an OK book, and I'm sure the kids at my storytime will enjoy it. But come on now. It's fairy average, with no memorable characters, and is something that the kids will probably only want to hear one time. Jan Thomas isn't some new genius of picture books. The art she uses in her books looks like the free images you get on MS Word's clip art, the dialog is boring, and her two stories have been disappointments. "A Birthday For Cow!" is an improvement over "What Will Fat Cat Sit On?" but it still isn't great. And don't even think of compairing Thomas to Mo Willems. Kids actually do "get" his books and I am constantly bombarded with requests for Pigeon books. No kid has ever asked for Fat Cat books, and I doubt one ever will. As someone who wasn't paid to write a review of this book, I will finish by saying that the book isn't terrible, but it certainly isn't great, and is basically only good if you're pressed for a light read to give the kids at storytime.