Customer Reviews

Daisy Comes Home

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My 5-year-old daughter and I read this with a great deal of delight. The story is exciting, and what makes it very special is its authenticity. Daisy isn't a human-like character, she does only real hen things; Mei Mei isn't a super-clever, cutesy ethnic character, she's a young Chinese girl who loves her hens. Together, they overcome the scary, vulnerable situations they find themselves in just by doing hen and little girl things. All of this with fascinating, rich illustrations of the Li River region of southern China that are also very true to life. A tale for the heart and a treat for the eyes.

I truly loved this book! I read it with my students from first grade to third and they all loved looking for the hidden animals in the mountains and discovering China from the illustrations. The highlight came when they discovered Jan Brett's signature hidden hedgehog! If you are a Jan Brett fan this is a must have! Don't forget to visit her website to find activities to accompany this awesome book!

Jan Brett has woven together intricate illustrations with an exciting story as we float with Daisy the hen down the Li River on an unexpected trip. Daisy's encounters with a dog, a water buffalo, a pack of monkeys and a fisherman are interesting and life-like - no talking animals here! As Daisy and Daisy's owner Mei Mei make their way to the marketplace, the mountainous scenery changes often. Look carefully and you will see the mountains become dragons and snakes, chickens and monkeys. The marketplace illustrations feel authentic and up-to-date and the wonderful colors and hustle-and-bustle feel adds to the story's tension for an exciting reunion! Brett's illustrations are wonderfully layered with Chinese textures and materials from china pattern designs to bamboo screens. Beautifully illustrated and skillfully told, Daisy Comes Home is sure to be one of those favorites that asks to be read over and over again.

"Look over the garden wall and you will see the six happiest hens in China. They live in Mei Mei's sandy yard by the Li River where they lay brown eggs every day for Mei Mei to sell at the market. But it was not always this way." So begins Jan Brett's entertaining folk tale about a tormented little hen who takes an unexpected adventure down the Li River, and finds she's braver and more resourceful than she ever knew. Daisy was the smallest hen in the yard, and constantly bullied by her coopmates. One rainy evening when she "had had enough of pushy hens and cold, damp floors," she went down to the river bank and fell asleep in a nice cozy market basket. As the river rose, Daisy floated out onto the water, and the current carried her away..... Ms Brett's exciting story and engaging text is only outdone by her exquisite, lush and vivid artwork, that brings the China countryside and all its splendor to life. This is a story told through and enhanced by the intricately detailed illustrations, and youngsters will love poring over and exploring the intriguing pictures. As in all Jan Brett books, there are many delightful hidden features, and her signature borders that advance the plot. Perfect for children 4-8, Daisy Comes Home is charming story with a happily-ever-after ending, that shouldn't be missed.

Jan Bretts latest book, Daisy Comes Home is a charming book for young children. The story takes place in a rural village in China along the Li River. A young girl named Mei Mei is known for having the healthiest and happiest hens in the village. She carries the eggs from the hens in a basket that says Happy Hens into the village to sell. The story begins by looking back to the time when not all of Mei Meis chickens were happy. Even though Mei Mei fed them treats, gave them fresh hay for their beds, and bathed them, the one called Daisy was not happy. The reason being that all the other hens always picked on her and were very mean to her. They always pushed her off of the perch so she had to sleep on the cold, hard ground.
One night, she had had enough of this and found a market basket near the river bank to sleep in. She fell right to sleep and did not notice the river creeping up the bank. The basket floated away, with Daisy in it. She woke up when the basket started tipping and realized that she was had floated away from home. As she traveled down the river, Daisy had to defend herself against a dog, a water buffalo, and red-tailed monkeys. Her Happy Hens basket ran into a fisherman claimed her and took her into the village to sell.
By this time, Mei Mei had looked all day for her lost hen and decided that she must go into town to sell the eggs from the other hens. She carried the Happy Hens baskets into town and arranged her place to sell the eggs. A friend told Mei Mei that a fisherman had carried one of her baskets into town with one of the hens. She rushed off to find her missing hen and told the fisherman that Daisy belonged to her. The fisherman said that he found the hen so he got to keep her. Mei Mei called to her hen and Daisy ran to her upon hearing the familiar call. The girl ran home with the hen as fast as she could.
One would assume that the other hens would be glad to have the missing Daisy back home, but they tried to treat her as they always had. Daisy had learned a lot on her adventure and could now defend herself. She flapped her wings, pecked, and pushed the other hens back; they could no longer push her around. So, she was given a place to perch alongside the rest of them. Now, all six of the hens are healthy and happy.
The beautiful pictures in this book also tell the story. The full spread beautifully depicts the main idea on each page. Not only is the main idea told, but the audience is allowed to peek into something else that is occurring or is about to occur through small windows in two corners of the page. For example, on the page where the Daisy bumps into the fisherman, a small picture of Mei Mei getting ready to go to the market is in the left corner of the page and a picture of the fisherman holding up the hen to sell is in the opposite corner. This cleverly gives the reader something more to think about and he or she follows the main storyline.

This wonderful story would make an excellent addition to a classroom of young students. The gorgeous pictures and charming tale would captivate the minds of young children as they learn about the importance of standing up for ones self, the need to be kind to one another, and the importance of looking after those one cares about.

I first read this as a bedtime story to a girl while I was babysitting. I think I may have enjoyed the story more than she did. Jan Brett tells us the story of how Daisy, the smallest of all the six Happy Hens was bullied by all the others. Finally one night when she was fed up with sleeping on the cold floor she left. Curling up in a basket on the side of the river, Daisy falls asleep. She doesn't wake up when the river rises to the basket and sends it floating down the river. Finally waking up Daisy escapes many encounters with different animals along her travles down the water. When Mei Mei, the owner of the Happy Hens, realizes Daisy is not around she begins searching all over the place. While at the market Mei Mei learns where she can find Daisy. I enjoyed the story but I was most impressed with the illustrations. I read this story again after the young girl I was babysitting fell asleep. Looking more at the pictures I began to notice the hidden animals in the mountains and the details that are easy missed around the borders of the page. This book offers much more than just a story to the readers. I know if I read it again I would notice something amoung the illustrations that I missed last time.

Daisy Comes Home was a really good book. I would give this book five stars. There is alot of chinese calligraphy in this book. If you can read the calligraphy, this would be a good book for you. The story was about a runaway hen who is found by the nine year old girl owner. To find out more read this book.

My kids, 4 and 6, both enjoy this story. Illustrations are wonderful, text is descriptive and best of all it has a very happy ending :)

Daisy is a delightful read for young children with a very subtle message to take very good care of your pets - something that all children can understand and apply to their own animals. My 6 year old granddaughter loves it.

This is a classic journey adventure story where Daisy the hen accidentally (on purpose?) leaves home. Daisy learns how to defend herself out in the wild and uses those lessons to her advantage when she returns. Readers will root for the underdog, when all the other hens gang up on to pick upon Daisy, not allowing her to sleep with any kind of comfort. As anyone who has raised hens will know, this is another realistic touch.

Jan Brett altered the look of her traditionally busy borders that often tell a counterpoint to the main story. Here she uses two diagonal corner posts to frame the action of the main story. Each is beautifully detailed with designs based on Chinese weaving or pottery.
Mei-mei, the little girl, is a mother figure to her hens and the story has a very nice conversational tone. One of the most charming features of this book is that even though Daisy the hen may be anthropomorphic in her behavior and feelings, visually she keeps her hen-like qualities throughout. Daisy's face and body posture convey so much feeling, without ever seeming to step away from how a real hen would carry herself.

The watercolor and gouache paintings render incredibly rich colors and Brett provides a high level of detail. Alert readers will notice the animals from the signs of the Chinese Zodiac hidden amongst the green plateau-like hills in the background. This volume will be a welcome addition to the pantheon of books involving how to deal with school bullies. Brett certainly seems to owe a debt to The Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack, but I saw a strong similarity to The Cow Who Fell in the Canal by Phyllis Krasilovsky as well. All the little details included in the illustrations make this a good choice for sharing one-on-one with a child.