Customer Reviews

The Day the Cow Sneezed

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

 

 

Originally written and illustrated in 1957, this book had officially been tagged "hard to find" by Flora lovers. Thanks to a fresh reprinting by Enchanted Lion, more of us can be introduced to this great author and illustrator, who we otherwise may have missed out on.

Fletcher's morning routine includes taking his cow, Floss, down to the creek for a drink of water. Distracted by a bunny rabbit one cool day, Fletcher runs off, leaving Floss to stand knee deep in that chilly creek water. Shaking and shivering, she lets out a powerful sneeze: KA-CHOW. That sneeze sets off a series of unfortunate events that results in an impromptu fireworks show and the release of an entire zoo. That's quite a sneeze!

Of course, there are many steps in between the cow sneeze and the big fireworks show. There happens to be a billy goat driving a policeman's motorcyle with a cat on his back, a huge hole in the side of the schoolhouse wall and a flattened out fire truck. Not enough? Throw in some angry townspeople and see how zoo animals fare after tangling with a steamroller. Now that's a story!

James Flora's illustrations are just genius. Half the pages in the book are black and white, while the other half shout with vibrant pinks and blues. James Flora is very well known for his illustrations but they are not the only wonderful thing on these pages. I like his habit of calling attention to certain words by putting them in all caps, nearly on every page: POW! WHAMBO! and my personal favorite KA-BLOWIE-BLAM! I also enjoy the language he uses, specific phrases such as "scrunched as flat as corn flakes." It's just plain good reading paired with some spellbinding illustrations that make this a book you won't want to miss.

Publisher Claudia Zoe Bedrick is a Floraphile, and depending on the success of this reprint, Enchanted Lion will continue to republish two Flora titles a year. The dedication on the inside cover of this one reads "For Caroline Flora: An early-mooing non-sneezer." Based on this book, I think I could easily become a Floraphile myself.

The art is worth it alone, both to me and my 3 year old. My only gripe is the books conclusion, which shows an angry father leading the scared boy by his ear, presumably for more physical punishment.

"The Day the Cow Sneezed" is a reissued children's classic illustrated tall tale/fable. Originally published by Margaret McElderry in 1957 "The Day the Cow Sneezed" is a rollicking humorous tale with a moral or two, filled with flip, cool, cutting edge vintage illustrations that will put all adult readers in a slightly jazzy mood, maybe children readers too. One of the possible reasons for this is the style of illustration, full of ridiculous angles, exaggerations, spoofs, jagged edges and visible "riffs," but another possible reason is the illustrator, who was a devoted fan of jazz and classical music, sustained a long, successful career as an illustrator for Columbia and RCA Victor records in the 1940's and 50's. The art of James Flora is truly a pleasure to behold whether the eyes of the beholder are young or old. The story moves through more and more layers of ridiculous outcomes and runny reaction at breakneck speed, but all outcomes can be traced to a simple act of negligence on the part of "my brother" Fletcher, the real hero of the piece. There are a number of hints and clues that "The Day the Cow Sneezed" was written at least a generation ago, but none of these "dating" clues detracts from the solid, imaginative impact of the book. Perhaps today's children will benefit from the experience of a bit of old fashioned unpredictability, in a more rural time, in a simpler era. Certainly they will be entertained, and they may also get a flavor of the childhoods of their grandparents. "The Day the Cow Sneezed" is a classic ideal for generations to share together, still fresh for children ages 4 and up.

The quality of the content has been praised for years so my opinion that the text is great and the illustration fantastic only restates the obvious.

What I can add is that this new edition is meticulously faithful to the vintage original. The stock is luxurious and the inks are spot on in their hue and registration. The book appeals to the grand parent in me and the Jim Flora, mid century art lover in me.

I now have two copies of this edition: one to read over and over to my sweet grand daughter and a second to put aside for her to treasure when she is an adult and perhaps read to future generations.

What a gift to have this back in print!

What a treat for the Flora-deprived post-20th century children! My own children loved each Flora title that I was able to find on used book sites, and I keep The Day the Cow Sneezed close at hand to remind me that the children of the 1950's had a pretty awesome introduction to influential art of the period. I'll be watching for more of my favorite Flora books in new editions.

The illustrations are phenomenal. Each page is real art. The kids love the story. The ending is a bit dated. The fathers face "grows darker and darker". The father takes the boy by the ear and into the barn. The narrator says we all know what happened to Fletcher in there. The book would end well without the last 2 pages where anyone can infer the child gets a harsh physical punishment. I don't read that part to my kids. It would be an awkward book to give as a gift.

I bought this for our local library for Christmas. The graphics in this book aren't the greatest, but the story is good.