Animal Farm Books

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3JQDR48JA3J7I Cullen of CullensAbcs.com reviews this book and gives you ideas on how to use to use it interactively with your child. For you I have more video book reviews, free children videos and free activity idea videos at the CullensAbcs.com website. If you have a children's book you would like me to review and offer ideas on how to use it interactively with children please send an email to CullensAbcs@gmail.com. Also, feel free to to add me, Cullen Wood, as a Facebook friend.

I gave this book as a gift but have heard my 2 1/2 year old niece read it a lot. It is great story line, lots of repetition and rhyming. I will definitely get this book for my daughter when she is a bit older.

We originally checked this one out of the library, but we had to purchase it as it's a favorite repeat! What amazing artwork!!! Bold, beautiful, and totally engaging! The story is very funny, even to the youngest set. For my son, it's been a wonderful introduction to the concept of "thinking" and how to express and wonder about what someone else might be "thinking". It is definitely on our current "top 10" list of our all-time favorite books! Thank you for the duck at "The End" eying that tractor and scratching his chin... perhaps a sequel????

This happens to be my nephew's favorite book (and it's the third copy he's worn out). Duck on a Bike a delightful story about a dare-devil duck who sets off an bike riding adventure. On his journey around the farm, he greets other animas who in turn get jealous of his biking skills. In the end, all of the animals get a chance to join in on the fun!

As an elementary school teacher, I highly recommend this book for children of all ages. The story is engaging and the illustrations capture the joy of the story!

I borrowed this book from the library for my son and he instantly fell in love with it - as did I - and so I just had to buy it for him. We read it nearly every day and he smiles and laughs each time - and he's only 7 months. A beautiful story with gorgeous pictures and a very funny final page. Enjoy!

Our boy looked at this book so much, he literally wore it out. It was his favorite. We purchased a new one for our little girl.

My son and my daughter both responded to this book when only 2 or 3 months old - the animals have big eyes and friendly smiles, and when they peek at the baby reader, the baby responds with smiles, coos, and wriggling. Perfect first book. Sturdier than most flap books, but will get lots of loving use, so why not buy 2?

We love this series! Large, colorful illustrations and full page flaps makes this a great book for little ones new to reading. A perfect gift too!

They used to read this book frequently at reading times in Ohio when my daughter was in baby laptime. She always loved it and I gave it to a friend as a gift. She says that her daughter is really enjoying it as well.

This book is great. I not only have my own children but I own a child franchise and I read this book to our 10-13 mo. olds and 12-15 mo. They just stare and smile and try to grab every page.
I love this book.

Awesome book! Great pictures, not too much text, opportunities to make animal noises. Our youngest adores this book and the older ones love to sit and "read" outloud making all the noises.

I've been reading this book to my son since he was 2 months old before bedtime and he LOVES it, especially when I say "boo... hooo... hoo". He smiles everytime I bring it out and looks at me funny if I bring something else out before bedtime. He loves to look at the pages and I do too! It's a simple, fun story that gives you the opportunity to perfect your mooing, mewing, barking and quacking skills. (I assume I'll be using these skills for a while).

I started reading this book to my daughter when she was 17-months-old. At that age, she was saying simple words, so she loved pointing at the pictures of the animals and saying "kitty" and "dog." I enjoyed making the animal sounds and having her repeat them. It's a fun story --- following the animals' attempts to soothe the crying baby --- and a fun book to read.

Great for your boo-hoo baby. Lots of animal noises, cute illustrations, a fun story and a happy ending for the sleepy sobbing baby. I read it to my son, and get lots of smiles.

My 11 month old baby requests this book everyday, several times a day. She selects it from 30 other books and brings it to us to read. She loves the illustrations, especially the depiction of baby's big head. She makes a "Zzzzz" sound in anticipation of the last page where all the characters except the baby is sleeping.

She likes it so much that if she is crying in the back seat of the car, I can calm her by reciting this book. (It's not hard for an adult to recite this book from memory.)

I am a long-time fan of James Herriot's books. I worked in an independent book store when I found this jewel, and I have given it at every baby shower and young child's birthday since. It is a collection of stories taken from his books and illustrated. The stories are sweet, poignant tales of the literary veterinarian's encounters with four-legged friends in England.

If you are an animal lover or Herriot fan, this is a must- see. The illustrations are realistic with a touch of warmth and they bring life to the stories that graced these literary masterpieces. Many friends and family who recently have had children love this gift. It is a book to be cherished and read to/with your children for years!

The binding is solid with a dustcover I remove when reading with small children (who love to rip my dustcovers!). The papers is a tolerant high gloss that can easily withstand sticky little baby fingers. My niece and I have clocked many hours reading and cleaning this book!

The stories in here are not just bedtime tales. This is life-enriching literature with quirky characters and poignant emotion which you will treasure for years to come. I got as much out of reading these to our son as he did, and you will all enjoy the illustrations. As with real living, the death of a beloved pet is included in one of the tales, so if your children would be upset by this, you might discuss beforehand.

Our 3.5 year old daughter loves this book. The illustrations are beautiful and the stories compelling. They are on a level that she can relate to without feeling condescended to. The stories are interesting and fun for adults to read and they are great to talk about afterwards.

My 7 yr old son and my 5 yr old daugher both LOVE this book. And so does mom! It has beautiful illustrations and the stories are warm and wonderful.

This is a great example of a living book. The stories transport the listener to another place, and the journey is a pleasure. My 5 and 8 year old daughters love these stories and their illustrations.

Reviewed by Anne Marie Medema (age 12) for Reader Views (7/08)

Mary O'Hara is an excellent author because she ties in real things that happen into a fictional family. The breeds of horses O'Hara writes about are real and it is obvious she is educated in each horse's individual characteristics. O'Hara writes using authentic western language terms. In "My Friend Flicka" the story comes alive to the reader as O'Hara writes with much description about the farm, the horses and life out West. O'Hara weaves into her story punishment and reward in real times -- the reward of a boy's joy when he finally receives his filly.

Can you tame a wild heart? The cover states it well. This question explains "My Friend Flicka" to the reader. It is a book about taming both a young boy and a horse. The storyline begins with Ken on a horse ride. While riding, Ken loses many different horse articles. Ken's father had been an army officer and thus raised Ken with firmness and strictness. He demanded respect. Ken has always been dreaming of a horse of his own.

Due to poor grades in school and a missed assignment about horses Ken must repeat a grade in school. His father requires Ken to complete an hour of homework a day throughout the entire summer. Ken's brother gets him in trouble by asking many questions that Ken must answer and tell the truth.

One day Ken scares his father's horses towards a landslide. One horse cuts the other horses off so none of them fall off and are saved. Ken's mother encourages his father to give his son a horse. Ken's father finally gives him a chance to care for a colt or filly. Ken chooses a colt that is a yearling. Since there are many yearlings to choose from, Ken anxiously awaits to make a choice.

The doctor arrives at their farm because four horses need to be gelded. Gelded means the horse can not reproduce and is done to the stallions. The procedure was so horrible and so much blood lost that one of the horses dies due to the gelding. The colts act sad after the gelding. Ken is greatly disturbed by it. This incident means Ken will choose a filly for his horse.

Rocket is a wild horse who has a filly named Flicka. Ken sees Flicka and falls in love with her and wants her. Flicka is caught for Ken. One day Flicka falls sick. After she is sick, Ken finds Flicka in a river lying down ill on a cold night. By the morning, Ken is sick and Flicka's fever is gone. Ken's father wants to kill Flicka but decides against it. Flicka turns into a well-bred horse and a companion for Ken. Flicka and Ken grow up together and learn life lessons from each other.

"My Friend Flicka" by Mary O'Hara is a great book I would recommend for young and old alike. Boys and girls who have a love for ranches, horses and the outdoors would particularly enjoy the storyline. I have read many books in my life time and I rank this one as one of the best. Break-in a book called "My Friend Flicka" and gallop away from the world.

I have to give this book 5 stars. Mary O'Hara wrote an incredibly beautiful story about a struggling family. Many of the details of the story are so true to life. As an adult reading this story, I found the details about the parents to be more interesting than the story of the horse and the boy. O'Hara really understands the concerns of a parent for a struggling child and it's very true to life in the book. Many important issues are touched upon in this book too; responsibility for our domestic animals, love for people and animals, doing our duty in our every day life are all there with out being mushy and sentimental. O'hara also paints a vivid picture of Wyoming and old-time ranch life. It makes me wish it was still like that, so I could visit it. This is another great book for a read aloud family time.

Although he made his audio book debut just two readings ago, stage, screen and television actor Michael Louis Wells is in full command of the metier with his narration of the classic My Friend Flicka. Many will remember the story as a film with Roddy McDowall, as a TV series or as a current film. Wells is on a par with all of the actors who have undertaken bringing this touching tale to life. The reason for the story's many incarnations is obvious - it is one of our best-loved books and well deserves its place among others that are enjoyed from generation to generation, such as Treasure Island and Mutiny on the Bounty.

Pivotal to O'Hara's story is Ken and his seeming laissez faire attitude. Where his mind is his father, Rob, certainly doesn't know. He's a young boy who would much rather just look out a window than study his arithmetic. He should have studied because his report card is so poor that he's doomed to repeat a grade. Rob undoubtedly wonders whether he'll even catch on the second time around.

Their home is Wyoming's Goose Bar Ranch and Rob is working hard to make a go of it. He doesn't need a son who seems given to daydreams. Then, along comes Flicka, a beautiful chestnut filly, with a wild streak inherited from her sire. Ken is certain he can tame Flicka, and so begins the unforgettable relationship between a boy and his horse.

O'Hara wrote a follow-up to her story, Thunderhead, but it never achieved the popularity of My Friend Flicka, a timeless story to be enjoyed over and over again.

- Gail Cooke

This is a very good book. My granddaughter really enjoyed it.

I am in the middle of lstening to this book. Its detailed descriptions of ranch life and horses are quite compelling. But what surprised me was the absolutely accurate description of a boy with ADD. This book was written some two decades before attention deficit disorder gained anyone's attention, but O'Hara's descriptions of Ken's behavior are absolutely consistent.

And then O'Hara answers the question of what to do about the condition: give the kid something he really wants to do and stand back. Of course, it helps that Ken has two wise and good-hearted parents; but then, maybe that is the start to solving most problems that children have.

A fine book on many levels, and a fine companion on the road for adult and child.

Our family loves these books. We originially came across them at the library and purchased this one to have in our collection. The illustrations are so beautifully done, I would highly recommend purchasing the full-sized hardback books. The smaller paperback book collections just don't seem to be as much fun to read.

When my first born turned one (almost 12 years ago), a friend gave this to her for a birthday present. Over the years, and with the addition of our second child, this book continues to be in our top 3 books. We still pull it out to read -- it's never far away!

I now "pass it forward" and buy it as a gift for baby/young children presents.

This sweet book is one of my four-year-olds favorites, and mine too. I enjoy reading it to her as much as she enjoys hearing it. The illustrations say as much or more than the words. It's a great story for validating the child who loves home and the one who loves to "visit".

I have become a HUGE fan of every Toot and Puddle book available and want to collect them all. I've found they have a wide age appeal, from 2 years on up to....well, I'm 28. Such clever adventures and experiences are depicted in each book and the illustrations could be the artwork in my child's room. In fact, I'd buy the prints if they were available. Great book!

This adventure with Toot and Puddle is one of my all-time favorites. It is an adorable story about two friends, one who loves to travel the world and the other who loves just staying at home in Woodcock Pocket, USA. The postcards that Toot sends Puddle from his world travels are cute and humorous! The illustrations in this book are incredible. This is a book that adults and children alike will enjoy together. I never get tired of reading this one over and over. It is a book my children will keep and pass on to their children!!

ISBN 0789429160 - Cute little board books featuring animals are everywhere, so finding a novelty among them is a pleasant surprise. The touchable, feel-able parts of this book are fairly large and the variety of them is nice.

You're invited to meet the animals on the farm, offering children a tactile experience that non-farm dwellers might otherwise miss out on completely.

That the book also introduces new adjectives into the vocabularies of small readers is a great plus. The only potential negative is that, if you get a used copy, the Touch and Feel parts aren't what they ought to be. The pig's spongy nose, in particular, can get completely flattened and the touchable spot of the chick on the cover will fade after many pettings. Buy it new, and it's well worth it; used, not so much.

Both my kids loved this book from a very young age. The touchy feely aspect really draws the attention of little ones. And all in all the books are quite durable. Mine have been well loved by our two, and are now heading to our baby cousins. The farm and baby animals were my childrens favorites.

This was my daughter's first board book and the first book she took an interest in. She loved the photographs of the animals, as opposed to drawn illustrations. The book includes a variety of textures and recognizable farm animals.

My 2 year old enjoys this set a lot. She loves touching the furry parts of the cards and they are super sturdy (cardboard). There are about 5 cards that are way to hard for her limited vocabulary so we make up the names, other than that they are great!

Whenever we go out to eat, we are sure to take this book along. It keeps my little boy (11 months) entertained while we wait for our food, and works like a charm. There is nothing better when he is screaming his head off than to pull out this book and presto, instant smile. He touches and feels and tries so hard to say baa at the sheep at bark at the dog. It is well worth the money. And so far it has held up remarkably well (even though there is rice in the dogs fur and cheese on the lambs wool).

I did not know the extent to which my daughter would come to love this book when I purchased it. Had I known, I would have found a hardcover edition. Let me just say, this is the first book that my almost 4 year old memorized (word for word). This is the first book that my 9 year old will go to when he wants to read to her (e.g. he wants to read it and needs an excuse).

It is a warm tale about friendship, sharing, and overcoming conflict/compromise. It handles conflict naturally (e.g. real characters that really argue and act just like my kids). Real characters with real feelings and vivid imaginations portrayed with flawless, humorous illustrations (we especially love when Squirrel and Cat envision Duck's new shop). The colors of the artwork are warm and orange - just like pumpkin soup. You feel like you are peering in on their lives (like the two little bugs that appear on every page). Most importantly, this book does not come off preachy - so I think it rings true with children. In fact, my daughter uses this book to relate sharing issues - all I need to say is "remember how Duck wanted to use Squirrel's special spoon?" and she gets it - instantly.

And - for some odd reason - my children are now fascinated with pumpkins and want to cook. We have made pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin ravioli... and.... Pumpkin soup - The Best You Ever Tasted!

I like how the characters finally work together to create harmony. It's a great, simple lesson. The illustrations are very nice and I love the feel of the book. Great choice for the 4-8 set!

I read this book to my elementary and special education students last week and I included some music from Ireland which included bagpipes and violin. I also added a country banjo song, too.
It was great fun! It's a wonderful story for all!

This book has a wonderful theme of what to do when change occurs. It shows how friendship can sustain mishaps. It had too many words for my students in preschool special class, and the illustrations were busy as well. My own elementary age kids loved it though!

Today my multi-age preschool class (3 yrs-5 yrs) sat silently and wide eyed as I read "Pumpkin Soup". The three characters and their relationship to one another were so clearly defined in the first few sentences that the children were mesmerized. The illustrations are soft but detailed. This was a perfect addition to our unit of study on pumpkins.

This is a very nicely published edition of both of George Orwell's landmark novels. Many of us were required to read these in school, but they are all the more meaningful in today's political climate. While the left may tend to want to cite these novels the most (the Patriot Act as "Big Brother"), there is probably more ammunition for the right, particularly in today's politically correct culture. Think former N.O.W. executive and conservative lesbian Tammy Bruce's book "The New Thought Police". A good historical/political read regardless of your political persuasion.

So you could go borrow the book at the library or buy the paperback, get the content down, and be done with it. But for same reason people buy very expensive European cars, there is something attractive to looks of a exterior that makes the consumer want to own, not rent, but possess. I love both books by Orwell, and this edition is one to show off.

When I saw that Chris Hitchens wrote the intros to this I was optimistic that he would shed a great amount of light on the subjects. Unfortunately, the intros are too short to get into much depth.

This is a handsome republication of Orwell's two most renowned works, Animal Farm and 1984. Even if you're just looking for 1984, this edition is to be commended; it comes with a fine introduction by today's leading Orwell enthusiast, Christopher Hitchens, and the reward of including Animal Farm requires very little in the way of additional effort or expense on your part. At 80-odd pages, you may as well pick it up in the same volume, and you're virtually certain to be glad that you did.

I'm not alone in being of a generation that was first required to read Orwell in my student days (Middle School, in my case.) It seems that there was a lot of literature churned out then, accessible to if not directly aimed at children, with the horrors of totalitarianism as its theme. In addition to reading Orwell, we were also reading Huxley, Bradbury, and Verne -- the youth-oriented John Christopher books being yet another example. The generation that lived through Nazism and Stalinism clearly wanted the younger set to be aware of the horrors that could be, and to remain on guard against them.

It doesn't seem to be quite that way anymore. Orwell's name is invoked today, but often in trivializing contexts: "Big Brother" is now a brain-numbing reality show, and "Orwellian" is a convenient and often hysterically-applied charge to political opponents. Some complaceny does seem to be inevitable: we are now further removed from the days when the likes of Hitler and Stalin killed tens of millions. Still, regimes arise that are nearly as horrific on a local scale, from Pol Pot to Saddam Hussein to the Taliban, and are real enough that Orwell's book is no joke. Orwell deserves attention if for no other reason than to sensitize us to the bad form associated with invoking his name in a trivializing context. There was a political ad on Youtube last year from an Obama supporter that cast Hillary Clinton on a giant Big Brother-like screen. I'm not in the least a fan of Senator Clinton, but associating her image with those of 1984 -- as was also done in an infamous Apple Computer ad -- trivializes Orwell's message in a deplorable way. Orwell wrote his novel to warn against real dangers that his generation lived through, and which others might yet, not as a marketing ploy to be used in selling either computers or nearly indistinguishable democratic political candidacies.

The main reason I am writing this review, however, is that re-reading Orwell in my 40's is a stark reminder that his novels are more than political parables, but are worthy literature. I hope that those reading these reviews will be aware of this, and not shut their minds to a rewarding literary experience.

As a kid, I was able to perceive the pedagogical intent of these books, but less so was I able to appreciate the literary artistry. 1984 in particular passes the Nabokovian test of creating a fully believable, if terrifying, alternate world. Beyond that, on nearly every page, Orwell leaves an image that just might stay with you forever. Small wonder that so many of the terms in 1984 ("Big Brother," "Newspeak") have burrowed their way into our lexicography.

Orwell was a man of the left who understood something that many of his compatriots did not; that what had arisen in the Soviet Union was a regime unprecedented in its horror (arriving before, and ultimately outlasting, its horrific mirror image, Hitler's Third Reich.) At a time when others on the left simply refused to believe in the reality of the USSR, he looked at it unflinchingly and wrote what it was really about.

Also, in childhood, I was not able to fully appreciate that Orwell's books simply weren't negative-utopian nightmare-fantasies, but paralleled actual events in the USSR with chilling accuracy. I knew, at some level, that he was satirizing certain events and characters in the Russian Revolution, but only in adulthood was I able to closely recognize nearly every episode and character in Animal Farm. Those familiar with USSR history will find it all here in the two books: the rewriting of the past to reaffirm the infallibility of the Party, the sudden reorienting of national propaganda to suit the latest twist of foreign policy, and the complete elimination of all references to those unfortunate souls decreed never to have existed.

Truly, the thing that makes 1984 terrifying now, is not what was imagined in the novel's construction, but what was real in its sources. It exaggerates even relative to the Stalinist state -- but not by much. It is this recognition that makes it a chilling read today.

1984 is the more vivid and evocative of the two novels. Excepting one passage (Goldstein's dreary history lesson about 2/3 of the way through) it is riveting almost throughout its 300 pages.

A few notes for younger readers: The moral of Animal Farm is not that Napoleon was simply a bad apple, but rather that the system adopted by the Animals ensured that ultimately such a tyrant would dominate. (I find the end of Animal Farm to be something of a false note; in the end the pigs prove no better than, and resemble, the humans they replaced, but this understates the tragic reality that the USSR was worse still than that which it replaced.)

As I close, I leave you with one random question about 1984: how come it never occurs to Eastasia and Eurasia to combine against Oeania? Given that Oceania keeps flipping its allegiance from one to the other, you'd think they'd ultimately catch on and both decide to attack Oceania at the same time.

Silly questions aside, this book is highly commended. Worth re-reading again, especially if you only have read Orwell when as immature as was I.

Many of us were assigned these books to read in school by thoughtful teachers. All of us should read them. In both, George Orwell gives us the tools to see exactly what liberty means and why we cannot afford to lose it.

In "Animal Farm," the fable is sufficiently removed from human experience that you can read this one to quite young children, just as you can "Alice in Wonderland" or other classics which say more each time you read them as you grow up. Even a first-grader could see the relationship of the politics of the barnyard to the politics of the playground. The jeering refrain of "Surely you don't want Jones back" can easily be recognized as the propaganda fallacy called "Reductio ad Hitlarum." Whenever the ruling pigs ran out of useful things to say, they fell back on slogans which meant nothing, but which could be molded to mean whatever they wanted them to mean in a given circumstance.

The completely classic "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others" is one we must keep in mind whenever politicians start using words as if they mean the reverse of what they do mean.

1984, too, has its beautifully classic lines. The main characters are all members of the Ingsoc Party (English Socialism). It is not until well into the book that we learn they are only some 15% of the population; the rest are proles. The proles are easily dismissed as insignificant: "They can be granted intellectual liberty because they have no intellect." Use that line the next time someone tells you it's not important to educate our entire population to the best of their capabilities.

When the main character, Winston Smith, attempts to placate his tormenter by saying "You are ruling over us for our own good," he is scorned as "stupid, Winston, stupid." The party big shot responds with one of the most chilling lines I have ever read: "If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face--forever."

Through the medium of conversations in the lunch room of the "Ministry of Truth," Orwell is able to tell us much about the creation and preservation of a totalitarian state. One key is the control over language which the Party exercises: "Newspeak." One of the people working on the Newspeak dictionary explains it to Winston: "You think, I dare say, that our chief job is inventing new words. But not a bit of it! We're destroying words--scores of them, hundreds of them, every day. We're cutting language down to the bone." He brags that very soon "all real knowledge of Oldspeak will have disappeared. The whole literature of the past will have been destroyed. Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, Byron--they'll exist only in Newspeak versions, not merely changed into something different, but actually changed into something contradictory of what they used to be."

Putting these two in a single hardbound volume and adding a thoughtful introduction by Christopher Hitchens was a stroke of genius on the part of Harcourt Books. It will make it all the easier for professors of political science, literature, history, psychology . . . indeed, if it was not such a contradiction with regard to books so dedicated to liberty, I'd say make them required reading.

This is a charming but unsentimental view of animals on Maple Hill Farm. Through wonderful drawings and brief text, animals are portrayed as individual personalities, each with a role to play in farm life through the cycles of life from birth to death. One of my favorite characters is Willow, the cat, who "is not very interesting" because she spends all her time just being beautiful. It is a valuable book for teaching young children that animals should be cherished and cared for for many reasons, that animals are deeply entwined in our lives. It is a deceptively simple book that children and adults can enjoy together and discuss on many levels.

Quite a bit has changed about the world we live in, but it's wonderful to know that our friends at Maple Hill Farm are still keeping it real. This was one of my favorite books as a child and I can't wait to read it to my son (due in January.) I just ordered a new copy of this book and was so pleased to read it again and realize how fun it is to read as an adult. I love that there's no quest, no competition, no major challenges- it's just life on a farm with lots of real animals that have unique personalities.

It's exciting because all of animals are fun and goofy and they do all the usual things that chickens, goats, cats, horses, dogs and sheep do. The cats catch snakes and move kittens around, the horses get dirty and chase each other, the chickens eat ants and take sun baths, the dogs bark at geese and chew up pillows. None of them wear clothes, talk or drive cars, and I kind of find it refreshing. Not that there's anything wrong with fantasy, but I love that reality can be just as entertaining for kids and adults.

And, yeah, I did start crying when I got to the end- the quiet corner of the woods where the animals of the past were buried. It's not maudlin or overtly tugging on your heartstrings- it's just real. That's what makes this book such a great read.

my kids love this book and the other in the series. the illustrations are true and simple-just what today's kids need. i would recommend it to any family who has an appreciation or is part of a more meaningful, homegrown lifestyle.

I remember the very first time I read this book...over 30 years ago. I had my infant son sitting on my lap and we were both delighted by the different animals from the farm. I remember going from laughing to holding back tears. It is so true. Our own animal friends have the same affect...from laughter to tears.

Besides being very entertaining, I find a bit of widsom there that is priceless for dealing with the loss of a pet. It has become a tradition over the years to read from the book at our "pet funerals" and I took the book down from the shelf just for myself after the recent loss of a 16 year old cat.

Like many others here, we've worn out our original copy. Mom made sure each grandchild had a copy in their homes and I've done the same with my own grandchildren. We loved it so much, we've had many pets named after the characters in the book.

My mom saved the original book for me, and we purchased a new copy (paperback) only after our suitcase containing the original hardback was stolen (!) Our girls (ages 3 and 7) adore this book - and so do we.

The book tells about the different animals on the farm. Over several pages, for example, Mrs. Provensen tell about the four cats who live at Maple Hill farm: Gooseberry, who is a good mother; Eggnog, who is beautiful but not interresting; Willow, who is old; and Max, who is big, likes cottage cheese, but is not very clever with his claws. In a series of drawings, we see what the cats do around the farm. The girls love it - they laugh and giggle and listen intently.

The dogs, horses, sheep, and chickens all get similar treatment. We give this book to friends, as it is off the mainstream 'radar' of good books: we are sure they won't have it, and we are sure their kids will love it as our do.