Moo
-
- $10.99
-
- $10.99
Publisher Description
Following a family move to Maine, twelve-year-old Reena has no idea what to expect.
She hopes it's going to be beaches, blueberries and all the lobster she can eat. She certainly doesn't expect to suddenly be put in charge of a menagerie of animals, belonging to the irascible Mrs Falala, who not only has a fast-wheeling pig, a secretive snake, but the most ornery cow she ever thought to meet.
A wonderfully funny, moving story of one family's move to the country, and the challenges they face.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In a book that could have easily been titled Love That Cow (or Hate That Cow, actually) Newbery Medalist Creech uses short chapters that blend poems and prose to trace a displaced city girl's adjustment to life in a "boat-bobbing/ sea salty harbor town" in Maine. After 12-year-old Reena's parents move the family to Maine from "a harlequin city/ of sights and noises,/ of museums and parks and music," there's more in store for Reena and her younger brother, Luke, than cold weather, lobster, and blueberries starting with elderly Mrs. Falala and her menagerie of pets, including Zora, a cow as cantankerous as her owner. At their parents urging, Reena and Luke begin helping Mrs. Falala with chores, and before long Reena has agreed to take care of Zora and show her at the local fair, which requires work, patience, and help from more experienced livestock handlers. As Reena learns that a little kindness works wonders for both people and animals, Creech's spare narrative creates vivid, emotion-packed images of landscapes, characters, and "that/ wild-eyed/ heifer," Zora, that will stay with readers. Ages 8 12.
