Cold Turkey

by Corey Rosen Schwartz, Kirsti Call, Chad Otis (Illustrator)

Overview

The Mitten meets How to Catch a Turkey in this absurd-yet-heartwarming read-aloud that's perfect for Thanksgiving—or anytime you're feeling ch-ch-chilly!
 Turkey woke up c-c-cold.
He wheezed, "It's ten degrees!"
I need to b-b-bundle up,
before I f-f-freeze!"

Sheep is shivering, Chicken is chilly, and Cow is quivering! Lucky for them, bundled-up Turkey is generous and shares his warm clothes with each of his barnyard friends. But once he's down to just his birthday suit, what's a cold turkey to do? (Not to worry—his friends will have him toasty again in no time!)

With rollicking rhythm and giggle-inducing illustrations, this heartwarming story of kindness is sure to be a hit with young readers at Thanksgiving, through snowy winter months, and all year-round!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316430111
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	11/09/2021
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	737,302
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 11.30(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Corey Rosen Schwartz is the author of The Three Ninja Pigs, Ninja Red Riding Hood, and many other rhyming picture books. Corey hates the c-c-cold and spends winters c-c-curled up with a good book. She lives in New Jersey, but dreams of one day moving to the Caribbean. She invites you to visit her online at coreyrosenschwartz.com.

Kirsti Call is the author of Cow Says Meow and Mootilda’s Bad Mood (co-authored by Corey Rosen Schwartz). Kirsti is almost always f-f-freezing and likes to b-b-bundle up in literary scarves and gloves. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and five little turkeys, and invites you to visit her online at kirsticall.com.

Chad Otis is the illustrator of Cuddle Monkey and the author and illustrator of Oliver the Curious Owl. Chad sometimes gets ch-ch-chilly in his home state of Washington, but keeps himself t-t-toasty by slurping espresso while he doodles. He invites you to visit him online at chadotis.com.

Editorial Reviews

09/13/2021

In this bouncy rhyming fare by Schwartz and Call, a turkey bundles up against 10-degree winter chill before heading outside, but upon walking around the farmyard, he notices that his friends are even colder than he is. Sheep’s shoulders “sh-sh-shook” as she tells Turkey, “I can’t baa-lieve this storm’s so baad./ I need a warmer nook.” Turkey offers each friend one of his winter accessories—an alliterative description subsequently appending every farm animal (“SHIVERING SHEEP”)—so that he ends up wobbling home, “cold and bare,/ in just his birthday suit!” But his pals quickly repay the earlier generosity by building a campfire they can all enjoy. Otis’s broadly comic mixed media art, rendered in pencil, scanned textures, and digital paint, is the real draw: the frosty weather feels tangible, and the animal cast is terrifically expressive, especially when Cow places Turkey’s turtleneck over her udders. A fun barnyard take on a classic concept. Ages 4–8. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

We are so excited for this heart-warming new Thanksgiving kids’ book about a very kind and generous Turkey that shares his warm clothes with his barnyard friends on a very chilly day. ColdTurkey uses funny rhymes and giggly illustrations to teach youngsters about sharing and caring.—Margarita Polkowska, B&N Reads

"Told in rhyme, this story features the concepts of friendship, sharing, and problem-solving. It’s a riotous read-aloud, packed with entertaining alliteration, onomatopoeia, and puns.... With a generous spirit and happy ending, this entertaining read-aloud is a worthy addition to preschool classrooms and early childhood library collections."—School Library Journal

From the Publisher

11/01/2022

PreS-Gr 2—It's freezing outside, and Cold Turkey gets dressed for the inclement weather. Donning a hat, coat, mittens, snow pants, boots, and a scarf, he heads out to the barnyard. There he encounters his friends who are also feeling the effects of the miserable winter day: Shivering Sheep, Chilly Chicken, Huddling Horse, Quivering Cow, and Polar Pig. Having a kind heart, Cold Turkey shares an article of clothing with each of the distressed animals until he is left with nothing but his boots. The animals feel sorry for the turkey, who is now in danger of getting frostbite. The animal gang joins forces and using wood from a nearby forest, builds a roaring fire. Within no time, they are renamed Stewed Sheep, Baked Chicken, Hot Horse, Sizzling Cow, Roasted Pig, and Toasty Turkey. Told in rhyme, this story features the concepts of friendship, sharing, and problem-solving. It's a riotous read-aloud, packed with entertaining alliteration, onomatopoeia, and puns. The pencil and digital paint illustrations of the personified animals add humorous details to the story and invite close inspection. The endpapers depict a map of the snow-covered barnyard labeling the route the turkey navigates as he and the other animals find their way to a nearby wooded area where they build the fire that takes them from freezing cold to toasty warm. VERDICT With a generous spirit and happy ending, this entertaining read-aloud is a worthy addition to preschool classrooms and early childhood library collections.—Lynne Stover

School Library Journal

2021-08-18
A f-f-fun f-f-friendship frolic!

It’s 10 degrees outside when Turkey wakes up cold. Cold Turkey! Get it? The puns and humorous wordplay keep coming. With beak-chattering alliterative commentary, Turkey adds layers and layers of warm clothing. “I need to b-b-bundle up / before I f-f-freeze!” On a tour of the barnyard, Turkey finds his friends are in distress, too. Sheep is “sh-sh-shivering” but still making puns. “I can’t baa-lieve this storm’s so baad!” Cow declares, “This wind is a cow-tastrophy! / It’s udderly insane.” Pig “p-p-pok[es] out / from p-p-piles of straw. / ‘My body’s numb, from snout to bum.’ ” The compassionate friend that he is, Turkey leaves his hat with Sheep, his mittens with Chicken, his scarf with Horse, his sweater to warm Cow’s udder, and his snow pants for Pig. Turkey’s “loaned out all his loot. / He wobble[s] homeward, cold and bare, / in just his birthday suit! / Turkey t-t-totter[s]. / ‘What a fierce, ferocious storm! / I may be getting frostbite, / but at least my heart feels warm.’ ” But his friends make sure more than just Turkey’s heart is warm by building a fire that comforts them all. Otis’ genial cartoons add touches of humor on their own as Turkey distributes his layers to his friends. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Don’t wait until it’s freezing to share Turkey’s tongue-testing tale of wordplay and kindness. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews