Eee-Moo!

by Annika Dunklee, Brian Won (Illustrator)

Overview

“An unusual...cast of animal characters makes this whimsical, charming story stand out.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Readers will delight in this world of anthropomorphized animals, coming away with a lesson on the importance of the friends and family who help them find their way.” —Booklist

A platypus who thinks he is an emu finds his way home with the help of his friends in this classic, tender picture book from Annika Dunklee and Brian Won.

When the stork drops an egg before delivering it to its parents the little animal’s first words are EEE-MOO. So, a cow, pig, horse, and other furry friends who watch him hatch decide he is an emu and Australia is his home. Good friends that they are, they offer to help him get there. So EEE-MOO’s journey begins, and along the way he meets a cast of other animal friends who guide him to the open arms of his family. But when he gets there, he realizes something is missing.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781534401747
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
Publication date:	09/24/2019
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	1,040,980
Product dimensions:	10.30(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD520L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Annika Dunklee was born in Sweden and now lives in Toronto. She bases her stories on her childhood memories. The New York Times called her picture book, My Name Is Elizabeth “close to perfect.” She is also the author of Eee-Moo.

Brian Won has worked as a busboy, library shelver, and currently is working as an art director and illustrating books for children. He graduated from California’s Art Center and his awards include The Society of illustrators Silver Medal and the Crystal Kite from the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. He lives in California with his wife and son.

Editorial Reviews

This adventure starts with the endpapers, when a stork accidentally drops an egg on the way to make a baby delivery. The wayward egg hatches in front of some surprised farm animals, and a case of mistaken identity ensues. The baby’s first word is “eee-moo” (imitating the respective reactions of a nearby pig and cow), so all the farm-animal locals assume that the little platypus is actually an emu, and they direct the little guy to Australia to find his parents. After hopping from one form of transportation to another, Eee Moo finds his flock, but he quickly sees that he doesn’t fit in with the emus. Not to worry: a nearby koala facilitates a happy ending by reuniting him with his real platypus parents. Dunklee’s story is incredibly sweet and silly, and Won’s winning illustrations add a wonderful sense of whimsy to the proceedings. Readers will delight in this world of anthropomorphized animals, coming away with a lesson on the importance of the friends and family who help them find their way.

September 20, 2019 - Online Exclusive Booklist

01/24/2020

PreS-Gr 2—A platypus egg is on its way to a local zoo when it accidentally rolls away. When the egg hatches, the platypus is declared an emu by a horse. Eee-Moo, who is actually a platypus, sets off for Australia and takes a variety of modes of transportation (a moped, train, rickshaw, ferry, and airplane) in an attempt to find where he belongs. The illustrations are rendered in a cartoon art style. Many of the animal characters sport hats and clothing. These details add to their humanistic quality. Eee-Moo is shown wearing his hat as soon as he hatches. This hat seems to be symbolic of the unity he has with his friends. The text mimics the movement of the imagery on some of the pages. For example, when Eee-Moo's egg is in the process of hatching, the text above appears to shake as well. Lines are utilized to depict sound, movement, and texture throughout the book. They are also used to create emphasis. VERDICT This picture book makes a fine read-aloud and focuses on recognizing and pondering individuality, the wonders of true friendship, and the lengths one will go to find a place of belonging.—Deanna Smith, Pender County Public Library, NC

School Library Journal

2019-05-22
A little platypus finds himself stranded far from his own kind, but with the help of friends, he travels back to Australia, where he is united with his parents.

The stork delivers a large egg on the opening endpapers of this whimsical story, the egg hatching on a farm next to a pig ("EEE!") and a cow ("MOO!"). The baby platypus names himself Eee-Moo, and the farm animals send him on his way to Australia to find other emus. The resourceful creature uses several kinds of transportation to return to Australia, where a kangaroo, a kookaburra, some actual emus, and a koala help him find his family. Eee-Moo invites all the animals that helped him to visit, and they all ride off into the sunset on a bicycle built for eight. The closing endpapers offer an intriguing, wordless conclusion as Eee-Moo, holding another egg, flies toward a new adventure on the back of the stork. The clever plot has a fairy-tale flavor, with talking animal characters and Eee-Moo's travels that transcend logical rules of time and space. Digitally composed illustrations have the appearance of delicate watercolor paintings with ink outlines. The clothed, anthropomorphic animals all appear to be male except for a hen and Eee-Moo's mother.

An unusual, robustly Antipodean cast of animal characters makes this whimsical, charming story stand out. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews