Sixteen Cows

by Lisa Wheeler, Kurt Cyrus (Illustrator)

Overview

Cowboy Gene loves his eight cows, and Cowgirl Sue loves her eight cows, and both of them like the fence that keeps their pastures—and cows—apart. But then a tornado blows through and takes the fence with it. Will they ever be able to figure out whose cows are whose?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780152055929
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/01/2006
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	837,989
Product dimensions:	11.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.15(d)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

LISA WHEELER is the author of several award-winning picture books, including Sixteen Cows, One Dark Night, and Mammoths On the Move, which received a Parent's Choice Recommended Award. She lives near Detroit, Michigan. www.lisawheelerbooks.com

Kurt Cyrus has hammered out such books as Billions of Bricks, Tadpole Rex, and Oddhopper Opera: A Bug’s Garden of Verses. He has also illustrated books by authors such as Eve Bunting (The Bones of Fred McFee), Lisa Wheeler (Mammoths on the Move), and M.T. Anderson (Whales on Stilts). Kurt lives in a small town in Oregon. Visit him online at www.kurtcyrus.com.

Editorial Reviews

"The repetition of the cows' silly names and the ranch-style dialogue will spark a smile or giggle."—School Library Journal

"Great for rowdy story hours."—Booklist
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From the Publisher

It's romance on the range after a tornado destroys a fence and a cowgirl's eight cows mix with a cowboy's matching herd. "Rubbery rhymes and humorous lists of cow-names keep the pages turning at a lively clip," PW said. Ages 3-7. (July) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

PreS-Gr 2-A fun bovine read-aloud, told in singsong rhyme. Cowboy Gene and Cowgirl Sue live on adjoining ranches and each have eight cows and a "come-home" song to round up their herds. Their animals always respond with a chorus of "Moo." When an Arkansas wind blows down the fence that divides the pastures, the cows mingle and roam and get mighty confused by the dueling songs. The ranchers call a truce and actually meet face to face. They admire one another's herds and, "Come that fall, those two cowpokes exchanged their wedding vows. Who served as honored bridesmaids? No less than sixteen cows!" The playful illustrations replete with chaps and kerchiefs reflect the setting, and a full-page spread captures the hoedown reception with the guests dancing under udder-shaped balloons. The repetition of the cows' silly names and the ranch-style dialogue will spark a smile or giggle. Libraries looking for books in rhyme or with Western settings will enjoy this title.-Helen Foster James, University of California at San Diego Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

Verse with all the spunk of dueling banjos and honeyed watercolors are a pleasingly combustible combination in this rollicking romance. The story pivots about Cowboy Gene and Cowgirl Sue and their cows, who share adjoining acreage on the lonesome prairie. Cowgirl Sue has the high ground, while Cowboy Gene makes his home down in the valley, and never the two mix until the day a tornado comes through and sends their fence flying to parts unknown. When the herds start to mingle, both Gene and Sue set to yodeling for their charges. The cows first head toward Gene, then back toward Sue: "The cows all did the polka, as Sue commenced to singin'. / They trotted up to Waddle Ranch, their cowbells just a ringin'! / Sixteen cows together, ran up the hill and down. / Sixteen cows could not decide which was the sweeter sound." Finally, the two cowpokes stop their singing feud and start to admire each other's cows, then each other, plain and simple. Wedding bells split the air, and cows as bridesmaids make their first appearance in children's literature. A rousing little number, best read not right before bed, for the proceedings are spirited and the dancing cows inspire some serious high stepping. (Picture book. 3-7)

Kirkus Reviews