cover image Moo!

Moo!

David LaRochelle, illus. by Mike Wohnoutka. Walker, $16.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-8027-3409-9

Everyone secretly wants a sharp red sports car to drive around—including, apparently, one otherwise unassuming dairy cow. Her interest is piqued when her farmer puts his red car out on display with a sign that reads, “Car for Sale.” “Moo?” the cow asks curiously; the second the farmer is out of sight, she shouts another “Moo!” and leaps into the driver’s seat. “Moooooooo...” she croons happily as she tools along through green hills. “Moooo!” she cries in triumph, all four wheels off the ground. Risky? You bet! “Moo-moo,” says the cow, dismayed, as the car hurtles toward a curve. She has some explaining to do to the cop whose patrol car she totals. “Moo-moo! Moo moo-moo moo!” The cow’s one-word vocabulary is a great comic device, but Wohnoutka (Just Like My Papa) produces plenty of laughs, too, with big, bold graphics and comic book–style exclamations that even kids in the back row can see. When the cow attempts to shift blame to another animal, LaRochelle (How Martha Saved Her Parents from Green Beans) briefly lets her change her tune. An utterly fun moo-aloud. Ages 3–6. (Oct.)