Animals

Senor Pancho Had a Rancho

The barnyard animals on Old MacDonald’s and Senor Pancho’s farms have a hard time communicating. MacDonald’s rooster says cock-a-doodle-doo! While Senor Pancho’s gallo says quiquirquí. The English-speaking chick says peep, peep, but el pollito says pio, pio. Then the cow says moo and la vaca says mu! Maybe they’re not so different after all! So all the animals come together for a barnyard fiesta, because dancing is a universal language.

The Race

Get ready, get set, GO! A group of caribou gather together to run a race. Starting at the beginning of the course, readers join in the fun as the caribou engage in some rather outlandish tricks in order to be the first to cross the finish line. (Banana skins, for example, are an effective way to get rid of some opponents.) But in the midst of this titanic struggle for victory, some of the caribou stop to question the merits of their single-minded pursuit of winning at all costs. In the end, the reader is left to decide who the real winner is in this cautionary tale about the ups and downs of winning and losing. Illustrations are cut-paper collage.

The Little Bear Book

As a bear strolls through the forest, he meets a lonely gorilla, a noisy crocodile, a lion, and even an elephant. They all look as if they are missing something, so the bear steps in to save the day, using his magic pencil to draw just what they are looking for. Originally published in 1988, this enchanting story by a picture-book master is available again for a brand-new audience.

The Very Cranky Bear

On a cold, rainy day in the jungle, Moose, Lion, Zebra, and Sheep take shelter in a cave on a cold and rainy day, only to realize that a bear is there. The bear roars loudly and says that he is trying to sleep. Not understanding why the bear is so cranky, the other animals come up with ways to cheer up the bear. Moose finds antlers for him, Lion gives him a mane, and Zebra paints on stripes. Is there anything the four well-meaning friends can do to help the bear sleep?

Starring Me and You

A bunny and a pig, explore the world of their emotions as they attempt to put on a play together. Along the way, they must face a few challenges, such as when the bunny wants them to “be sunflowers and sing a duet,” while the pig would rather “be pirates on a shipwreck.” As they work their way to a successful collaboration, they take turns describing the different ways they act when they are shy, scared, eager, angry and sad.

Norman, Speak!

At the animal shelter, a young boy and his family choose a pet, Norman, the little stray dog who has been there the longest. Norman is brown and white, with a stump of a tail. He’s so glad to have a home that he does a “hula dance of happiness” whenever he sees his new owners. But the family soon discovers that Norman won’t respond to commands. He doesn’t even seem to know his own name. They conclude that lovable Norman just isn’t very smart until a chance encounter in the park makes them think otherwise.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume VII, Issue 2

This book has been included in WOW’s Language and Learning: Children’s and Young Adult Fiction Booklist. For our current list, visit our Booklist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.

The Last Wild

In a world where animals no longer exist, twelve-year-old Kester Jaynes sometimes feels like he hardly exists either. Locked away in a home for troubled children, he’s told there’s something wrong with him. So when he meets a flock of talking pigeons and a bossy cockroach, Kester thinks he’s finally gone crazy. But the animals have something to say. And they need him. The pigeons fly Kester to a wild place where the last creatures in the land have survived. A wise stag needs Kester’s help, and together they must embark on a great journey, joined along the way by an overenthusiastic wolf cub, a military-trained cockroach, a mouse with a ritual for everything, and a stubborn girl named Polly. The animals saved Kester Jaynes. But can Kester save the animals?