Review by Booklist Review
K-Gr. 2. After overhearing the farmer tell his wife that he is too old to be the Easter Bunny for their grandchildren, Minnie and Moo try to convince the rooster, the pigs, the sheep, and the turkeys to take on the job. When all else fails, the loyal cows don enormous pink and yellow bunny suits, only to find that a remarkable menagerie of volunteers have answered the call. In the accompanying artwork, drawings brightened with springlike pastel washes ably express the characters' emotions as well as their actions. Challenging the notion that books for beginning readers are bland, this entry in the Minnie and Moo series provides a story and illustrations that are not only witty but occasionally laugh-out-loud funny. A treat for independent readers, who will request previous Minnie and Moo books, and a great read-aloud for preschoolers at Easter. --Carolyn Phelan Copyright 2004 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
More holiday misadventures await readers in Minnie and Moo: The Attack of the Easter Bunnies by Denys Cazet. When they hear that the farmer is too old to dress up as the Easter Bunny, the bovine duo decides to find a replacement. Cazet's illustrations of various animals' homemade Easter Bunny costumes (e.g., turkeys Zeke and Zack with bananas affixed to their heads as ears) are particularly funny. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-Minnie and Moo are in top form in their latest wacky, easy-to-read adventure. This time, Minnie overhears the farmer telling Mrs. Farmer that he is too old to be the Easter Bunny. Since all of the grandchildren are expecting an egg hunt, the cows try to find a substitute. After all of the other barnyard animals turn them down, Minnie and Moo take matters into their own hooves. All ends happily, of course, with a zany Easter Parade. Cazet's springlike pastels and comically cartoony figures illuminate the fun goings-on, but it's the silly dialogue that carries the day. Cazet's lovably offbeat characters follow in the "hoof" steps of Bernard Wiseman's Morris the Moose and James Marshall's Fox.-Marilyn Taniguchi, Beverly Hills Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Primary) Youngsters learning to read have spent many a holiday with cows Minnie and Moo: Minnie and Moo and the Thanksgiving Tree (rev. 9/00); Minnie and Moo and the Night Before Christmas (rev. 11/02); and Minnie and Moo: Will You Be My Valentine (rev. 1/03). Now they can add Halloween and Easter to the list. In The Night of the Living Bed Minnie leads all the farm animals through her own version of trick-or-treat. She rings doorbells, performs a trick, and gets some candy. She also manages to slip in a ""Who's on first"" routine along the way. ""'What's your name, kid?' 'Moo,' said Moo. 'I know cows go moo,' said the man. 'But what's your name?'"" At Easter, the two discover the farmer doesn't want to dress up like the Easter Bunny for his grandchildren. So they fashion their own parade with all the animals joining in. Cazet's illustrations add visual humor to the cows' deadpan delivery as they try to explain their convoluted version of Easter. ""'The Easter Bunny,' said Moo, 'brings colored eggs to children.' 'Why?' asked Zeke [the turkey]. 'It's a kind of spring party for the new year...The egg is a sign of new life.' Zeke looked at Zack [the other turkey]. 'I'll be darned. Did you know that?' 'I didn't even know bunnies laid eggs,' said Zack."" Children whose reading skills, but not their taste in reading matter, have matured can join their old friends in their first chapter book, The Seven Wonders of the World. Cazet provides illustrations every few pages to pace and outline the comical plot, a vocabulary only slightly more advanced than in the earlier books, plenty of droll dialogue, and a cast of familiar characters. Here Moo overhears the farmer talking with Mrs. Farmer and assumes that they're broke and will have to sell the farm. Which, for the pampered cows, means ""back to hay three times a day, like the rest of the farms in the world."" Minnie concludes, ""I don't wantto live like an animal,"" so she sets her mind to making enough money to save the farm. Why not charge for a tour of all its wonders, from the Rock That Never Moves to FLUs (flying long underwear)? And so she does. Add a missing rhinoceros from the zoo and the dotty (but rich) docents looking for it, and kids have an extended story that allows them easy entry into the world's eighth wonder: reading. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
