1. The Animals of Farmer Jones

1. The Animals of Farmer Jones. Leah Gale. Illustrated by Richard Scarry. 1942. 32 pages. [Source: Bought, 4 stars, Golden Books, children's classic, farm stories]

First sentence: It is supper time on the farm. The animals are very hungry. But where is Farmer Jones?

Premise/plot: The Animals of Farmer Jones is a classic Little Golden Book. This one was originally published in 1942. Half the book is spent visiting ALL the animals on the farm--every one must make its sound after all--who want to know where Farmer Jones is. The other half of the book focuses on Farmer Jones visiting ALL the animals and feeding them.

My thoughts: Is this the most thrilling farm book? Perhaps it isn't. But it has all the elements you'd expect: a wide variety of farm animals, all the animal sounds, repetition of the text, predictability. The illustrations are by Richard Scarry. They are fabulous illustrations.

If reading about farm animals is part of your life now as a parent, a grandparent, a guardian, then you might as well read a few classics as well.

© 2026 Becky Laney of Young Readers

31. Wrong Time Rooster

 

31. Wrong Time Rooster. Michael Parkin. 2025. 32 pages. [Source: Library] [3 star, picture book, telling time, concept book, farms] 

First sentence: One morning, a very important delivery arrived at the farm. The animals all gathered together, wondering what could possibly be in the crate! 

Premise/plot: The farm has a new rooster. The problem? (As you should know by now, all books have a 'problem.') This rooster can't tell time....literally. This rooster has clocks--many of them. But he can't read time, or, tell time. Therefore, he crows at all the wrong times. 

My thoughts: I expected the book to be funnier. For better or worse, it turned into a concept book about telling time. I suppose that could be a great thing for some. Does it make for the most entertaining farm story? Probably not. Would it still be a natural choice for reading aloud? I think so.

 

© 2025 Becky Laney of Young Readers

152. The Man Who Didn't Like Animals

152. The Man Who Didn't Like Animals. Deborah Underwood. Illustrated by LeUyen Pham. 2024. 40 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars] [picture book]

First sentence: There once was a man who loved his tidy home and who didn't like animals. One day, a cat appeared. "I don't like cats," said the man. "Go away." But the cat didn't. The man liked sleeping in the sun. So did the cat. The man liked watching the rain. So did the cat. The man liked to eat dinner precisely at 6 P.M. So did the cat. "Hmph," said the man. "Maybe THIS cat isn't so bad."

My thoughts (preview): I have loved, loved, loved some of Deborah Underwood's previous books. I have LOVED, LOVED, LOVED some of LeUyen Pham's previous books. The fact that one of my favorite writers paired up with one of my all-time favorite illustrators meant only one thing: I MUST READ THE BOOK. I did request my library order a copy! (I am so happy now that others will enjoy it too!) I squealed a bit when I saw it had been ordered and put myself on the hold list....

SOMETIMES YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH YOU NEED A BOOK UNTIL IT IS IN YOUR HANDS. 

Premise/plot: How does a [somewhat cranky] man go from hating animals to loving animals????? One day at a time apparently. It starts with one cat....but of course, one cat never stays one cat. As his heart starts growing day by day, his life is transformed. He is no longer the same man by the end of the book! 

There *is* a twist. It does state this twist on the cover. It does. GoodReads likewise spoils it. However, I went into the book not reading the "fine print" if you will. I LOVED being surprised. I would recommend NOT telling little ones before reading it aloud.

My thoughts: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THIS ONE. There are no words for how much this book stole my heart. 

I highly recommend this one as a read aloud. I could see it working in libraries, in classrooms, and, of course, in homes. I think it would be a great one to interject with questions like WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL HAPPEN NEXT?  etc. 

© 2024 Becky Laney of Young Readers

40-42. Board Book Parade (Farm Edition)

40. Board book: Country Baby. Laurie Elmquist. Illustrated by Ellen Rooney. 2024. 20 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: We pull on rubber boots
Splash into puddles with both feet
Look for speckled eggs
The sheep's wool is cozy-cozy

My thoughts (preview): I find it incredibly sad that my first and foremost response is to notice all the lack of periods in the text. One period for the whole book. 

Premise/plot: Little ones follow the adventures of a country baby (and country mom) in this board book. The text is descriptive yet still simple. 

My thoughts: I like this one. It is a farm book that does feature a story. It goes beyond animal identification and/or animal sounds. It is set on a farm, but I think it focuses more on the parent-child relationship. I do think the book celebrates nature and 'country life.'

41. Slide and See First Words: Farm (Board book) Helen Hughes. Illustrated by Samantha Meredith. 2024. 12 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Farm buildings
farmhouse
barn
henhouse
There is one house for the famer and houses for the animals, too.

Premise/plot: This is an 'interactive' board book for parents to share with little ones. Each page/spread (including the cover) features a sliding element that reveals words. (Hence: slide and see). There are other peek-a-boo surprises besides words alone. 

Many pages feature questions and answers. Questions like "What color is the barn? Who lives inside the barn? What are they eating?" On the next page--the page with the sliding elements--we've got sentences waiting for the answers to slide in. The barn is red. Inside the barn are the animals. They are eating hay.

Each spread is farm-themed, but there is no continuous story. 

My thoughts: How could I read this one without flashing back to Baby Einstein's Baby MacDonald. I can hear the music even. I do like the sliding elements. I think they are fun. Obviously, I have not tested their durability. I haven't slid them back and forth hundreds of times. I haven't played with the book roughly. I have not tasted it. But I do like it and would easily recommend it. 

Farm books are not "new" or unique. There will always be plenty of new farm books published each year, every year. Probably not all staying in print.

42.  Board book: Don't Push the Button! On the Farm. Bill Cotter. 2024. 24 pages. [Source: Library] 

First sentence: Hey there! Great to see you again! I'm so excited to be visiting the farm with you. Let's go! Don't open the gate that means you!!! Oh, don't worry about that sign. It's probably nothing. Could you flip open the latch? I can't reach it.

Premise/plot: This is an interactive board book in the sense that it is asking readers to participate using their imagination. (Think Blue's Clues or Dora the Explorer or the like). It is written using the second person--you. The book is pure silliness from cover to cover.

My thoughts: These books fall flat unless you're really to engage fully. I do think the book can be appealing because it is enthusiastically over-the-top silly. I think the person reading aloud can help this be an engaging read as well. (Sometimes how you read a book aloud is so important.) 

I like this one, but didn't personally love it.

© 2024 Becky Laney of Young Readers

271. Horace and Bunwinkle

Horace and Bunwinkle. PJ Gardner. 2020. 224 pages. [Source: Library] [Animal fantasy; early chapter book mystery series]

First sentence: Horace Homer Higgins III was gravely ill. His head throbbed. His stomach ached. And his sniffer was clogged. This happened every time he rode in the car.

Premise/plot: Sometimes a cover can 'sell' a book. This cover just screams out read me, read me. The premise is simple: Horace, a Boston Terrier, teams up with a potbellied pig, Bunwinkle, to solve mysteries on the farm and surrounding neighborhood. Animals are going missing. Horace is new to the country and farm life. Bunwinkle is new to the family and the farm--having just been separated from her mother and siblings. 

My thoughts: I liked it. I really found the cover appealing. I was excited to check this one out from the library. I was so convinced that I was going to love this series that I checked out all the books at once. I'm not sure I have any interest in reading more. It was entertaining enough, cute enough. But there wasn't much plot--at least in my opinion. Maybe others in the series would have more plot since the characters won't be new and needing to be established.

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

171. A Day on the Farm

DK Super Readers, Level 1. A Day on the Farm. DK Publishing. 2023. [April] 35 pages. [Source: Library] [early reader; nonfiction]

First sentence: It is early in the morning. The farm is quiet. Then, the rooster begins to crow. What a noise! Cock-a-doodle-doo! He wakes up all the other farm animals. In the barn, the mother hen starts to cluck. One of her eggs is ready to hatch. 

Premise/plot: Nonfiction EARLY reader. The text is simple. Perhaps not as simple as it could be (think board books with a farm setting). But it is very basic.

My thoughts: This one reminded me a lot of the board books I used to read (and review). Expect photographs of farm animals, names of farm animals, sounds the farm animals make. It's "a day" on the farm. It opens with a rooster and closes with a cat.

I liked it well enough.
 

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

127. Hide and Go Beak

The Great Mathemachicken: Hide and Go Beak. Nancy Krulik. 2022. [January] 96 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: "Tag! You're it!" Clucky clucked. He pecked his friend Chirpy's back. Chirpy ruffled her wings. But she didn't chase the other chicks.

Premise/plot: The first in a new early chapter book series starring a chicken, Chirpy, who loves math and science. Chirpy often sneaks out of the coop and onto the school bus. She is always eager to learn at school and to share her new knowledge with her fellow chickens in the coop.

In this first adventure, she is learning about simple machines. She may just be able to save a life when a FOX is trying to get one of the chickens.

My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. I did. There are so many books--picture books, early readers, early chapter books--starring chickens. I'm so glad that this sub-sub-sub-genre exists in the publishing world. 

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

116. Cowy Cow

Board book: Cowy Cow. Chris Raschka. 2014. 24 pages. [Source: Library] [Link to cover image]

First sentence: Cowy Cow has one hundred ideas. Here are some of her ideas. Number 79: Green is the best color ever. Number 34: If you chew grass long enough, it might taste like a gluten-free oatmeal raisin cookie. Cowy Cow, have you ever tasted a gluten-free oatmeal raisin cookie?

Premise/plot: Board book to read aloud to little ones. (Farm books should be their own genre or sub-genre.)

My thoughts: I definitely enjoyed Cowy Cow. What you should expect: silliness, more silliness, even more silliness. A genius cow with "one hundred" ideas shares two of her ideas in this board book. 

When I first read Cowy Cow I was not a special gluten-free diet. Now that I am, it personally works for me a little bit better. Is this humor kid-humor???? I don't know. I really don't. I can see how someone might read this one cover to cover and be like THIS GOT PUBLISHED? But I liked it more than not.

I liked the illustrations.

 

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

31. Lily to the Rescue: The Misfit Donkey

Lily to the Rescue #6: The Misfit Donkey. 2021. 144 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Maggie Rose is my girl. I am her dog. In my opinion, this means we should be together every moment. 

Premise/plot: Lily revisits her friends the pigs [whom she met in an earlier book in the series] and meets a new friend, a donkey named Burrito. Burrito is having trouble fitting in/belonging. He's sold...but the other donkeys--older donkeys, don't want anything to do with him at all. Burrito LOVES the pigs from his old place and smells like a pig. Can Lily (who also smells like a pig) help Burrito fit into his new home? And will this lead to a bath???

My thoughts: I do love this series overall. This particular book in the series is fairly uneventful. Bryan, Maggie Rose's brother, goes with Maggie Rose, Lily, and their mom to the farm[s]. Bryan makes a possible new friend and discovers he likes horses. But other than learning that Lily likes to smell horse poop [I could have gone my whole life without needing to know that] not much happens. That being said, Lily is as adorable as ever.

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

26. Chicken Karaoke

Chicken Karaoke. Heidi E. Y. Stemple. Illustrated by Aaron Spurgeon. 2023. [January] 32 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Duck arrives, ducklings in tow. She warms up her voice with notes high and low.

Premise/plot: Duck is SUPER excited to be participating in karaoke. But the night doesn't exactly go as planned....what surprises are in store for Duck????

My thoughts: I enjoyed this humorous early reader. It is a silly, enjoyable animal fantasy. It is a 'ready to read' level one book.

 

© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers

207. Moo, Baa, Fa La La La!

Board book: Moo, Baa, Fa la la la la! Sandra Boynton. 2022. [September] 16 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Deck the halls with cows and holly
while the little sheep sing
Baa, baa, baa!

Premise/plot: A holiday-themed board book starring [lovable] farm animals. 

My thoughts: This is a companion to Moo, Baa, La La La! I do  wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if I was familiar with the original board book? Even without the original to judge by, the book has plenty of silly to it. 

Sandra Boynton has written plenty of board books for the youngest of readers.

 

© 2022 Becky Laney of Young Readers

183. Click, Clack, Rainy Day

Click, Clack Rainy Day. Doreen Cronin. Illustrated by Betsy Lewin. 2022. [May] 32 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: It is raining on the farm. The rain rolls off the roof of the house. The rain rolls off the roof of the barn. The rain rolls off the roof of the tractor shed. Farmer Brown stays in the house. Farmer Brown does not like to be wet. The rain makes a drip sound. The rain makes a drop sound. The rain makes a drip-drop sound on the window. 

Premise/plot: Level two reader in a popular children's book series. For young readers who are already familiar with these famous--or infamous--cows and their farmer [Farmer Brown] there is much to love. The cows are super contrary. While Farmer Brown and all the others HATE getting wet in the rain, these cows--the very same cows who wanted electric blankets to stay warm--love, love, love the wet, rainy weather.

My thoughts: The more you love the original series, the more I think you will probably appreciate this installment. I haven't read each and every book in the series, but there are certainly books in this series that I absolutely love, love, love and adore. I liked this one very much. I liked how contrary the cows were! The book was definitely on the silly side. I liked the rhythmic repetition.

 

© 2022 Becky Laney of Young Readers

124. Hello, Farm!

Hello, Farm! High Contrast Book for Babies. Amelia Hepworth. Illustrated by Cani Chen. 2022. [January] 10 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Sheep baas. Hello! Chicken clucks. Hello! Pig oinks. Hello! Cow mows. Hello!

Hello, Farm! is a high contrast board book for the youngest of readers. (Or "readers.") This one is just about perfect to share with the littlest ones in your life. The illustrations are high contrast. Black and white illustrations with bursts of color on each page. Simple text. Simple illustrations. Plenty of interest visually. The cover offers tactile fun.

I do recommend for little ones. It is never too early to start a book habit with your little ones.

 

© 2022 Becky Laney of Young Readers

143. Raised in a Barn

Raised in a Barn. (Good Dog #2) Cam Higgins. Illustrated by Ariel Landy. 2020. [December] 128 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: The sky was a clear blue.

Premise/plot: Bo loves playing with Comet the new colt on the Davis farm. Comet loves playing with Bo. These two--though different--have quite a good time together. But silly Bo, well, he decides it is HIS job to teach Comet how to be a horse!!! The results aren't that great. This chapter book has a few adventures and misadventures with this pair.

My thoughts: I liked this one. I definitely liked the first one better. But I think that's just how it may be with this series books. I can see that some titles I may especially like, and others maybe not as well. Still, Bo is super cute and adorable. I think the series would make a lovely addition in homes and libraries.

 

© 2021 Becky Laney of Young Readers

141. Home Is Where The Heart Is (Good Dog #1)

Good Dog: Home Is Where The Heart Is (Good Dog #1) Cam Higgins. Illustrated by Ariel Landy. 2020. [December] 128 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Mud. Is there anything better than the cool feeling of it against your fur or the way it squishy-oozes between your paws?

Premise/plot: BO is the GOOD DOG (of which the title speaks). Bo has a fabulous life on the farm. He loves his parents (Jennica and Darnell) and his siblings (Imani and Wyatt). He loves all the animals on the farm; he even tolerates the two barn cats, King and Diva. Yes, life is GOOD--just about perfect. But on this perfectly, perfect day which starts out with Bo playing with his friend Zonks (a pig) in the mud, well, it ends with his dog tag turning up missing! Can he retrace his steps and find his special tag?

My thoughts: Bo is cute and adorable, super precious, irresistible. The mystery to solve is light, but who cares when the dog is so sweet, so cute, so lovable??? This is the first book in a new series of early chapter books. The book is heavily illustrated. But I'm not complaining, BO and the others on the farm (including his human family) are adorable.

I liked this one very much. I am definitely going to be seeking out the other books in this series. I want to say there are six books now!!! Would recommend for younger grades in elementary...especially for dog lovers.

 

© 2021 Becky Laney of Young Readers

136. The Becket List

The Becket List: A Blackberry Farm Story. Adele Griffin. 2019. 208 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Today we're moving to Blackberry Farm. My parents are taking over the Old Post Road Animal Clinic, and we'll all help Gran run Branch's Farm Store.

Premise/plot: The Branch family is moving. Caroline, the oldest, is sad to be leaving her best, best friend. Nicolas, Rebecca's twin brother, is anxious and hesitant. And Rebecca, our hero, well she's super excited and adopted a new nickname: Becket. She is making (and making as she goes) a bucket list of everything a *real* country girl would do and doing it. The summer is full of changes...some great...some not so great. But it's packed with adventures and misadventures for the whole family.

My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. I liked the writing. I loved the illustrations by LeUyen Pham. She's one of my favorite, favorite illustrators. The pace of the story is good.

I would just remind readers to be careful and OBSERVE the cover. NOTICE the dog on the cover. Question if you should read a book with a dog on the cover. Look for reviews (like this one) that may contain advice about reading books with dogs on the cover. Look for SPOILERS that alert you if the book is safe or not safe to read BECAUSE OF THE DOG ON THE COVER. Don't be like me and go in unprepared....

In other words....THIS BOOK IS NOT AT ALL SAFE FOR THOSE AVOIDING BOOKS WHERE DOGS DIE.

Quotes:

• But I know Gran likes loud truth more than soft politeness. That's why we get along.
• In the beginning, I figured if I did ten things that I hadn't ever done, it would make me into a real country kid. But this summer didn't follow my list. I never knew what I needed to learn next.

© 2021 Becky Laney of Young Readers

62. Billie Someday

Billie Someday. Andy Graham. 2021. 160 pages. [Complete and total guess] [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: It may have felt like an ordinary July morning high in this mountain valley, but you can be sure that it was not.This was a special day, because in the valley there happened to be a farm where, on a barn floor of well-trampled hay and mud, a proud mother goat lay chewing a bit of cud, waiting to give birth. She was alone for the moment, but soon there would be a sweltering gale of commotion, including a farmer, a doctor, wet nurses, dry nurses, congratulators—and a handful of nosy goats that would begin prodding for details.

Premise/plot: Billie Someday, our heroine, is a goat. A goat who feels it is her destiny to be the greatest of all time. Yes, our goat wants to be a G.O.A.T. Unsatisfied with her mundane life on the farm, this kid is determined to do something extraordinary: to return to the home of her distant ancestors. Billie Someday wants to be a mountain goat, or, perhaps a mountain climbing goat. But it won't be an easy journey. Far from it. Obstacles abound. Will Billie's dreams come true? Will she climb to the top of the mountain? Can she survive the oh-so-dangerous wolves that stand in between her and the mountain? Will she return to tell her tale?

My thoughts: Billie Someday is a middle grade animal fantasy. Since there is an animal on the cover, I do feel I need to mention that Billie (and friends) survive to the end of the novel. This isn't one of those books where you will need a box of tissues.

I do not have an adventurous bone in my body. I don't. But Billie does. Billie is all about ONE dream, and that dream will take her off the ordinary path so to speak. She's not like any other goat--well, farm goat, she knows. She's different and she has to fully and completely embrace her difference in order to realize her awesomeness.

The story is direct rather than cutesy. These farm goats are being kept for one reason only: for milk. The girls are kept, of course, and will go on to have kids of their own and be milk producers. But the boys, well, they aren't kept--or if they are kept, not intact. There for a while I thought this book was going to go semi-graphic in that department. (It didn't. Not really. Kids (human readers) may be curious about kids (the goats) and ask questions and look up definitions, but there's nothing inappropriate in the text itself. And it's certainly nothing that would be new to a farm kid.

I think my favorite character was the cat, Antoni.

 

© 2021 Becky Laney of Young Readers

59. Pancakes, Pancakes

 

Pancakes, Pancakes! Eric Carle. 1970. 36 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: Kee-ke-ri-kee crowed the rooster. Jack woke up, looked out the window and thought, "I'd like to have a big pancake for breakfast."

Premise/plot: Jack wants a pancake--a BIG pancake. His mom tells him he'll have to help her if he wants a pancake. This help will include cutting wheat, taking it to the miller in town, having it ground into flour, gathering an egg from a hen, milking a cow, churning butter, and getting a jar of jam from the cellar. Some of these tasks take time--a good deal of time--and effort. Will Jack enjoy the pancakes more for all the work he invested in it?!

My thoughts: I like this one.  I do. I like the text more than the illustrations. The book is a very old-fashioned look at how we "get" our food. Flour, eggs, and milk don't come from the store. Pancakes don't come from a mix or restaurant.

Text: 4 out of 5
Illustrations: 3 out of 5
Total: 7 out of 10

 

© 2021 Becky Laney of Young Readers

81. Farmer Duck

Farmer Duck. Martin Waddell. Illustrated by Helen Oxenbury. 1992. 33 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: There was once a duck who had the bad luck to live with a lazy old farmer. The duck did the work. The farmer stayed all day in bed. The duck fetched the cow from the field. "How goes the work?" called the farmer. The duck answered, "Quack!"

Premise/plot: The farmer in this story is lazy, fat, and selfish. Duck, our hero, is a hard worker whose work and dedication is appreciated by the animals--if not the farmer himself. The animals may just have a plan to rid the duck of an overseer who can only bellow HOW GOES THE WORK from afar.

My thoughts: It is the refrain HOW GOES THE WORK? QUACK! that has stuck with me through the years. Some picture books (some stories) are just super quotable--to one degree or another--and become part of our lives. (Like, "We ate our honey. We ate a lot, and now there is no honey in our honey pot." Or "It looked like pink ink.") I loved revisiting this one.

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 5 out of 5
Total: 10 out of 10 

© 2020 Becky Laney of Young Readers

43. Audrey (cow)

Audrey (Cow) Dan Bar-el. 2014. 240 pages. [Source: Library][animal fantasy; children's book]

First sentence: How would I describe her in a word?

Premise/plot: Audrey is not a milk cow or a work cow. She’s a food cow. But though her so-called destiny is set—the slaughterhouse inevitable—she will not go down without a fight. This poet cow is on a mission to escape and find freedom. But one cow on her own seems doomed to fail, but a cow with friends...well...anything is possible with a community of support and knowledge.

This one is written as a script. It has many, many, many characters. Cows. Sheep. A rooster. Dogs. Deer. A skunk. A pig. Just to name a few...readers also hear from the humans in the story.

My thoughts: I definitely enjoyed this one. I haven’t quite decided if it was love or love, love, love. I would recommend it. It’s a treat to read. But is it as timeless as Charlotte’s Web or Babe?! I am not sure yet. But it’s a great way to spend a few hours.

© 2020 Becky Laney of Young Readers