Doesn't MOOve me. Minnie and Moo Disappoints
Written: Jan 28 '06
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Product Rating:
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Pros: It's short with plenty of pictures.
Cons: Nothing special about this book. Not a keeper.
The Bottom Line: I would pass on this book. It's the kind of book to SKIM quickly or let go "past your eyes." Definitely not the cream of the crop.
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| nagels's Full Review: |
Minnie and Moo and the Potato from Planet X is one of a line of books for beginning readers from I Can Read Books. This book is included in their level 3 series of books – “more complex themes and thoughts for the independent reader.” The publisher does not give this book a specific grade reading level but rather a range of grades 1-3. After some extensive research online I discovered that most sites labeled this title as appropriate for readers on grade level 2.3. At least one site recommended it for readers over 8 years of age.
I gleaned a list of some of the more difficult vocabulary words from the book: lotion, sputtered, pasture, plowed, tractor, creature, blowtorch, whispered, fuel, content, nervous. These words and others might pose a challenge for many first graders and some second graders too.
THE PLOT
On a lazy summer day Minnie and Moo, the main cow-acters in the story,and non candidates for Cow Tech, witness the crash landing of a space vehicle in the nearby pasture. The pilot of this space delivery truck for UPS (Universal Package Service) is Spud, a potato like alien. His mission is to deliver a tube of anti-bump cream to prevent the planets from colliding. Despite the importance of this delivery and time constraints, Spud stopped for donuts and the extra side trip caused him to run out of fuel. He must repair his ship or find a new vehicle and get five gallons of space fuel. The fuel turns out to be a white liquid that tastes good with chocolate chip cookies, milk with a very high fat content.
To get this milk quickly and save the universe Minnie must milk herself and not sit by on her dairy air. She is very nervous and doesn’t know if she can do it with everyone watching her. Moo clears the barn and sings “Home on the Range” to Minnie to relax her. With only a minute to spare Minnie produces the five gallons of “space fuel” to the relief of all. Afterwards she’s shown leaning on a fence post, her hair disheveled, her eyes crossed, her tongue hanging out of the side of her mouth.
MY TAKE
I have a couple of beefs or more about this book, and I’m not talking about the cow characters. The story itself seemed stale, garbled and uninteresting. Many first or second graders would not grasp much of what little humor there is here. The irony of a one-eyed potato would mean nothing to them, as would the “driver carries no change” sign on the space vehicle.
Minnie wears no clothes in the book, yet her husband wears overalls. Though all the animals have seen her enter the barn with no clothes, she shyly reaches out with one arm and hands Moo the bucket of milk. Her through- the- ringer appearance afterwards makes little sense. The illustrations are playful and silly, but hardly memorable. The author could have done more with Spud and taken advantage of his potato-ness. Sadly Spud only remotely resembles a real skin and starch potato. Minnie and Moo and the Potato from Planet X is one of those read it and forget kind of books. It lacks fun, humor, joy, imagination, and the unbridled silliness found in other children’s books.
Denys Cazet, the author of Minnie and Moo, has written and illustrated over 25 picture books for children. He taught elementary school for 25 years and was a school librarian and elementary school media specialist. When he passed a herd of cows and saw two nonconformist cows facing the opposite way, he was inspired to create the silly cow characters Minnie and Moo.
More Potato Themed Books
Edgar Potato
Mr. Potato Head’s Big Night Out
Mr. Potato Head Unplugged
Brave Potatoes
Recommended:
No
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