Commentaire descriptif

Marjorie the cow doesn’t feel as special as the other cows who can ride bicycles and do cartwheels—until a group of well-meaning chickens hatches a clever plan to give Marjorie an emotional lift. An excellent choice for story time, the book uses cut-and-paste and collage techniques to create cartoon illustrations that are bright and funny, and convey its wacky plot that focuses on a cow laying an egg. Illustrations range from two-page landscape views to double-paged panels depicting a bulky cow on stick-figure legs going to absurd lengths to prove to the barnyard non-believers that she actually does lay eggs. Children will love the clever use of font after Marjorie exclaims, “I’ve laid an egg!!” As the story closes, an unexpected punch line is uttered by the newborn chick as it cracks open its shell: Moo! The book can be used as a springboard to discussion about self-esteem or jealousy. In the case of older children, it may serve as an instructional tool to talk about the differences between nature and nurture.