I'm not usually a big fan of "I Can Read" books. And I'm not really into talking animals either. But I have to say, the Minnie and Moo series by author/illustator Denys Cazet is brilliant. I'm always amazed and impressed by authors who can pull me into a story with very few words. And when it comes to "I Can Read" books, the vocabulary is VERY limited.
Part of the appeal of these books is the artwork. I'm one of those people who wishes I could draw, but really, I don't have the patience for it. I know enough to realize that even though it looks cute and simple, the artist put a lot of time and thought into the illustrations.
But the words, the words! These cows have attitude. They may not know all the answers, but they won't hesitate to give you their opinion! I've read these books to my kids hundreds of times. I put on my best Southern accent and pull out my vast array of voices (um, that would be about 3!) whenever we read together. But this morning as I cleaned the house, I picked up "Minnie and Moo Meet Frankenswine" from the sofa and stopped to read it by myself. And I laughed out loud. Even without the pictures the story is funny. How does he do that?
I've never seen Denys Cazet listed among the bestsellers or lauded for his beautiful paintings, so I'll do it right here. Even if you don't have children or you don't usually read books from this section, you have to check out some of the Minnie and Moo books. I guarantee they'll make you smile :)
10 comments:
You convinced me. I'll check them out!
We have a lot of I Can Read books due to the fact that many are commercialized and linked to a cartoon or movie the kids like. BUT I bet this is one I will so enjoy too! Thanks for the recommendation, Sherrie!
Corey - Let me know what you think after you read them :)
Kelly - We have a lot of those annoying tie in books too. And I'm thrilled to find anything in this genre that's created by an honest to goodness author/artist and they're GREAT!
A cow with attitude sounds like a good character! They sound like a blast.
Oh, I will definitely have to get one of those books for my daughter! She loves cows, and to have it praised by you... well, I have to get one now.
My husband is an actor, so when he reads books to our daughter, he pulls out all the accents and voices. It is so fun to listen to him. :)
I'll have to look into these. We homeschool and have a lot of various readers, but I don't think we have this series. Looks like fun.
My boys really love the Frog & Toad series and were so disappointed to find there were only a handful.
PJ -- they are a blast!
Glam -- How fun to have someone with talent reading to the kids -- I love when people can do great voices!
Rena -- We loved Frog & Toad, too -- I think you'll like these :)
I'm with you--I had so much trouble finding good beginning readers for my son when he was that age. The ones with humor were the best, that's for sure.
Interesting. I'll have to look this one up for my oldest niece who wants to start reading. How cool is that?!?
Meek
Becky -- I agree. Humor helps a lot!
Meek -- It's always cool when kids are interested in reading :)
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