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Reviewed by:
  • Hurry! Hurry!
  • Hope Morrison
Bunting, Eve Hurry! Hurry!; illus. by Jeff Mack. Harcourt, 200732p ISBN 0-15-205410-3$16.00 Ad 1-3 yrs

Something big is about to happen in the barnyard, and all the animals are eager to be a part of the event. The text follows a simple pattern of repeated phrases ("Hurry! Hurry!", "Coming! Coming!", "Ready? Ready?", "Yes! Yes!"), each pair uttered by a different grouping of farm animals. The instigator of the mass exodus of animals turns out to be a proud mama hen, and the event is none other than the hatching of her baby chick, who bursts out declaring, "I'm here! I'm here!" while all the barnyard citizens beam. The acrylic paintings lack outlining, with the animals blending into the similarly textured grass and sky instead of standing out against the background. There is liveliness in the illustrations, though, and the tonal shift from the animals' stampeding to the animals' quiet observation of the egg is particularly well executed. The plot offers a nice trajectory and focused energy towards the pending surprise, but ultimately this is a fairly thin episode, lacking the substance needed for a full-length storybook. Still, little listeners will enjoy hearing the different animals shout out, and they will likely join in after a reading or two.

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