On the Farm, and: Tim, Defender of the Earth (review)

This well-stocked farm has representatives from just about every farm animal species, from cow to sheep, goat to pig, goose to duck to chicken, and they're each the subject of a portably sized poem. The verses scan a bit rustically at times and readers aloud will have to decide whether or not to include the titles as part of the poems (it's necessary with several but obtrusive with a few), but they're pithy and crisply rhymed, making for easy reading and listening. Tone varies from gently playful (the cow is "utterly/ amazing!") to pastorally musing (the bees' story "begins in clover" and "ends with gold"), offering a pleasing seasoning of imagery. Meade's watercolored woodblock illustrations are elegant yet homely, cheerfully depicting the unpolished charm of a well-filled pigpen (the farmer wisely wears wellies) as well as the sunny idyll of a field of wildflowers. Whether you're looking for a broader treatment than Schertle's poetic How Now, Brown Cow? (BCCB 12/94) or just poetic company for Denise Fleming's many barnyard outings, this should satisfy the young human menagerie.