Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Haughty hens Zinnia and Dot really ruffle each other’s feathers. Each proclaims herself the most beautiful hen in the coop and insists that her own nest of eggs is the most exquisite. When a hungry and mischievous weasel disrupts the coop, leaving only a solitary egg in his wake, Zinnia and Dot must put their cackling aside and decide what is best for their offspring. Despite the somewhat adult tone and situation of Ernst’s ( Ginger Jumps ; When Bluebell Sang ) text, children will enjoy the action scenes and the bickering biddies, and may benefit from the messages about friendship and problem-solving. Younger readers may also be comforted by the portrayal of the lucky chick who receives love from two mothers. Ernst’s warm, shadowy palette creates the feeling of being inside a chicken coop. Her characteristic plump figures with simple black silhouettes have a commanding presence in the form of Zinnia and Dot–true to their personalities, they often seem to be fighting for space on the page. Ages 3-8.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3– With flawless phrasing and lively art, Ernst returns to her theme of competition’s drive (nearly) overcoming good judgment. Two hens have such pride in their eggs that it overshadows all sense of perspective and results in the theft, by a wily and opportunistic weasel, of all but one of the eggs. The remaining one then becomes the source of even more rancor until a pair of mourning doves persuades the feuding females to share the responsibility of sitting on it. They do, but with comic results that lead, after all, to a happy ending. As in Sam Johnson and the Blue Ribbon Quilt (Lothrop, 1983) and Miss Penny and Mr. Grubbs (Bradbury, 1991), Ernst makes her point, but ever so gently. The pastel-and-ink drawings, filled with shades of browns and blues suggestive of a henhouse, depict plump, proud hens whose facial expressions and “feather language” tell the tale as effectively as the words. A winning tale of a friendship that triumphs over vanity. –Jane Marino, White Plains Public Library, NY
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Kirkus Reviews
Two feuding hens lose all but one egg to a weasel who sneaks in while they’re busy squabbling. Now they really have something to fight about: Whose is the egg that’s left? With poor grace, Dot and Zinnia squeeze together into one nest, brooding and maintaining “an icy silence.” Only after the weasel tries to eat them too, and they fight him off together, do they relax their antagonism and share their triumph–as well as the chick that hatches immediately thereafter (“He’s gorgeous!…his feet look just like yours”). Only the subtly balanced colors (old straw, Plymouth Rock gray, Rhode Island red) are muted here; the brisk narrative and the vigorous pen strokes delineating the adamant hens are vibrant with action. A good choice to share with a group. (Picture book. 3-8) — Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
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