Laura J. Bryant

Using the classic children's song, Old MacDonald Had a Farm as an inspiration, Mary Quattlebaum crafts a sing-along story about a young girl - Old MacDonald's granddaughter, Jo - who spends a day beside the pond, seeing all the flora and fauna in this small ecosystem. "Jo MacDonald Saw a pond, / E-I-E-I-O. / And in that pond she saw some reeds, / E-I-E-I-O. / With a swish-swish here / And a swish-swish there, / Here a swish, there a swish, / Everywhere a swish-swish. / Jo MacDonald saw a show more pond, / E-I-E-I-O," it begins, going on to document all of the features of pond life - fish, frogs, ducks, birds, raccoons, deer, and dragonflies - that young Jo encounters.

I enjoyed Jo MacDonald Saw a Pond quite a bit, and found myself humming along to the traditional tune, as I read. Quattlebaum does an excellent job adapting the original, creating a lentic tribute that is both entertaining and educational. An extensive afterword gives additional information about all the creatures included in the song. The artwork, done in gentle watercolor shades by Laura J. Bryant, captures each scene beautifully. All in all, this was a fun little book, one that can be used as both an entertaining sing-along at story-time, and as an aid in natural history education for younger children. I will definitely be seeking out the sequel, Jo MacDonald Had a Garden! show less

- I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. –

My son and I have read other books by this author before - we've checked them out from the library - and I'm always pleased. The illustration never disappoints, and my little guy always enjoys them, so I was excited to read this book with him.

I'm very picky when it comes to what I expose my child to, religiously especially. I'm not as fundamentalist or traditional in my understanding of show more Christianity as most people, and I want to try to raise my child a certain way when it comes to faith. So I love that this book talks about God and love without pushing too much of the parts of faith I'm not ready to expose my son to or would prefer to teach him differently. I love that the book talks about how God wants us to love everyone, to see the goodness in everyone, that "choosing love is always right." That kind of focus is exactly the kind of foundation I want to lay for my child now that we're beginning his "religious education," as I call it, before expanding our conversations to more complicated or entailed themes. So being able to expose him to books that help make that foundation in God and His love, the idea that God is love, makes me feel like I have a pretty good place to start from.

Two quotes I really enjoyed from the book are:
“God is love, so he created us to love. He ties us all together like the strings on our snowshoes, heart to heart.”
and
“God gave us love, all kinds of love. The love of mamas and papas, friends, family. And his love too. It brings out the best in us and our families”

The book did mention that God "sent his son to save us," which gets a little close to the end of my comfort zone, just because I understand the idea of "salvation" differently than most Christians, but I did like how it went on to say "to help us make good choices," which is a little more relevant to my interpretation and understanding of the idea of being "saved."

All in all, it was a cute book, and my son really enjoyed it. I would actually love to eventually get the rest of the books in the set, because I really do adore them. I think they're cute and encouraging, and they're definitely a great way to introduce a child to the themes of God and his love for mankind. I think Christians of all kinds would be able to enjoy reading them with their children. I certainly do. :) show less

Young Jo MacDonald, the granddaughter of Old MacDonald, returns in this second sing-along picture-book devoted to her adventures. Having explored the lentic world in Jo MacDonald Saw a Pond, she turns now to cultivating a garden, working with her cousin to plant, tend and harvest a variety of vegetables. "Jo MacDonald had a garden, / E-I-E-I-O. / And in that garden was some sun, / E-I-E-I-O. / With glow-glow here / And a glow-glow there, / Here a glow, there a glow, / Everywhere a glow-glow. show more / Jo MacDonald had a garden, / E-I-E-I-O," the story begins, going on to celebrate the soil, the creatures and the plants found in the garden, as well as the feast it produces at harvest-time.

Like its predecessor, I enjoyed Jo MacDonald Had a Garden, humming along to the traditional tune of Old MacDonald Had a Farm as I read. Both entertaining and educational - there is an informative afterword that explores all of the flora and faun depicted in the book, and offers suggestions for activities - it would make an excellent selection for a garden-themed story-hour, or as part of a discussion of ecology and our relationship to the environment. The gentle watercolor illustrations by Laura J. Bryant, who also worked on the first Jo MacDonald book, are just lovely, and well suited to each scene. All in all, a charming little picture-book, one I would recommend to young gardeners, as well as to children who enjoyed the first Jo MacDonald story. For my part, I am pleased to see that a third title, Jo MacDonald Hiked in the Woods, is due out later this year. show less

I'm fortunate to have access to a large library consortium, receive many review copies, and generally have a good chance of seeing a book before I buy. This means that unless it's from an author with a big following at my library, someone whose work is consistently popular, or a specific subject I'm looking for, I don't often purchase books I haven't previously seen.

Laura Bryant is a prolific author and illustrator, but not one that particularly stuck in my head from her previous work. show more However, I liked the cover, Albert Whitman is usually pretty reliable, and I took a chance, hoping this would be a good toddler read-aloud. And it is!

The endpages show a sleepy little gray pup, eyeing a blue ball, on a prickly green canvas of rolling hills. On the title page, the pup is awake and alert, sitting next to the blue ball. The story begins with a wordless scene in a crowded barnyard. A white couple, in old-fashioned overalls and twin set, look out at the scene and a little boy in jeans holds the blue ball high above his head. Chickens, kittens, pigs, cows, sheep, birds, and butterflies meander about.

The little boy throws the ball and the story officially begins with "One blue ball..." as the puppy leaps after it. The ball (and the puppy) frolic past two cows, three frogs, four pigs, and so on until they reach ten chicks and the ball bounces back to the farmyard and is caught by the puppy. Each set of animals is also identified with a color and the soft illustrations are simple enough for young listeners to feast their eyes upon without getting overwhelmed or confused.

There's a nice rhythm to the text, the additional counting, animal and color recognition, and friendly, accessible illustrations. Although perhaps not as relevant in an urban setting, my quasi-rural town will enjoy this story with its classic feel.

Verdict: A fun addition to storytime collections, just right for toddler read-alouds. Recommended.

ISBN: 9780807578650; Published April 2020 by Albert Whitman; Purchased for the library show less