April Foolishness

I'm not a fan of April Fools Day, but this story is a fun twist on it. Grandpa isn't falling for his grandchildren's attempts at fooling him, but Grandma has a surprise in store for him.

What I really like are the little associations between Grandpa's calm breakfast preparations and the farm animals the kids are claiming have broken loose from their pens: when they yell "cows," he pours milk; when they scream "chickens," he fries some eggs; and so on. What a fun and sly way to sneak in educational material.

It's is the perfect spring day for the grandkids to visit the farm. But all chaos breaks out when the cows get loose and the pigs break the gate. Nevertheless, Grandpa is as cool as a cucumber and intent on fixing his morning breakfast. After all, he suspects the grandkids are up to some April foolishness. While the farm is going nuts, grandpa just grins. It is April Fools' Day after all...or is it? See who gets the last laugh in this uproarious and good-humored picture book.

The Bottom Line: This whimsical story told in rhyme will appeal to kids in grade school. Both the author and the illustrator succeed in capturing the carefree fun of April Fools' Day. This colorfully illustrated book is highly engaging for kids and would be the show more perfect pick for story time.

This review also appears at the Mini Book Bytes Book Review Blog. show less

This is a great story with some humor tied to it! This story is written in rhyme and draws readers in right away. The grandkids go to the farm to visit their grandparents and a string of events starts to unfold. Will Grandpa believe the children and fall for their April Foolishness or will be catch on to their tricks!?

Visiting their grandparents' farm, two children take turns running indoors to tell their grandpa of a string of catastrophes: the cows are loose, the pigs broke the gate, the goats are stampeding. Grandpa greets each revelation with remarkable equanimity and continues to fix his breakfast. When he confides to Grandma that the kids' news bulletins are April foolery, she tells him that April Fool's Day is tomorrow, setting him up to fall for their pranks.

Wonderful story in rhyme about kids and grandparents who live on the farm...one of the kids 'pulled grandpa's arm'. Beautiful fluid illustrations

It was nice and colorful.