MINNIE AND MOO: WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE; Denys Cazet; Easy Reader; HarperCollins; 2006, 48pp. Our favorite cows, Minnie and Moo, overhear the farmer say he doesn't have money to pay his bills, and immediately visualize his becoming depressed, holing up indoors, and neglecting the farm, until all is lost. Moo decides the bank has lots of extra money--all they need to do is ask for some to save the farm, but the bank probably won't give money to cows so they dress up in some trench coats they find in the barn, and ride into town on the tractor, carrying an old violin case to put the money in. Thus attired, Minnie and Moo bear an unfortunate resemblance to the dreaded Bazooka Sisters, wanted dead or alive. "'The bank just wants people to feel good about themselves. Even if you're dead,' said Moo, 'it's nice to know you're still wanted.'" Minnie and Moo's adventures after they accidentally rob the bank are the stuff of legend and best left for readers to discover for themselves. As is usual with Denys Cazet's unfailingly charming books, big laughs are to be had for children and adults
Fowl Play By Kristin O'Donnell Tubb New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2024. Fiction 277 pages. Still reeling from her beloved uncle's death, Chloe Alvarez is comforted and confused when at his last will and testament reading, Uncle Will gifts her his African Grey parrot, Charlie. Charlie has a robust vocabulary and loves to make Alexa requests for her favorite songs, but when she starts saying things like, "homicide," and "cyanide," Chloe becomes convinced that Uncle Will may have met his demise by murder instead of a genetic disease, as was previously thought. Ultimately, bringing in her brother, Grammy, and Uncle Frank (and of course Charlie,) Chloe's ragtag and adoring family support her search for answers ---going on stakeouts, engaging in fast pursuits, and searching for clues. But as the suspects stack up and the mystery grows, Chole will learn that the process of death and grieving is complicated, and in the end her Uncle Will's words that, ...
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