The Chicken Chasing Queen of Lamar County by Janice N. Harrington. il Shelley Jackson.
Melanie Kroupa Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux: NY, 2007.

A young girl makes a contest of chasing her favorite chicken around the farm. She's determined to catch Miss Hen, and Miss Hen is just as determined not to get caught. The girl tries several tactics until she discovers a secret about Miss Hen which is even better than the chase.

The mixed media pictures are great. Alive and energetic with varied texture and detail. There is so much humor in the girl and her chickens, and little ones will be looking closely to see what all they can find.

I don't think I've seen any of Harrington or Jackson's work before, but this is a selection I would want to share with everyone. A simple aspect of farm life infused with warmth, excitement, and hilarity.

related-chickens, farm life, barn animals, African-Americans
RL=2nd-3rd, read aloud to PreK-1st

Previous Choices

December 2006 - Free Fall by David Wiesner
January 2007 - The Quiltmaker's Gift by Jeff Brumbeau. il. Gail de Marcken
February 2007 - Miss Alaineus: A Vocabulary Disaster by Debra Frasier
March 2007 - The Mysteries of Harris Burdick by Chris Van Allsburg
April 2007 - When Pigasso Met Mootisse by Nina Laden
May 2007 - Song of the Water Boatman by Joyce Sidman. il Beckie Prange
June 2007 - Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson. il Hudson Talbott
July 2007 - Math Curse by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith
August 2007 - Weslandia by Paul Fleischman. il Kevin Hawkes
September 2007 - The Old Man Who Loved Cheese by Garrison Keillor. il by Anne Wilsdorf
October 2007 - The Biggest Bear by Lynn Ward
November 2007 - The Mitten by Jan Brett
December 2007 - Burt Dow: Deep-Water Man by Robert McCloskey January 2008 - Flotsam by David Wiesner
February 2008 - The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
March 2008 - Where in the Wild? by David M. Schwartz and Yael Schy photos by Dwight Kuhn
April 2008 - Walt Whitman: Words for America by Barbara Kerley. il Brian Selznick
May 2008 - Gone Wild by David McLimans.
June 2008 - Ten Rowdy Ravens by Susan Ewing. il Evon Zerbetz.
July 2008 - Butterfly Boy by Virginia Kroll. il Gerardo Suzán.
August 2008 - Madam President by Lane Smith.
September 2008 - Zen Ties by Jon Muth.
October 2008 - Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathman.