Farm Book

A very interesting and fairly in-depth (for a picture book) look at farm life presented in an engaging way by Mr. Cooper. We follow a year in the life of a farm, both with animals and the humans, and the corn harvest. Types of farm equipment are described and much attention is given to the changes in the weather, etc. I like how much of the focus is on the barn cats and the farm dog--the humans seem more marginal. Parents should note that the book doesn't exactly glorify farm life, either for the people or the animals; and it shows some of the rougher things about nature and people co-mingling (wild animals getting run over by cars is hinted at). It is mostly lighthearted in tone, actually, and doesn't hint at any poor farm conditions for the animals but it does mention about the cattle being sent off at the end of the year (slaughter). Part of me appreciated that this was more "realistic" than most of the cutesy farm books out there for kids; and yet it also made for a slightly uncomfortable read at times though perhaps it was just me reading too much into it. With these cautions for sensitive readers, I would recommend this to the older picture book group looking for more details on family farm life.