Publishers Weekly
Comely and organic, Yetta the chicken seems destined for a Jewish family's Sabbath table. But Yetta is also brave and clever, and when the opportunity for escape comes her way, she grabs it. "She will not be soup. She will not be roasted chicken on a Friday night. She is free. She is in Brooklyn," writes Daniel Pinkwater, in solemn deadpan mode. The mean streets test Yetta's mettle, but her innate heroism and cat-chasing skills eventually win her a new life as den mother to Brooklyn's Spanish-speaking community of wild parrots ("Por favor, quédate con nosotros, gallina hermosa," coos one. "Please stay with us, beautiful chicken!"). Jill Pinkwater's illustrations don't have a lot of visual heft--Yetta's inner strength is never fully articulated and the compositions lack a strong focus. But there's still plenty of fun to be had, and the Pinkwaters are to be applauded for expanding readers' Yiddish lexicon beyond simple phrases like "Gevalt!" ("Oh, dear!") to such delicious constructions as "Gay ahvek, du fahrshtunkehneh kahtz! ("Go away, you stinky cat!), which appear in English and Yiddish characters, along with pronunciations. Ages 3-7. (June)
Publishers Weekly
Comely and organic, Yetta the chicken seems destined for a Jewish family's Sabbath table. But Yetta is also brave and clever, and when the opportunity for escape comes her way, she grabs it. "She will not be soup. She will not be roasted chicken on a Friday night. She is free. She is in Brooklyn," writes Daniel Pinkwater, in solemn deadpan mode. The mean streets test Yetta's mettle, but her innate heroism and cat-chasing skills eventually win her a new life as den mother to Brooklyn's Spanish-speaking community of wild parrots ("Por favor, quédate con nosotros, gallina hermosa," coos one. "Please stay with us, beautiful chicken!"). Jill Pinkwater's illustrations don't have a lot of visual heft--Yetta's inner strength is never fully articulated and the compositions lack a strong focus. But there's still plenty of fun to be had, and the Pinkwaters are to be applauded for expanding readers' Yiddish lexicon beyond simple phrases like "Gevalt!" ("Oh, dear!") to such delicious constructions as "Gay ahvek, du fahrshtunkehneh kahtz! ("Go away, you stinky cat!), which appear in English and Yiddish characters, along with pronunciations. Ages 3–7. (June)
School Library Journal
Gr 2—As Mr. Flegleman, an organic chicken rancher, unloads his crates in front of Phil's Poultry World, one brave and clever fowl, determined not to become Friday night's dinner, manages to escape. Unfortunately, beautiful Yetta is homesick and lonely in Brooklyn. The rats and pigeons tell her to get lost, and she almost gets hit by a bus. When she saves a little green bird, Eduardo, from a cat, she gains new friends and a family among the parrots on the telephone wires, and they teach her how to find fruit and crusts of pizza. While the narration is in English, Yetta's dialogue is in Yiddish, and the parrots speak Spanish (both with English translations and transliterations). The comical marker and ink illustrations enhance the text, but, without the language gimmick, there isn't much to the story. However, this would make for an entertaining reader's theater, especially with authentic Yiddish and Spanish accents. And dedicated fans of the Pinkwaters will appreciate the offbeat, wry humor, as will those interested in the many urban legends surrounding Brooklyn's flocks of wild parrots. Unlike Dave Horowitz's Five Little Gefiltes (Putnam, 2007) and Simms Taback's Kibitzers and Fools (Viking, 2005), which introduce children to the joys of Yiddish, the Pinkwaters'offering may have trouble reaching a wide audience.—Rachel Kamin, North Suburban Synagogue Beth El, Highland Park, IL
Kirkus Reviews
Danger! Escape! Mean urban streets! Heroism! Community! Wacky but warm-hearted words from Pinkwater! A Yiddish-speaking chicken escapes her Friday-night-dinner doom and wanders through streets of Brooklyn that are filled with tall buildings, rats, buses and selfish pigeons. When she saves a lovely green bird from a cat, the grateful flock of wild parrots adopts her as their loving leader, and she becomes their doting mother. Really! The breathlessly ingenuous narration is all in English, and the conversations are in Yiddish (for the chicken) and Spanish (for the parrots)-translated and transliterated in speech bubbles. It's a very funny and spirited story that everyone can read aloud in English. Honestly! Jill Pinkwater's brightly colored cartoon illustrations on a white background imbue each animal with personality, while the page layout moves readers briskly through fast-paced action sequences. A delicious, loopy romp to savor whether it's Friday or not. Truly! (Picture book. 3-7)
