Mrs. Wishy-Washy's Farm
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Overview
Uh-oh. Mrs. Wishy-Washy is at it again. Rubbing and scrubbing all the animals on the farm. But this time they aren't standing for it. Duck, Cow, and Pig are leaving mean old Mrs. Wishy-Washy for good!They run away to the big city. But they get lost, wander into a restaurant, and even stumble into a hardware store and get covered in paint! Where is Mrs. Wishy-Washy when they need her? Maybe her farm isn't so bad after all . . .
Joy Cowley and Elizabeth Fuller have brought their clean-loving Mrs. Wishy-Washy back to her old tricks in this full-length sudsy story that will become a favorite before you can say "Bathtime!"
Illustrated by Elizabeth Fuller.
Author Biography:
When Mrs. Wishy-Washy starts scrubbing all the animals on the farm, Duck, Cow, and Pig run away to the big city. But they get lost and stumble into a hardware store and get covered in paint! Where is Mrs. Wishy-Washy when they need her?
Synopsis
Uh-oh. Mrs. Wishy-Washy is at it again. Rubbing and scrubbing all the animals on the farm. But this time they aren't standing for it. Duck, Cow, and Pig are leaving mean old Mrs. Wishy-Washy for good!
They run away to the big city. But they get lost, wander into a restaurant, and even stumble into a hardware store and get covered in paint! Where is Mrs. Wishy-Washy when they need her? Maybe her farm isn't so bad after all . . .
Joy Cowley and Elizabeth Fuller have brought their clean-loving Mrs. Wishy-Washy back to her old tricks in this full-length sudsy story that will become a favorite before you can say "Bathtime!"
Illustrated by Elizabeth Fuller.
Publishers Weekly
The queen of barnyard clean returns after a 23-year hiatus, along with her mud-loving cow, pig and duck. Only this time, the farm animals aren't so tolerant of her scrubbing. " `Moo-moo!' `Ee-ee!' `Quack, quack, quack!' `Bye, Mrs. Wishy-Washy,/ mean old Mrs. Wishy-Washy./ We are leaving you/ and we won't be back.' " The three flee to the city ("where the barns are big," squeals the pig), end up getting into mischief (e.g., while looking for a meal in one such "barn [with] food on the dishes," a chef threatens to serve them up as "roast on toast") and they wind up in "animal jail." This new installment may lack the simple repetition of the original, but Cowley keeps this lengthier sequel easy enough for beginning readers, despite several tricky words (e.g., "stampede," "anxious," "doubt") sprinkled throughout the rhyming text. Fuller's bright ink-and-watercolor illustrations amplify the tale's humor. When the runaways end up in a hardware store, the artist imagines a comical chaos of upturned paint cans-fur and feathers erupting with splotches of color; the cow wears paint buckets on her front hooves while the pig sports a red pail for a hat. All the better for their plump, fuzzy slipper- and bandanna-wearing owner who comes to the rescue. She takes them home for a good wash, wrapping up an appealing story that resonates with the message: there's no place like home-baths and all. Ages 2-6. (May) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
The Barnes & Noble ReviewThe spic-and-span heroine of Joy Cowley's hit Mrs. Wishy-Washy makes a splashy comeback in this bubbly picture book!
Mrs. Wishy-Washy's up to her animal cleaning again, but her barnyard buddies aren't happy: The cow gets soap in its eye, the pig gets scrubbed too much, and the duck has suds in its feathers. So the three decide to hightail it to the big city, where "the barns are big" and it's "as wild as a farm stampede," but when they get thrown out of a restaurant and eventually land in "the pick-up van from the animal jail," they realize that back on the farm -- and in Mrs. Wishy-Washy's tub -- is the most blissful place to be.
A whimsical and warm follow-up with Elizabeth Fuller's rosy-cheeked artwork, Mrs. Wishy-Washy's Farm will leave Cowley fans tickled pink. The author recaptures all the fun and down-home charm of the prior Mrs. Wishy-Washy book, and with the animals' urban hijinks and return to quiet life, kids will agree that having their favorite farmwoman around is squeaky-clean good. Matt Warner
Publishers Weekly
The queen of barnyard clean returns after a 23-year hiatus, along with her mud-loving cow, pig and duck. Only this time, the farm animals aren't so tolerant of her scrubbing. " `Moo-moo!' `Ee-ee!' `Quack, quack, quack!' `Bye, Mrs. Wishy-Washy,/ mean old Mrs. Wishy-Washy./ We are leaving you/ and we won't be back.' " The three flee to the city ("where the barns are big," squeals the pig), end up getting into mischief (e.g., while looking for a meal in one such "barn [with] food on the dishes," a chef threatens to serve them up as "roast on toast") and they wind up in "animal jail." This new installment may lack the simple repetition of the original, but Cowley keeps this lengthier sequel easy enough for beginning readers, despite several tricky words (e.g., "stampede," "anxious," "doubt") sprinkled throughout the rhyming text. Fuller's bright ink-and-watercolor illustrations amplify the tale's humor. When the runaways end up in a hardware store, the artist imagines a comical chaos of upturned paint cans-fur and feathers erupting with splotches of color; the cow wears paint buckets on her front hooves while the pig sports a red pail for a hat. All the better for their plump, fuzzy slipper- and bandanna-wearing owner who comes to the rescue. She takes them home for a good wash, wrapping up an appealing story that resonates with the message: there's no place like home-baths and all. Ages 2-6. (May) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.Children's Literature
Cow, Pig, and Duck decide they have had enough of Mrs. Wishy-Washy and her obsession with cleanliness. They run away to the city where they find the "barns" are not as hospitable as the one they left on the farm. When a cook discovers them in the kitchen of his restaurant, they quickly dash next door and get covered with paint in a hardware store. A van arrives and takes them to animal jail. The miserable animals perk up when they hear the familiar chug-chug-chug of the old farm truck. Upon their return home, they willingly jump into the tub for a good scrub. The jaunty verse of the text and the large cartoon-like illustrations are sure to delight young readers and their parents. 2003, Philomel, Ages 3 to 7.— Phyllis Kennemer, Ph.D.