School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-This read-along by Denys Cazet (DK, 2001) features two cows whose misperceptions of reality are used to create broad, slapstick humor for young readers. This time Minnie and Moo take off in a bus for what they think is a world tour, but is really just a jaunt around their neighborhood. They see Africa (a wildlife park), Paris (an electric power tower), and China, (a car wash). Narrator Barbara Caruso attempts to use different voices for the animal and human characters, but is sometimes inconsistent in her intonations and accents. Sound effects of the bus engine, animals in the African park, and other background noises are used. Young readers who are not familiar with the Eiffel Tower in Paris or the Nile may not understand the forced humor of the story plot. The book is a beginning reader, and the short, choppy sentences don't lend themselves to a smooth oral presentation.-Diane Balodis, Alden Intermediate School, NY(c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
When the farm animals report a glowing monster in the barn, cows Minnie and Moo seek out the answer to the mystery. The abrupt resolution is not entirely satisfying, but the storyÆs blend of suspense and humor is just right for the beginning reader audience, and the lighthearted illustrations donÆt overwhelm the text. From HORN BOOK Spring 2000, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Gr. 1^-2. Minnie and Moo, those irrepressible cows, appear in two new adventures. In Paris, Moo decides she wants to explore new places. So Moo and reluctant Minnie commandeer a tour bus that takes them, among other places, to China, Paris, and a safari park. The cows think they are in Africa and bring the animals back to the farm, where the farmer has lost his glasses and doesn't know what he's milking. Kids will have to know what the Eiffel Tower looks like in order to get the joke when the duo mistakes an oil well for the tower in Paris. In Save the Earth, the bovines are in their own backyard when space men descend. Fortunately, the aliens are only as big as gnats, and Minnie and Moo squash 'em. Although not as sharply clever as the previous books in the series, these entries will elicit laughs from new readers. The pencil-and-watercolor pictures are handily executed but are sometimes too small to really extend the text. Kids who like the misunderstandings of the Amelia Bedelia books will also like what goes on here. --Ilene Cooper
