Tag: turkey trouble

Turkey’s Valentine Surprise (Wendi Silvano)

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Hello, friends! Our book today is Turkey’s Valentine Surprise, written by Wendi Silvano and illustrated by Lee Harper, a pun-filled story of secret admirers and wild disguises.

After receiving a delightful valentine from a surreptitious source, Turkey is inspired to dress in disguise and present his friends with mysterious missives of their own. Yet while he puts quite a bit of effort into his costumes, the best that can be said of them is that he looks like a dog, or cat, or owl… almost. While his barnyard pals love his punny valentines, Turkey is disappointed to have not succeeded in his subterfuge – until he thinks up the kindest surprise of all! But can he pull it off?

Charming. Those familiar with Silvano and Harper’s Turkey Trouble series will know what to expect from the newest title: wacky humor, warm friendship, and puns galore. Silvano uses tongue-in-cheek text and repetition to make an entertaining story, especially when read aloud, and Harper’s illustrations are inventive, expressive, and filled with clever details (including what, I am almost positive, is a subtle tribute to Kermit the Frog). The length is great for a storytime, and JJ loved Turkey’s antics. Overall, a wonderfully silly read for Valentines that focuses on kindness, friendship, and laughs, and it’s Baby Bookworm approved.

(Note: A copy of this book was provided to The Baby Bookworm by a representative of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)

Turkey’s Eggcellent Easter (Wendi Silvano)

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Hello, friends! Our book today is Turkey’s Eggcellent Easter, written by Wendi Silvano and illustrated by Lee Harper, a festive and silly tale of an usual egg hunt.

Fourth in the Turkey Trouble series, the story opens on Turkey and his barnyard friends lamenting the fact that the farm’s Easter Egg Hunt – which features “eggstra”-special surprises for finders of the special eggs – only allows children to participate and not animals. So the friends come up with a plan: a secret mission, which involves Turkey donning an assortment of costumes in order to sneak into the hunt and grab one of the special eggs. Unfortunately, several of his disguises (a bunny, a daffodil, a bumblebee, etc.) are seen through or simply foiled. How can Turkey and company manage to snag a special prize for themselves?

Goofy fun. Turkey and his barnyard pals are just the right mix of endearing and mischievous to make the audience root for their caper, and the fact that they have some measure of victory by the end is satisfying. Equally charming are the visual gags that both kids and grownups can enjoy: the animals dressed up as secret agents once they decide on their “mission”, or putting a ridiculous amount of effort into Turkey’s bunny costume when one of the animals is, in fact, an actual bunny, and so on. And while I am admittedly not the biggest fan of puns, the egg-themed ones that pepper the dialogue are enough for kids to enjoy but not so many that they become tedious. The length is good, and JJ enjoyed it – this is a fun, off-beat Easter book that all ages can enjoy. Baby Bookworm approved!

(Note: A copy of this book was provided to The Baby Bookworm by a representative of the author in exchange for an honest review.)