Why Do Cows Moo?: And Other Farm Animal Questions

Ethel King-Shaw is professor emerita of curriculum and instruction in
the Department of Teacher Preparation at the University of Calgary.

Award-winning author Catherine Ripley’s earlier works in the Question
and Answer Storybook series include Why Does Popcorn Pop? (1997), Why Is
the Sky Blue (1997), Why Do Stars Twinkle? (1996), Do the Doors Open by
Magic? (1995), Why Is Soap So Slippery? (1995).

In Why Do Cows Moo?, a visit to a farm answers many questions for
curious young readers. The 12 questions about common farm animals are
asked and answered, clearly and directly. This factual information is
enriched by the illustrations. For example, for the question “What’s
a ewe?,” the answer—“A mother sheep. A father sheep is called a
ram, and a baby sheep is called a lamb. We give male, female and young
animals different names. How many of these animal names do you
know?”—appears in a white box in the upper left-hand page of a
double-page illustration that depicts many farm animals and correctly
names them. In addition, facts are highlighted at the end of the book in
a brief “Farm Bits” section.

This book would be most suitable for a teacher or parent to use to
encourage other questions and discussion. Highly recommended for
elementary school and public libraries.