Review Detail

This charming picture book follows the adventures of an unlikely hero--a hen named Tillie. Tillie is an independent sort. While the other six chickens on Little Pond Farm take turns laying their eggs in the farm's three boxes, Tillie just can't wait for her turn. She meanders about, laying her eggs in various locations. These locations give readers the great delight of finding each of Tillie's eggs in the book's colorful photographs. One day, we may find the egg behind a blue hoe near the squash plants. On another, while Tillie tries to eat a worm she calls "very dry" (actually a boot's shoelace), eager searchers discover her egg behind the broom on the porch.

This book works in a multitude of ways. There's lots of humor here. It's a kick to see Tillie discovering the world on her own while her sisters (Prudence, Edwina, Twinkydink, Buffy, Marge, and Ginger) placidly lay their eggs where they're expected to and then eat corn in the yard. The lost-and-found game is pure enjoyment. Readers are also subtly exposed to the days of the week, and the story wraps up in a most satisfying way (with the yolk . . .I mean joke on those clueless unadventurous hens). All in all . . .totally and completely irresistible!