The Cow Tripped Over the Moon by Jeanne Willis and Joel Stewart

Release Date - May 2015

Jeanne Willis
Joel Stewart
Candlewick Press

The Cow Tripped Over the Moon offers an unusual “take” on traditional familiar nursery rhymes. Where most readers might see just a child’s nursery rhyme, Jeanne Willis envisions a medical emergency, which means that in this picture book the Storyland ambulance and medics must rush to the scene to take care of the characters with bumps and bruises.

For example, when the cow tries to jump over the moon, she trips and falls, grazing her knees and chipping a hoof. Then there’s a little mishap involving Rock-a-Bye -Baby. The wind breaks the branch she is rocking on and Baby and her rocking bed falls into a compost heap. She isn’t hurt, fortunately, but the infant now needs a bath.

And so it goes. Humpty Dumpty takes a fall and Little Boy Blue is taking a nap when a stack of hay topples over onto him. It seems to be just one thing after another, but the ambulance crew is always able to take care of the problem.

Granted this is a silly extension of some classic tales, but young readers will probably think this is a hilarious book; so if it can elicit some laughter, all the better!