Sheep Out to Eat

by Nancy E. Shaw, Margot Apple (Illustrator)

Overview

The sheep are back, and this time they're hungry, venturing into a tea shop for even more rollicking fun and, of course, disasters.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780395720271
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/27/1995
Series:	Sheep in a Jeep
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.12(d)
Lexile:	270L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Nancy Shaw is the author of eight beloved tales featuring the endearing and comical sheep. She came up with the idea for the sheep books during a very long car trip with her husband and two children. She lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan with her family.

Margot Apple is a freelance illustrator, having illustrated more than fifty books for children while also producing illustrations for "Cricket" and "Ladybug" magazines. She now lives in Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts, with her husband and their pets, a dog and a cat.

Editorial Reviews

"The very simple sentences, the rhymed text, and the humorous tone are perfect for beginning readers." School Library Journal, Starred —

From the Publisher

Nancy Shaw and Margot Apple's busy sheep, most recently seen getting ready for Halloween (see Children's Books, Aug. 1), are back in another board book, Sheep Out to Eat. Five sheep spot a teashop in this humorous rhyming story of lunchtime chaos. After they try their best to dine in the tiny restaurant, they realize the best lunch spot is the grassy field across the street. Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Shaw and Apple offer more sheep shenanigans featuring the fractious flock that wreaked hilarious havoc in Sheep in a Jeep , Sheep on a Ship and Sheep in a Shop . Shaw's tongue-twisting rhymes, which here chronicle five sheep's attempt to eat at a tearoom, are as simply clever as ever. From the start, it's clear that this crew is out of its element. After feline waiters bring them menus, the sheep ``point to words that they can't read.'' When ``Waiters bring them spinach custard,'' the sheep ``add sugar, salt, and mustard.'' Things go downhill quickly--and riotously--after the diners put pepper on their cake and begin sneezing wildly, upsetting tables and sending cups and dishes crashing to the floor. Asked to leave the premises, ``Sheep pout. Sheep walk out. Suddenly they look about.'' The faces on Apple's wonderfully expressive creatures suddenly light up, for what they see is a lush lawn, which seems a perfect lunchtime munch. On the last page, the fleecy fivesome gambol down the road, in search (readers will hope) of more mirthful mischief. Ages 2-5. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

PreS-Gr 2-- Shaw's sheep are back, to wreak havoc in a very dignified tearoom--until they discover that the best place for them is truly out to eat. . . on the lawn. The very simple sentences, the rhymed text (a natural invitation to sound out the words), and the humorous tone are perfect for beginning readers. The book will also delight preschoolers. Shaw has really keyed in on particular plot elements young children will like, especially the sheeps' absolute powerlessness over making a mess: ``Table tips. Teacups smash. Tea drips. Dishes crash.'' The simplicity, the slapstick, and the cheerfulness in the face of disaster will all appeal to them. The illustrations, softly colored and expressive, show the five sheep doing their best to adjust to a world in which they don't belong. All but the smallest collections will probably want more than one copy of this attractive and amusing book. --Lauralyn Persson, Wilmette Public Library, IL

School Library Journal