Ages 1^-4. Simple words and colored-pencil pictures express the physicalness and wonder of a toddler's experience with a newborn farm animal. "Today on Katie's farm a little calf was born." Hugging her teddy bear, Katie watches the little calf stand up and take its first wobbly step. She feels its breath warm on her cheek. She touches the little calf's nose and strokes its face. In the other books, the lamb nibbles Katie's coat and fingers, and she feeds it a bottle of milk; the puppy squirms and wriggles and licks Katie's nose. What saves these books from sentimentality are the facts about each animal, the particulars of their movements, the gentleness of the elemental bonding. Each book begins and ends with a double-page spread of a small farm with cattle and sheep grazing and clothes hanging on the line. Toddlers will see the loving, natural connection between Katie and the animals, and the big fat hug the child shares with her dad. --Hazel Rochman

PreS-"Today on Katie's farm-" a newborn calf takes its first wobbly steps; a young lamb nibbles her fingers, then takes milk from a bottle; and a little puppy opens its eyes for the first time. These episodes, for they are too brief to be considered stories, are related in short, evocative sentences. The language generates a sense of comfort and warmth, while simultaneously including enough tactile detail to engage youngsters. Lewis's trademark soft, yet realistic colored-pencil illustrations perfectly reflect the scenes described in the texts. Readers can almost feel the velvety softness of the calf's nose as Katie reaches out to touch it. The puppy is appealing and so carefully rendered that children will want to pet his warm little tummy. Both the lamb and calf entries include appropriate animal noises (always a big hit with this audience) and all three books contain some simple dialogue. A lush, rural landscape decorates the endpapers. These titles are short and simple enough to use at storytime, but their gentle nature suggests that they may be best appreciated one-on-one.-Piper L. Nyman, Fairfield/Suisun Community Library, Fairfield, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In each book Katie meets a baby animal on her family's farm: she watches a newborn calf take its first steps, she feeds the lamb Daddy brings home, and she holds a puppy that's just opened its eyes. Despite the lackluster texts, Lewis's characteristically soft, detailed colored pencil drawings make these endearing, if slight, selections for young ones. From HORN BOOK Fall 2000, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.