The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County

Both words and pictures elevate a simple story about a girl's sly, barnyard game into a rollicking, well-told delight. A first-rate read-aloud.

This funny story will have city kids longing for the chance to chase (and/or nurture) some chickens themselves

K-Gr 2In this delightful story about life on a farm, an African-American youngster is determined to become the best chicken chaser ever, although Big Mama repeatedly asks her to leave the animals alone. Despite the girl's best efforts, her favorite chicken, Miss Hen, always manages to escape. As the summer days wear on, she finally finds Miss Hen's hiding spot in the tall green grass. She is sitting on a nest with "fuzzy chicks cuddling tight beneath her wing," and although it would be easy to grab her, the child makes a more mature decision and resists the temptation. Harrington uses exceptionally colorful and descriptive language throughout the tale. Miss Hen has feathers as "shiny as a rained-on roof" and is as "plump as a Sunday purse." Her calls sound "like pennies falling on a dinner plate." Jackson's intriguing collages, combining printed cloth with painterly brushstrokes, will have readers lingering over the pages. The birds' feathers are fashioned out of different materials, including fabric, marker pen on loose-leaf paper, newsprint, and lace. Shifting perspectives capture the thrill of the chase as well as the calm of quieter moments. The youngster's face clearly expresses determination, understanding, and pride. This book makes a marvelously delicious read-aloud, accompanied by participatory "prucks" and "squawks" from the audience."Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA" Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Harrington's ("Going North") chipper narrator loves chasing the chickens on her farm, even though Big Mama warns her, "If you make those girls crazy, they won't lay eggs." In lyrical, creatively visual language, the pigtailed girl describes Miss Hen, her favorite prey: "Her feathers are shiny as a rained-on roof. She has high yellow stockings and long-fingered feet, and when she talks 'Pruck! Pruck! Pruck!'it sounds like pennies falling on a dinner plate." But this hen is too speedy for the child to catch. When Miss Hen disappears, the youngster checks possible hiding places and finally finds her in tall grass, sitting on a nest of eggs with three newly hatched chicks by her side. Protecting her brood, the still hen is hers for the snatching, but the wise girl tells her not to worry: "I know you're a mama now. You're doing what you need to do. I won't trouble your babies." Now, instead of chasing the chickens, the child diligently feeds Miss Hen and her 12 chicks, vowing that, when those babies grow up, she will teach them "to run so fast that no one will ever catch themnot even a chicken chaser like me!" Jackson's ("The Old Woman and the Wave") sunny, mixed-media collage art inventively combines variegated patterns, textures and photos (the especially dashing Miss Hen is a brightly hued patchwork bird) and conveys the young heroine's boundless energy. Lively chicken chatmuch of it presented in collagemakes this a spirited read-aloud. Ages 4-8." (Apr.)" Copyright 2007 Publishers Weekly Used with permission.

Never has the expression "feathers will fly" been aptly illustrated as in this vivacious story.

"This book just begs to be read aloud, with long pauses to take in the complexity of the gorgeous half painted, half collage illustrations." —Time Magazine

"The mischief sings in every syllable fo this energetic tale . . . Harrington's storytelling style make the prose jump from page to ear." —Starred, The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"Exceptional." —Book Links