A Particular Cow by Mem Fox

   This is a simple story which presents the reader an opportunity to question from the beginning…Why is it a particular cow? What is it about the cow that is particular?

  The cow goes for a walk every Saturday. Usually nothing happens except this particular Saturday and the reader is in suspense as to know what it is that happens. The word “particular” is repeated through the different pages for different characters and scenarios.

 The audience is not really able to understand what is going on from the written text alone.  The illustrations by Terry Denton in this multimodal text appear to tell the story very early on in the story. The audience will see that the cow runs into some bloomers and then it’s sight is impaired as it runs into a mail wagon and proceeds to roll downhill.

  The chaos continues as the cow runs into people’s different events on a Saturday.

   I think young children would enjoy looking at the pictures and seeing what is happening with the different scenarios that people have on a Saturday while the runaway cow interrupts those scenarios.

  It also shows how the cow is blissfully unaware at most of the commotion it has caused the people (“Went on her way without surprise”) and could help to show children the difference between animals and human beings. Lessons on this text may also include hearing about what different things the children do on a Saturday or if they have ever been to an event that has obviously been interrupted.

 ISBN 0-670-04231-5

                                                        Alex