Mechanimals

by Chris Tougas Narrated by Iambik Productions

Overview

When a tornado leaves a farmer with a heap of scrap metal and no animals, his neighbors are sure it's all over for him. But the determined farmer refuses to admit defeat. His plans are big, and when his neighbors dismiss them with the words, "When pigs fly," they grow bigger still. The farmer sets to work to turn that scrap metal into some rather surprising creatures. Mechanimals will help all of us believe in our dreams, despite what the neighbors may say.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

There once was a farmer who had lots of animals that got swept away by a tornado." So begins this visually arresting but emotionally vacant tale of a resourceful farmer who builds new "livestock" out of machine parts. Despite being "very sad" that his original chicks and sheep are gone (he doesn't wonder where they went, and they don't come back), the farmer sets to sketching and welding an alarm-clock rooster to greet the day. A "cow-bot," a milking machine strapped to its udder, uses gas pumps to distribute both fuel and "great chocolate milk." A "horse-bot" hauls scrap ("Holy horsepower!") and a rocket-boosted "pig-bot" puts paid to the neighbors' expression "when pigs fly!" (readers, apparently, are supposed to overlook the airborne pig of the tornado incident). Sketching in soft gray pencil on a clay-yellow wash, Tougas (the Wacky Farm board books) creates backdrops of barnyard and junkyard detritus. He uses crisp ink outlines and brighter watercolors to foreground the "mechanimals," which recall Alan Snow's dog and cat cross-sections. But once the patchwork animal-bots are constructed and the farmer's friends gaze at them fondly, the story ends. Tougas confounds logic by suggesting that a chick-bot beats a real chicken, trusting that readers won't think too hard about the actual purpose of a farm. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)

Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information

CM Magazine

"The illustrations...are delightful. Recommended."

The Horn Book Guide

"This salute to ingenuity features...amusing industrial-hued illustrations with pops of color honor the farmer's imaginative vision."

Canadian Children's Book News

"Will appeal to budding inventors and those who have big dreams."

Times-Colonist

"Written and charmingly illustrated by Chris Tougas, this large work for young readers boasts...many inventive drawings."

NJ Youth Services

"Tougas' bright illustrations will draw young readers in."

The Globe and Mail

"Tougas gives us an ingenious farmer and a visually fascinating, funny book."

Island Parent

"Dreamers and inventors alike will enjoy the crazy illustrations and nutty premise of this exuberant picture book."

Quill & Quire

"An unusual and likeable picture book."

Resource Links

"Young and old readers with an interest in vehicles or gadgets might find appeal in this book."

Library Media Connection

"The illustrations in this story are wonderful and enhance the text, making the story a delight to read."

Southwest Ohio and Neighboring Libraries

"The story is quite clever and youngsters will be drawn in by the simple text and folksy humor. The illustrations are the star of the show though; each page features a monochromatic background with the action or character in question in full color. This makes the action standout and helps the reader focus the eye on the action going on in the text...A simple story comes very much alive with these wonderful illustrations."

BC Bookworld

"A refreshingly original and quirky idea for a children's picture book."

Globe and Mail

"Tougas gives us an ingenious farmer and a visually fascinating, funny book."

Globe & Mail

Tougas gives us an ingenious farmer and a visually fascinating, funny book.

Georgia Strait

*no details*

Product Details

BN ID:	2940175042178
Publisher:	Orca Book Publishers
Publication date:	10/01/2010
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

Read an Excerpt

There once was a farmer who had lots of animals that got swept away by a tornado.

The twister left behind a mountain of scrap metal and machine parts. And a very sad farmer.

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