Most children are familiar with the farm. It’s a default setting for children’s stories, as it provides a place to talk about animals, people, and farm equipment. However, Margaret Wise Brown, in her story Big Red Barn with pictures by Felicia Bond, chose to focus solely on the animals (and one big red barn, of course), starting with a little pink pig. In fact, the only human-esque figure to appear in the story is “an old scarecrow…leaning on his hoe” in a farmer’s field. And it’s better that way.

Brown, a master crafter of children’s stories, tells the story of a typical day on the farm for a group of animals that includes all of the barnyard favorites: a cow, horse, goat, sheep, donkey, and so on. We even get a little glimpse of the mice “rustling and squeaking in the hay.” Of course, as with several of Brown’s other children’s stories, as the story winds down, so does the cadence of the text and the characters in the tale. After introducing us to the cast (and the sounds they make as they play in the sun on the farm), Brown shows us how they all get ready for the end of the day. All of the animals, after a tiring day playing in the meadow, slowly head into the barn for a good night’s rest.

Parents will love Big Red Barn because, like many children’s stories, it encourages children to join in and help make the animal sounds. Children will, as with any farmyard story, enjoy following the animals as they go about their day (my son likes the little pink pig in particular, namely because “That pig just doesn’t know how to squeal yet and he’s learning!”). For children aged 2 to 6.