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Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You?

Book Summary

Reviewed by Peter Lewis

Mr. Brown goes "choo choo dibble dibble dopp dopp cock-a-doodle-doo" in this disarming and delightful call-and-response book from Dr. Seuss--and how about you? Mr. Brown could be kith and kin of the Cat in the Hat: He's a prankster, he can do marvelous things--he even has a crumpled top hat. Best of all, he can mimic the sound of goldfish kissing.

Is It Any Good?

4

Mr. Brown is certainly one of Dr. Seuss' most visually appealing characters. With his frazzled neck tie, wild hair, frazzled mustache, and bent hat, he looks like he just took a direct lightning strike ("Splatt!"). He leaps off the page and expresses his sounds with great flamboyance. A fine range of saturated color keeps the book on a vibrant edge.

Mr. Brown doesn't give just the sounds his thorough attention, but their taste as well, to their feel on your tongue. He squeezes his eyes tight in concentration to get each dibble and dopp just right. And the same will go for young readers and listeners as they seek to imitate both the sounds and their role model. This is familiar Seuss turf, with everything getting an exaggerated flourish from his pen, be it a frying pan or a cat's paws.

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