This highly original picture book, illustrated by the author, is a tongue-in-cheek "field guide" to the hidden complexity and shades of meaning in the word "moo", despite it being the only word in cow vocabulary. Written in rhyming couplets, we discover that "moo" sounds very different depending on the context and location: "Cows don't make any noise at all when they watch the telly/But Moo sounds very wobbly when they wobble on a jelly". The accompanying illustrations demonstrate these differences, often showing cows doing particularly human activities. Much of the humour comes from details in the illustrations: a classroom of cow pupils shows the back row occupied by cows having a sneaky nap, passing notes and painting their nails (or should that be hooves?). Delicacies being consumed by a group of cows on a picnic include "Cow Cake" and "Moosli" (groan).
How to Speak Moo is suitable for children aged four upwards, although it's just as likely to appeal to anyone with a healthy sense of the absurd.--Alison Drury