15 December 2018 I'LL LOVE YOU TILL THE COWS COME HOME by Kathryn Cristaldi and Kristyna Litten, ill., HarperCollins, December 2018, 32p., ISBN: 978-0-06-257420-6

“I could dance with you till the cows come home. Better still, I’ll dance with the cows and you come home.”

-- Groucho Marx, from Duck Soup (1933)

“I will love you till the cows come home

from a trip to Mars through skies unknown

in a rocket ship made of glass and stone.

I will love you till the cows come home.

I will love you till the yaks come back

from a jaunt downtown for a grassy snack

in a firetruck…

or a Cadillac.

I will love you till the yaks come back.”

So begins this goofy, very cool picture book. I'LL LOVE YOU TILL THE COWS COME HOME contains nine verses, and includes sheep on a cruise ship, frogs on big-wheeled bikes, geese toasting marshmallows for gourmet s’mores, and repeatedly-perfect punchline page turns.  It introduces the 500+ year-old colloquial phrase “till the cows come home” to a new generation in a way that they’ll never forget it.

The creatures that populate the illustrations--right down to the pigs, the deer, the shrimp, and the ants--are expressive and move in a manner that enhances the left-to-right flow of the story. When we reach the final verse, the movement ceases as the critters settle down for sleep, making this a lullaby, albeit one that avoids the saccharine often found in a more typical children’s lullaby book.

Featuring a very catchy beat and captivating illustrations, I'LL LOVE YOU TILL THE COWS COME HOME is an exceptionally fun poetry read-aloud.

Richie Partington, MLIS

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