Click, clack, moo cows that type by Doreen Cronin; illustrated by Betsy Lewin (2000)

[Published by Simon and Schuster]

There are few covers better than today’s beauty. Honestly, a group of cows, a duck and a chicken huddled around a typewriter is enough to make me happy for a very long time. The best bit is it just keeps on getting better.

“Farmer Brown has a problem.

His cows like to type.

All day long he hears

Click, clack, moo.

Click, clack, moo.

Clickety, clack, moo.”

If you were a cow, and you finally had a means of communicating with your farmer, what would you ask for? It’s a serious question. Feel free to take a moment to think about it… (My husband John just suggested world peace and a Ferrari).

I’d never really considered it before, but a barn must be an awfully cold place to sleep. The cows’ request for electric blankets is not taken very seriously by Farmer Brown, so the cows go on strike. In fact a farm-wide mutiny begins much to Farmer Brown’s chagrin. Luckily for everyone concerned an amicable arrangement is reached, well sort of.

This is a hilarious story, with a great punch-line, satisfying repetition and outstandingly expressive farm animals.

Check out Click, clack, moo cows that type at Auckland Libraries.

Or buy Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type [With CD (Audio)] from Fishpond.

The story machine by Tom McLaughlin (2014)

Today’s delicious picture book led me on all sorts of merry nostalgic wandering. When I was small my mum was a typing teacher. Very occasionally if I was having a sick day from school I would sit in the back of her classroom in front of my very own typewriter. There I discovered how much fun you could have creating more than just words.

Elliot, a boy who likes finding things, happens upon a mystery machine. Its purpose is revealed all a bit accidentally; it makes letters, and subsequently, words! Elliot and words are not really friends, but when he discovers that the letters can create pictures, well, his creativity explodes.

Giraffes, boats, trees and windmills flow merrily from his fingers. And it turns out, these pictures are equally as great at telling stories as words. When the story machine fizzes to a halt Elliot has a momentary downer before realising that he doesn’t need the machine to tell his stories, that’s up to him.

This is a delightful book, the illustrations are such a treat. My four-year-old nephew and I spent ages poring over the letter pictures. It is also a beautiful concept. So many people struggle with reading and writing. Tom McLaughlin reminds us that storytelling can take all sorts of forms, it’s just a matter of finding your favourite.

Check out The story machine at Auckland Libraries.

Or buy The story machine from Fishpond.