Gwen the Rescue Hen

The story was promising –chickens get rescued after a tornado destroyed their farm– but the writing was heavy-handed and trying too hard to be funny.

Examples from the very first pages of the book: “Suddenly, a chilly draft slides over Hen, giving her goosebumps. Which is funny since she's a chicken. But this is no laughing matter”. Or “She doesn't remember how she got here. She doesn't remember being born, but who does?” Or “I might be doomed! thinks Hen”. The text is also scattered all over the place, which makes it unpleasant to read.

The first pages were very scary for children and used a lot of complex words. The illustrations were black and white, to set the tone, and felt quite claustrophobic. It was also very cynical for the chicken to land on a chicken restaurant, after being thrown away from the tornado.

Little by little, the colors become more pleasant and the story more appealing, as the chickens get rescued and start living a free life with their new family. I loved learning about chicken's habits, personality and behaviors, and I appreciated the author's note at the end of the book to learn even more about them. Still, I disliked reading this book and I would not recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley and Stone Pier Press for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Read and reviewed: 2018-11-08