I Went Walking

by Sue Williams, Julie Vivas (Illustrator)

I went walking.
What did you see?
I saw a black cat
Looking at me.

These catchy stanzas frolic through the Australian author Sue Williams’s simple, funny read-aloud picture book that tracks a crazy-haired boy’s stroll through the countryside. The boy sees a black cat, then a brown horse, then a red cow, and so on, and before he knows it, he’s being trailed by the entire menagerie! The Australian illustrator Julie Vivas brings the parade to life in lovely, lively watercolors—when the pink pig looks at the boy, for example, the boy sprays off his muddy body with a hose. Big type, repetition, friendly art, clean design—and the visual guessing game created by introducing each animal only partially at first—make this beloved tale a winner at story time.

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Storytime, Fiction, Spanish Literature, Classics

32 pages, Board Book

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Suz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great kids book! Rhyming simple sentences, and great humorous illustrations from Julie Vivas that are instantly recognisable. Read it to my 20 month old, but possibly a little young, he was too interested in reaching for the iPhone that is always around (grrrr!). I recommend this book to everyone!

Update: This is a by heart book, for TAFE I made a felt board book out of the story and sing it to the tune of 'Frere Jaques'. It works well. Indy (4 now) loves it and he enjoys 'silly ones' like ninja's etc.. Maybe even ones that rhyme with shoe. Boys!

[Rebecca Alvarez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Went Walking follows the path of a young go who is going for a stroll. Along the why he sees different animals. The book features great illustrations that will help in decoding the words along with grabbing the readers attention.

If I was teaching a lower elementary grade level, I would use this book to help foster the love for reading. The book contains repetitive words and can easily be decoded using the pictures. One of the most exciting thing for young children is the thought of reading a book. This one can be easily repeated so even if a student is not able to sound out words and "read" they can "read" this book using memory and decoding skills. It is the best way to get children excited about learning. The text, Children's Literature Briefly 7th Edition, states that few adults read and this could be linked to them not reading for pleasure in school. This book is one that can be enjoyed and encourage the reader to pick up more books.

[Jack Kirby and the X-man · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an Australian classic. Julie Vivas (of Possum Magic fame) has again created fantastic illustrations, in her typical style.

This book is similar in style to Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?. As such it is perfect for storytimes with lots of kids, all chanting along - and trying to guess the next animal. What I like about this book (which doesn't exist in Brown Bear) is that clues are given as to what the next animal is.

[Christine Meunier · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful simple tale with lovely illustrations. A great way to introduce young readers to colours and various animals.

[Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

We enjoyed the beautiful illustrations of farm animals.

[Audric the Illiterate · Rating 5 out of 5]

While this fashion disaster is a disgrace to gingers everywhere, anything less than 5 stars from me would be dishonest.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

The style reminded me very much of “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” My daughter got a kick out of looking for the next animal on each page.

[Becky Sparkes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book to read with EYFS or KS1 as there is lots of repetition so it can help them build up their word repetition. After reading this book the children could go on their own walks and write about everything they see on their walks. They could then create their own mini books and illustrate it.

[Christian Houseworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book. This book somewhat reminds me of another version of Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See by Bill Martin and Eric Carle. The book has repetitive lines for example, " I went walking. What did I see? I saw a black cat looking at me." I think that this is a great book for lower elementary grades. This book would be great for teaching repetition and rhyme. This would be a great book to use for a mini-lesson on repetition. Also, this book would be great for teaching sequencing and ordering of events to tell a story. I think this book would be a great book to use for a read aloud because the text is repetitive and it's easy to get the students involved in participating in the telling of the story. I think that it would also be a great book to use for beginner readers because this book is an easy read. This book is also a great book for differentiated instruction during reading for students with visual impairments because this book has large print. Overall, this is a great book to have in my classroom.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I Went Walking by Sue Williams, c. 1989

Synopsis:

"I went walking.
What did you see?
I saw a black cat
Looking at me.

These catchy stanzas frolic through the Australian author Sue Williams’s simple, funny read-aloud picture book that tracks a crazy-haired boy’s stroll through the countryside. The boy sees a black cat, then a brown horse, then a red cow, and so on, and before he knows it, he’s being trailed by the entire menagerie! The Australian illustrator Julie Vivas brings the parade to life in lovely, lively watercolors—when the pink pig looks at the boy, for example, the boy sprays off his muddy body with a hose. Big type, repetition, friendly art, clean design—and the visual guessing game created by introducing each animal only partially at first—make this beloved tale a winner at story time."

My review: One of the best I've reviewed among the picture books so far. I loved the colorful illustrations and the simple storyline. When "I went walking" what did I see? Many different animals, most familiar to young children who will want to "read" along.

[Krista · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful, predictable picture book children can easily read after they have had it read to them. I've read this to Kindergartners in a big book format and they took over the book and started reading it to me! I loved the energy it builds in a group read. So many of the easy first books are not entertaining, but this is a cute story with simple but great art. The little boy in the story is going on a walk and sees many different animals of many different colors.

I see this adaptable to the K classroom in having students make their own book with the same concept. Since each animal in the book has a color, this could be a color book where each child is given sheets of colored paper to cut out a shape of an animal for each page. Since the words are repetitive, most could be already put in for them and all they would have to write is the animal name.

[Asho · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for young children. It's very similar in style to "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" In fact, the refrain is, "I went walking. What did you see? I saw a [animal] looking at me." So, if you've read Eric Carle's book, you've pretty much read Williams' book. This is basically the Australian version of "Brown Bear, Brown Bear". My baby really likes the repetition and sing-songiness of it, though. The little boy in the illustrations has really bizarre hair (not at all important, but it was the first thing I noticed!) but the illustrations are colorful and provide fun details that would be neat to point out to an older child.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here's another book for the littles in your life. Each page has a hint of what will be seen next and your child will love guessing! It's a pleasantly simple story.

Ages: 1 - 4

**Like my reviews? I also have hundreds of detailed reports that I offer too. These reports give a complete break-down of everything in the book, so you'll know just how clean it is or isn't. I also have Clean Guides (downloadable PDFs) which enable you to clean up your book before reading it! Visit my website: The Book Radar.

[Margaret Chind · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no idea there was another classic book in the vein of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? I don’t know yet which one came first, that or so Went Walking. While the kiddos hair is a little to be desired, the animals are cute. The anticipation for the next page was palpable in my listeners and this is an excellent read aloud for the younger set. I’m glad we found it on a list to read and would gladly add it to my collection. We borrowed it from the library.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can see how the guessing aspect of this appeals to the children (they especially love the duck bum). But either I didn't read it well or my toddler groups just weren't into it. Plus, the girl (or is it a boy?) kind of scares me. So I'm not as connected to this book as others, but maybe it will take some time. Or the large version we have would work better.

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Babies, toddlers, vocabulary, repetition, phonological awareness, animals.

[Renov Rainbow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for the children and talking about the sense of sight

[Villain E · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book for little ones. Animals and colors. Actually gives hints as to what the next animal is, unlike "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?"

[Mayra Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for children who are learning how to read. It's about a young boy who is going for a walk and sees different things. I would read this to children 2 and up.

[Jessi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Quite literally the ugliest child I have ever seen. Not great text, but the horrifying illustrations were terribly distracting.

[Khari · Rating 2 out of 5]

As soon as I started reading this book I knew I had read it before. No idea when. Probably when my niece or nephew were toddlers.

It would be fun to read this book aloud. There is a definite rhythm that you sink into and follow as you go along. There are repeated lines and it builds on expectations so it would be easy for kids to follow along. They would even learn and practice practice colors and animals, it's a good book for all of these reasons.

Unfortunately for me, I couldn't get past the art. It grated on my nerves. Is the child a boy or a girl? I haven't the foggiest. But besides that...the hair. The hair kills me. Instead of drawing the outline of the head, then drawing the hair and and either erasing or disguising the outline of the head, the artist left it as is. So it looks like an orange egg with Gollum-like wisps of hair jutting out from odd angles. It made me feel bad for the kid.

Story: Narrative-Meh
Art: Downright awful
Price: 6.95

[Lara · Rating 3 out of 5]

From an Australian author (and so a little less well known where I am) and following a similar pattern to Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?. Simple procession of animals with a repetitive text that children can start engaging with.

What do I like? I do like the animals - really beautiful illustrations. And I like that there's a little hint of the upcoming animal on the preceding page, allowing kids to guess that's coming. And lots of things to engage with young readers - colors, animals, etc.

What don't I like? The child. Even as someone who's got pretty crazy red hair herself, I really don't like the kid's style. Just kinda disturbing to my taste (it's both flat to the head and flyaway, and looks like a really crazy haircut and/or bald patches).

Overall, I'll stick with Brown Bear.

[Amy Layton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is written in a fun, rhyming stanza sort of way that makes it a pleasure to read.  It's interesting, perfect for children, and the illustrations...well, it took me a while to warm up to the illustrations, if I'm being honest.  I think the technique is great, and they definitely add something to the book (the animals aren't shown in totality at first--leaving the child to guess which animal might come next), but they were kinda off-putting to me.  I don't think as a child they would have been off-putting, but as an adult they were, and that unfortunately affected my reading of it.  No matter!  It's still a delightful book overall.

Review cross-listed here!

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I Went Walking by Sue Williams is wonderful way to engage students in choral reading activities. The repetition of key phrases helps students to build reading fluency and practice with sight words. The beautiful water-color illustrations of animals helps to encourage predictions by wondering what animals the little boy will see next! I used this book to teach my kindergarten class how to identify sight words by using formula fiction. During the next reading, we became the walkers in our community to gather ideas for writing about what we see! Kindergarteners can easily relate to the simple story, and they love to go walking with a partner to discuss the things that they will be writing about as they become authors of their own 'I see' stories!

[Jackie Sisley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Went Walking is about a young boy who goes for a walk and sees many different animals. This book has a simple, but unique art style that is fascinating to look at. Children are engaged throughout the book as they get to guess what animal the boy will see next based on the part of the animal shown in the picture. This book could be tied to learning about habitats as all of the animals are animals one would expect to see in a barnyard. The rhyme and repetition throughout the text make it easy for children to read along and I have even heard people sing the book in song version before. This book encourages children to get up and get some exercise as they explore the world around them and see what they can see.

[Margaret Hallock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: Picture Book- Baby/Board Book
Awards: N/A
Audience: 0-2 years old
A. This is a baby/board book because it is printed on sturdy and durable materials so that a baby can play with it without breaking it. It also uses simple language and relates to the everyday life of a baby.
B. The watercolor illustrations in this book give it a whimsical feel and make it appear soft and inviting. The plain white background helps the babies to focus only on the main images in front of them.
C. I would use this book to introduce the concepts of print to a baby and show them the basics of literature. The simple language will help build their vocabulary and make it an easier story to follow.
D. What is one thing she saw on her walk? A cow.

[Kristin Cantor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book for young children,, and also gives opportunity to involve them and welcome participation by showing the pictures.
This book is very similar to the book "Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You see" in fact it's so similar I thought it was written by the same author but it is not. That book is written by Bill Martin and Eric Carl.
So if you like the very popular Brown Bear book, you will like this book.
When my daughter was a baby, I took her to a mommy and me toy time at the library and sometimes when the children played, the librarian read a book. "I went Walking" and "Brown Bear" were often read which is part of the reason I thought they were writen by the same author.

[Barbara Mahoney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read on numerous sites that this was an excellent book for speech development for pre-schoolers. When I received it I was not so sure since it looked so plain and simple. However, when I read the story to pre-schoolers I saw the beauty in it. The language is very simple and rhymes, the pictures are simple and depict ordinary things a child might see on a walk. It is also fun to use the rhyme from the book "I went walking and what did I see" when taking your own pre-schooler for a walk to get them talking.

It is a very nice little book for pre-schoolers.

[Laurie Clary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a delight to read and children are intrigued with the way each animal is only partially introduced at first. A little boy is walking in the countryside and he has lots of company along the way, it turns into quite a parade of animals. This book is a good one to teach inferences and predictions and has repetition which is lots of fun to read. It reminds me a bit of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

[Ashlyn Vaught · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is great for early readers and memorization. The book has simple sentences and some aspects of predictability in it that allow students to easily follow along with the text and illustrations. This book would be a good book to use with students to make predictions about what is coming next in the book. This book could also be used in a science form to explain how to make a prediction and inference about what is going to happen.