Big Chickens

by Leslie Helakoski, Henry Cole (Illustrator)

When four big chickens see a wolf sneaking near their coop, they run into the woods to hide. But for a bunch of big chickens, running away from danger isn’t as easy as it looks. As they continue on their way, they wonder:What if they get stuck in a ditch? What if they hit an iceberg in the lake? What if they step into a cow patty? Ewww! Brimming with silliness and the kind of slapstick humor small children love, here’s a rollicking read-aloud with an uplifting message and a very satisfying ending. Henry Cole’s hilarious artwork captures all the sly humor.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Humor, Fiction, Storytime, Kids

32 pages, Hardcover

First published February 2, 2006

Reviews

[Spencer Orey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book got some great laughs out of my kid. It's a simple but fun story. The chickens are scared of everything until they're brave. Some good funny illustrations of chickens yelling.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, silly little book. I think I missed out by reading silently to myself instead of aloud with a child 🙂

The illustrations are fun and silly, too.

[Sari Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Soooooo funny! I love the cadence, the illustrations, the overall silliness, and the “show don’t tell” nature of the underlying messages. Delightful.

[Kelly Wickham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a funny chicken book about a bunch of cowards. The chickens see a wolf in the farmyard, so the 4 of them decide to go searching the farmyard for the wolf. They are a bunch of scaredy hens, but together they keep searching far and now. They finally wander into the cave, and their squawking, flocking, and racket frighten the hiding wolf so much that he runs from the cave, and the fraidy-cat chickens feel like heroes. All the kids love this crazy story about the underdog winning the day, especially Marcos!

[Casle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this with my grandson tonight, then later listened as my husband read it to him again. I always enjoyed reading this at storytime, and count myself fortunate to have my lovely audience of one to read it to today. And extra sweet to hear his Grandpa discover for the first time the many levels of silliness in these 4 chickens and hear him giggle with our boy.

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uses repetition to show that the four chickens are scared and frightened or feeling a sort of way about the unexpected, until they finally feel brave. The four chickens are on an adventure after fleeing from a fox and they use repetitive words, and then rhyming terms to progress their thoughts. Super cute and funny, keeps you excited for the end.

[Ashley Adkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

My boys, ages 8 and 9, love the play on the words "big chickens"! We enjoyed the story and it has the repetitiveness in its text that is good for the younger children. However, it did seem a little long. The art was fun and the boys enjoyed looking out for the bad guy on each page.

[Valerie Doherty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a funny children's book about four chickens who escape their enemy- the wolf. Throughout the tale, they overcome their fears and build their confidence throughout a series of mishaps. Hilarious illustrations and dialogue are part of this joyous read.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A funny story about being brave.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four chickens venture away form their coop because a wolf has entered the farmyard. And through their journey, they find out they are braver than they thought.

Great illustrations.

[Keyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious story about 4 cowardly chickens who in the end realize that had enough chicken guts to do everything they were afraid of. Children loved it!

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun book, although it's a bit wordy for a picture book.

[Joy Reinbold · Rating 2 out of 5]

I honestly liked the sequel, "Big Chickens Fly the Coop," much better. The same exact concept is used, but it is executed better in the later book than in this first one.

[Ellie McGarvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a creative and fun book! The art is wonderful and easy to follow

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute story about facing your fears and finding courage!

[Maya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published in 2008.

This goofy book is about chickens running away from a wolf. I would keep this book in my classroom for independent reading.

[Nichole · Rating 1 out of 5]

Women are so dumb that they think they're brave when things accidentally work out for them. /s

Or maybe---
You can be brave without feeling like you have to fit someone else's definition of brave?

[Kristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought that this was a cute book. My kids also enjoyed reading this as well. It was cute how the chickens ended up and what they had to deal with. I would recommend this book to others.

[Sherry Scheline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book for children dealing with fears.

[Lindsay Lodge · Rating 2 out of 5]

What about those bats that the chickens disturbed?

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just ok.

[Darian - Books With A Chance · Rating 5 out of 5]

My kids enjoy this book, it’s a silly, fun, read and they love spotting the wolf getting near the chickens.

[Jeffrey Babbitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

A silly story told by a master children's storyteller. Helakoski has a great ear for the language in her children's stories. This was fun!

[Diana Salazar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have an affinity for chicken related stories. This did not disappoint.

[Marcos Cortes · Rating 5 out of 5]

its a wolf!.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great alliteration, great rhymes...super fun for an every night read!!

[Kest Schwartzman · Rating 4 out of 5]

cute. Good for (repeated) readings aloud with the small people in your life.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

1. Title: Big Chickens
2. Rating: 3 Stars
3. Review: I gave this book three stars because I feel that the plot was pretty predictable and could be too drawn out for little ones. I did, however, like the repetition of the "me, too" "me three" "me four!". I also think this could be a fun movement book for the classroom!

[Ms. Mielke's Class Make sure you post how your sheets tell you to!!!! · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about four chickens who go on an crazy adventure after running away from their coop when they see a wolf. They encounter many new things and lots of trouble along the way. I think this was a good childrens book and would recommend it to anybody who likes funny silly books. I thought the best part was when they got chased by cows. I hope you liked this book as much as I did. RA

This book is about four chickens that take a long adventure through the woods, cow pasture, lake, and a cave. Their whole trip started when the chickens saw a wolf in the farmyard. This is a funny book that I would recommend to young readers. HG



This book is a very funny book I thought it was about four chickens who were almost afraid of everything. I liked this book because it sort of teaches you that just because your smaller doesn't mean your not tougher. I recommend this book to anyone who is small and doesn't think their tough. SS





This book is a good book. It is about four chickens that are afraid of everything see a wolf by their coop so they run away from it. They run into the woods. They go on a crazy journy and learn how not to be scared.BS

[Relyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the important parts of writer's workshop is modeling for your students. What this really means is that I need to work on writing my own children's book so that I can do it in front of my students. I need to literally show them what I mean. Writing a good children's book is less easy than you might think, in spite of how my kids make it look. Big Chickens is the first book to ever make me think I might can do it. Leslie Helakoski hit a grand slam with this on. Her pun, the excellent vocabulary, the repeating lines and rhythm of the book - all of it came together in one big AHA! moment for me. I LOVED this book!