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Pete the Cat
Pete the Cat: Old MacDonald Had a Farm: Pete the cool cat sings the classic farm favorite in a sturdy, vibrant board-format picture book for young readers
New York Times bestselling author and artist James Dean brings us a groovy rendition of the classic favorite children’s song “Old MacDonald Had a Farm,” sung by cool cat Pete and perfect for sing-along time with young readers. Pete the Old MacDonald Had a Farm is in a sturdy paper-over-board format and filled with vibrant, engaging illustrations for even the youngest of Pete fans. “Old MacDonald had a farm e-i-e-i-o!”
32 pages, Hardcover
First published February 18, 2014
About the author
James Dean
232 books269 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
James Dean is the original creator and illustrator of Pete the Cat. He is a self-taught artist originally from Fort Payne, Alabama. His passion for drawing became apparent at a young age, and as a child, you could find James drawing his favorite characters like Snoopy and Yogi Bear.
James earned his degree in electrical engineering from Auburn University and went on to work for Georgia Power for a number of years. Eventually, he was called to pursue his art full- time and began selling his work at art festivals around the Southeast. It was during this time that he began creating paintings and drawing of his cat, Pete.The little blue cat showed up as a character in James’s artwork around 1999 and has been a permanent fixture ever since.
James Dean’s art has been sold in more than ninety galleries and shops across the United States. He has devoted his paintings to Pete the Cat for fifteen years and turned his natural love for cats into his life’s work. James published his first book, The Misadventures of Pete the Cat, a history of his artwork, in 2006, and he illustrated his first self-published children’s book, Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, in 2008. There are now almost 100 published Pete the Cat titles with more coming out all the time. James is humbled every day by the success that this groovy blue cat has brought him. He says positively affecting children’s lives is his number one priority, and he is grateful to have such an amazing audience to work for.
James Dean is the original creator and illustrator of Pete the Cat. He is a self-taught artist originally from Fort Payne, Alabama. His passion for drawing became apparent at a young age, and as a child, you could find James drawing his favorite characters like Snoopy and Yogi Bear.
James earned his degree in electrical engineering from Auburn University and went on to work for Georgia Power for a number of years. Eventually, he was called to pursue his art full- time and began selling his work at art festivals around the Southeast. It was during this time that he began creating paintings and drawing of his cat, Pete.The little blue cat showed up as a character in James’s artwork around 1999 and has been a permanent fixture ever since.
James Dean’s art has been sold in more than ninety galleries and shops across the United States. He has devoted his paintings to Pete the Cat for fifteen years and turned his natural love for cats into his life’s work. James published his first book, The Misadventures of Pete the Cat, a history of his artwork, in 2006, and he illustrated his first self-published children’s book, Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, in 2008. There are now almost 100 published Pete the Cat titles with more coming out all the time. James is humbled every day by the success that this groovy blue cat has brought him. He says positively affecting children’s lives is his number one priority, and he is grateful to have such an amazing audience to work for.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 152 reviews
February 21, 2014
Very disappointing. Not only is it just the Old MacDonald song with Pete the Cat, it seems like it goes on forever with animals that don't normally appear in the song. It would be fine for the little ones, but really, I don't think they need pictures to prompt them with this song.
Read
May 18, 2021Just because Old MacDonald CAN have 14 animals on his farm doesn’t mean he SHOULD.
February 24, 2014
eh. This is JUST Old macDonald Had a Farm with cameos of Pete the Cat in the background. I think kids already enjoy Old MacDonald enough to not need Pete the Cat to tempt them into reading/singing it. Also the back of the book says it's an "adaptation" but I don't think that is the right way to describe it. still has cute pictures.
February 18, 2014
This is Pete the Cat's version of Old MacDonald, nothing new, nothing that makes this especially Pete. Good for a read aloud with PreK-2, though I admit that I'm disappointed that this version doesn't contain anything unique.
September 20, 2015
This is just Old McDonald had a farm. Not how a Pete the Cat book is supposed to go.
August 21, 2017
Too long to sing quickly, but an excellent source for early literacy!
August 28, 2019
I have no complaints. I love me some Pete the Cat. It’s all good! My young little student laughed and couldn’t wait to flip the pages for this. We had a good time reading it today.
June 28, 2014
Yes, it's Pete and he's singing Old MacDonald. Nothing beyond the predictable here. Fans of Pete will like it a lot, and while I am a fan this seems like a half-hearted attempt to make more easy money off this mildly amusing cat character.
March 8, 2014
Meh. It's just Pete the Cat singing Old Macdonald. It's fine but if I'm going to read a Pete the Cat book I expect something more.
October 27, 2014
I could have done with a couple less pages on this one - I was hoarse by the time we finished singing...
October 7, 2019
Well this was exactly as it appears on the tin. You don't need a Pete the Cat rendition of Old MacDonald Had a Farm at all. Seems like a quick cash grab to me. Also a looooooooot of repetition.
August 2, 2019
We picked this book up from the library has A loves Pete the Cat. We have read the books on EPIC and she loves listening to it read. So when we saw this book along with other Pete the Cat books she was excited. Also she is doing better at reading and Pete the Cat books are perfect for her.
In this story we don't have a farmer but we do have Pete the Cat farmer. If your children like the song Old MacDonald Has a Farm this would be a great read for them.
In this story we don't have a farmer but we do have Pete the Cat farmer. If your children like the song Old MacDonald Has a Farm this would be a great read for them.
January 17, 2022
this is to show my sister i really would put pete the cat on my goodreads. great book for babies.
January 17, 2022
This book is great for little kids. Super cute and educational.
September 19, 2022
My 4 year old was delighted by this.
June 17, 2024
This book goes on forever but my daughter loved the repetition and illustrations. It’s your classic “Old MacDonald” with some unique animals thrown in.
May 23, 2025
We had a riotous read aloud tonight as the kids (Nicolette -8, granddaughter Millie -3, and Evelyn -12) sang this together.
April 24, 2024
My son and I had so much fun reading this book together.
June 8, 2022
Argh this book just. Kept.going. Halfway through I'm like why are we singing about EVERY animal under the sun. Could have been half the length and more enjoyable. Sorry to my kid, but we aren't reading this one again. Also nothing special to make it Pete the Cat-- it's just like the regular song.
Edit: okay, of all the Pete the cat books kiddo keeps going back to this one to flip through. So I'll give it credit for that. He loves all the animals but on the second, third, fourth... read I'm just letting him point out animals, "yes, a donkey!"
Edit: okay, of all the Pete the cat books kiddo keeps going back to this one to flip through. So I'll give it credit for that. He loves all the animals but on the second, third, fourth... read I'm just letting him point out animals, "yes, a donkey!"
October 20, 2017
1) no awards
2) Appropriate grade levels - toddlers-pre k
3) Summary - This is the classic “Old Macdonald” song with Pete the Cat walking us through the different animals. The book features a few new animals that don’t appear in the traditional version of the song, such as, geese and donkeys. While hearing an old favorite, children can learn about some new animals.
4) Review - This book is engaging because of the fun pictures, however, I do wish there was an added element or twist. I am not sure that young children would want to sit through so many pages of animals for an extended period. I also like the ending illustration of Pete the Cat with all of the farm animals standing together on the farm.
5) This can be used in the classroom to teach children about different kinds of animals, and to teach very young children about the sounds that animals make. For older children, a teacher can set up a felt board, with a barn, a tractor, and farm animals that appear in the story. The children could create their own stories using the materials. Children might also enjoy a farm animal sensory bin filled with dried corn or hay, and plastic farm animals.
2) Appropriate grade levels - toddlers-pre k
3) Summary - This is the classic “Old Macdonald” song with Pete the Cat walking us through the different animals. The book features a few new animals that don’t appear in the traditional version of the song, such as, geese and donkeys. While hearing an old favorite, children can learn about some new animals.
4) Review - This book is engaging because of the fun pictures, however, I do wish there was an added element or twist. I am not sure that young children would want to sit through so many pages of animals for an extended period. I also like the ending illustration of Pete the Cat with all of the farm animals standing together on the farm.
5) This can be used in the classroom to teach children about different kinds of animals, and to teach very young children about the sounds that animals make. For older children, a teacher can set up a felt board, with a barn, a tractor, and farm animals that appear in the story. The children could create their own stories using the materials. Children might also enjoy a farm animal sensory bin filled with dried corn or hay, and plastic farm animals.
May 1, 2014
This Pete the Cat book was my least favorite. This book was mostly the Old MacDonald song. I was expecting it to have something more unique about it but sadly it did not. Children still love Pete the Cat and love to sing so it a great book for young children.
November 7, 2016
I liked the different animals in this book, and the pictures. And I was surprised that this was a Pete the Cat book.
March 1, 2018
Hot take: Pete the Cat looks stoned on every page and the text is just the song. Really don't get the appeal. Instead, read this far superior story, a Wikipedia article entitled "Peter, the Lord's cat":
Peter, the Lord's cat (1950 – 5 November 1964), also known as The Marylebone mog,[1] was a cat who lived at Lord's Cricket Ground in London from 1952 to 1964. He is the only animal to be given an obituary in the standard cricket reference book, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.[2][3][4][5]
The obituary appeared in the 1965 edition of Wisden, under the name "CAT, PETER". It described him as "a well-known cricket-watcher" who "could often be seen prowling on the field of play"; he "loved publicity" and "frequently appeared on the television".[6] Despite this, it seems that no photographs of him are known, although his successor, Sinbad, was snapped during a Southern Schools v The Rest match in 1963.[7]
Peter is mentioned in the title of a 2006 anthology of Wisden obituaries, Peter, the Lord's Cat: And Other Unexpected Obituaries from Wisden.[8]
November 17, 2017
I know Pete the Cat has some catchy new songs. One about some white sneakers in particular, so I was surprised this book wasn’t any different than any other Old MacDonald song. Literally the only Pete the Cat thing is in the illustrations. It felt like a real miss opportunity to make it something new.
Another thing that was a miss for me was how long the book was. It didn’t seem to need to repeat that many times. I felt the little one I watch lose interest when it seemed to keep going and going.
All these things aside if you love singing the classic Old MacDonald tune this book is definitely for you.
Another thing that was a miss for me was how long the book was. It didn’t seem to need to repeat that many times. I felt the little one I watch lose interest when it seemed to keep going and going.
All these things aside if you love singing the classic Old MacDonald tune this book is definitely for you.
November 22, 2017
I would recommend this book for the early primary grades, kindergarten through first grade. I would categorize it as modern fantasy.
I think students will absolutely love this book! My preschoolers as obsessed with it! It does a great job at repetition, and including rhythm. I love the illustrations too! My only issue, is that I don’t want to have to sing the song the entire time! Good books are meant to be read more than once, but this is a book that I do not like reading more than once a day. Maybe it’s because I don’t like to sing this song non-stop, or maybe because it seems like it never ends. Other than that, I think children would really enjoy reading this book!
I think students will absolutely love this book! My preschoolers as obsessed with it! It does a great job at repetition, and including rhythm. I love the illustrations too! My only issue, is that I don’t want to have to sing the song the entire time! Good books are meant to be read more than once, but this is a book that I do not like reading more than once a day. Maybe it’s because I don’t like to sing this song non-stop, or maybe because it seems like it never ends. Other than that, I think children would really enjoy reading this book!
July 22, 2018
These singalong books in the Pete the Cat series don't rock the boat too much with new twists. But that's the point. They are designed to introduce traditional children's songs.
Old MacDonald Had a Farm has perhaps too many verses for some kids (and parents), but the 14 animal verses are a great way to get in a lot of practice labeling common farm and domestic animals and making animal sounds.
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I review books for children from the perspective of a parent of kids with autism. The review above is part of a longer post on books about singalong books: https://www.lineupthebooks.com/40-sin...
Old MacDonald Had a Farm has perhaps too many verses for some kids (and parents), but the 14 animal verses are a great way to get in a lot of practice labeling common farm and domestic animals and making animal sounds.
---
I review books for children from the perspective of a parent of kids with autism. The review above is part of a longer post on books about singalong books: https://www.lineupthebooks.com/40-sin...
July 20, 2019
I love Pete the Cat & all he stands for (stay true to yourself, don't sweat the small stuff, roll with the punches, etc), but this book had none of that. It just has FOURTEEN stanzas of Old MacDanald Had a Farm, with Pete as Old MacDonald. 14 is way too many for a board book. And they were complete stanzas too, with all of the words.
Just out of curiosity, I timed myself reading it out loud to my 2-year-old, and it took a full five minutes. That was without any interruptions or stopping to discuss the illustrations. For comparison, Raffi's Down By the Bay, another song-turned-board-book, takes only 2 minutes to read at the same speed.
Just out of curiosity, I timed myself reading it out loud to my 2-year-old, and it took a full five minutes. That was without any interruptions or stopping to discuss the illustrations. For comparison, Raffi's Down By the Bay, another song-turned-board-book, takes only 2 minutes to read at the same speed.
December 8, 2021
Not one of the better Pete the Cat the books as it is the Old MacDonald song which as we all know is very repetitive and somewhat annoying. This book really draws the song out also and goes on and on and on. I thought that there might be a twist at the end, but no, it was Old MacDonald to the very end. The pictures were still fun, bright, and busy with lots of things to look at. Of course, young kids will still enjoy the classic Old MacDonald, but personally, I like the more original and creative Pete the Cat books. Jecel read this to me and I think he was happy when it ended.
June 20, 2017
This was a brand new board book at our library and had bright colors and a tractor on the front. I don't know who Pete the Cat is, but the story is just the Old MacDonald song. The book goes on forever - besides the usual cow, pig, horse, and chicken, there is also a turkey, goats, goose, frog, donkey, and more.
September 6, 2018
Pete the Cat drives through the farm meeting animals and singing the song "Old MacDonald Had a Farm."
This is completely just the song with Pete the Cat in the illustrations and some possibly unusual animal additions (I've never heard of adding the frogs to the song, but it makes sense). Kids who like farm animals, learning animal noises, and singing should enjoy this board book.
This is completely just the song with Pete the Cat in the illustrations and some possibly unusual animal additions (I've never heard of adding the frogs to the song, but it makes sense). Kids who like farm animals, learning animal noises, and singing should enjoy this board book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 152 reviews