Fergus and Zeke and the Great Farm Field Trip by Kate Messner, illustrated by Heather Ross

Fergus and Zeke and the Great Farm Field Trip by Kate Messner, illustrated by Heather Ross. Candlewick Press, 2024. 9781536227611

Format: Hardcover

Rating:  1-5 (5 is an excellent or a Starred review) 3

 Genre: Animal fiction

What did you like about the book? The kids in Miss Maxwell’s class are learning all about food and where it comes from, and Miss Maxwell has promised a surprise on Friday.  The class mice, Fergus and Zeke, are enjoying the lessons about fruits and vegetables and how they grow, and are quite eager to find out what the surprise is – they are hoping for ice cream, or maybe cheese!  On Friday, Miss Maxwell announces that they will be going on a field trip to a working farm, to learn all about the plants and animals that provide food for everyone.  Fergus and Zeke don’t like to miss out, so they stow away in Emma’s backpack.  They are too short to pick apples, make a mess with a jar of honey, and manage to annoy most of the animals on the farm.  Worst of all, they get lost and then miss the bus to go back to school, a problem which will require some quick thinking and teamwork to resolve.

Cute, colorful illustrations, short chapters, and snappy dialogue between the two main characters all make for an enjoyable addition to this STEAM-themed series that bridges a gap between early readers and harder chapter books. Young readers will laugh at some funny scenes, such as when Fergus and Zeke try to milk a cow, or when they try to pet the sheep and can only reach their hooves.  The introduction to the various aspects of farm work is informative and may encourage readers to investigate further.

Anything you did not like about the book?  It seems like these class pets are a bit of an afterthought for the kids in Miss Maxwell’s class – there is very little interaction between students and rodents, and no one seems to notice their adventures.

To whom would you recommend this book? It’s a good fit for 1st and 2nd graders who have enjoyed previous books in the series, or series such as Fluffy the Classroom Guinea Pig or Humphrey’s Tiny Tales.  It would be an appropriate read aloud at those grade levels in advance of an actual field trip to a farm or orchard.

Who should buy this book? Public and elementary school libraries

Where would you shelve it?  Early readers or series fiction

 Should we (librarians) put this on the top of our “to read” piles?  No

 Reviewer’s Name, Library (or school), City:  Leigh Russell King, Lincoln Street School, Northborough, Massachusetts.

Date of review: June 3, 2024