An Occasional Cow

In Iowa, Imogene meets her cousins: Josephine, March, Annie Mae, and Nathan. At first, theres some minor clashes between Josephine and Imogene, as the girls are quite similar. As the summer progresses, the group becomes fast friends and shares adventures. They spy on their neighbors, climb the laundry shute, and struggle to train their pigs to curtsey so they can win the annual pig talent show.

An Occasional Cow is light, pleasant fare. There isnt much plot, and what there is is far from compelling, but some of the characters are engaging, and the narrative moves swiftly. There are also touches of humor. Horvath often appears, in this book and in others, to be paying homage to Edward Eagers writing style (there are phrases in all of her books that are more or less direct quotes from Eagers work), so perhaps it isnt too surprising that Cow reads like an Eager book with the magic replaced by more mundane activities.

The books most serious flaw is its lack of any conflict. Horvath tries, and then discards, one conflict after another, but she just doesnt seem to be comfortable having any of her characters struggle or fight. For example, Imogene doesnt like being sent to camp - shed prefer to stay in New York - and she hates the idea of going to Iowa. With a set up like that, it seems likely that the story will feature either Imogenes attempts to teach her parents to let her stay home, or Imogenes gradual conversion to loving her summers away. In fact, neither thing happens, because by the end of the second chapter, Imogene is entirely happy and settled into the country, without having changed her general attitude towards her summers at all. The remainder of the conflicts are handled precisely the same way - they show up briefly and are fixed within 15 pages.

All in all, this book is a nice diversion, nothing more, but it might be pleasant for young readers who enjoy light and cheerful stories.