Starred Review for Publishers Weekly

Farmer Gray’s homestead is as colorless as his name—even the sky and grass are gray. So, while he’s away for the day, Blue Goose, Red Hen, Yellow Chick and White Duck get some paint and undertake a barnyard makeover. First they cover a few things in their signature colors—and what they redecorate can be surprising: “White Duck painted the fence white. And Yellow Chick painted all the flowers yellow.” Next the animals mix the different colors (e.g., yellow and blue make green for the grass.) With a little teamwork, they’re even able to paint the sun yellow (this image requires a vertical format so readers can fully savor the effort involved). Tafuri’s (<EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">The Busy Little Squirrel) animal cast is creative, confident and diligent—there are no pratfalls into paint cans, no falling off of ladders. But the veteran author is more visually playful here than usual: the scenes have the bold, graphic punch of murals. As always, her generously sized animals and pithy text extend a warm welcome to readers, and make this celebration of color ideal for sharing either one-on-one or with a group. Ages 1-4. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Jan.)

ALA Booklist

In a low-key story exploring colors, Blue Goose, Red Hen, Yellow Chick, and White Duck all pitch in to paint the barnyard, which first appears in black, white, and gray. Each bird has a brush and a can of paint. After making the fence white, the flowers yellow, the barn red, and the roof blue, they mix their hues to create purple for the doors, orange for the shutters, and, in a leap of the imagination, light blue for the sky and green for the grass and trees. After a few more strokes of cooperative genius, the job is done. The simple, clearly written story leaves room for discussion when reading the book aloud, while the clean lines of the drawings as well as the large scale and varied composition of the ink, gouache, and pencil illustrations make them very effective to share with groups of children. An appealing introduction to primary and secondary colors.

Horn Book

While the aptly named Farmer Gray is away, the animals paint the farm. Red Hen paints the barn red; Blue Goose and White Duck mix blue and white (one of the book's several color-mixing lessons) and paint the sky light blue, etc. Toddlers will delight in watching what look like unsullied pages in a coloring book turn into a colorfest.

Kirkus Reviews

Leave it to a gaggle of brightly hued barnyard fowl—including, in addition to the eponymous goose, Yellow Chick, Red Hen and White Duck—to paint their drab environment while the farmer (named Gray, of course) is away. Each paints various items in its own color but then . . . poultry pairs mix primary colors to yield blends! Wouldn't you know it? Everything looks better and brighter. At bedtime, Blue Goose paints all in an evening shade of blue, except for the moon, which remains silvery white. Readers will get a painless lesson in color mixing, and a helpful chart on the back cover reinforces these concepts. As always, Tafuri's illustrations are lush and vibrant, but the text is bland. A nice enough title to guide young children's understanding of color blending, but not a standout. (Picture book. 2-5)

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 1-While Farmer Gray is away, Blue Goose, Red Hen, Yellow Chick, and White Duck set out to paint their colorless barnyard. Reminiscent of Ellen Stoll Walsh's Mouse Paint (Harcourt, 1989), the animals begin by working alone, then pair up to fill in the white spaces for purple doors, orange shutters, and green grass. That evening, when the grinning farmer returns, all that's left to do is for Blue Goose to paint everything a dreamy nighttime blue-except the moon, of course. Done in brush pen, watercolor pencils, gouache, and ink, Tafuri's realistic illustrations evoke a calming pastoral setting. The critters are depicted in textured hues, making them stand out among the newly painted backdrops. This quiet celebration of team spirit and color concepts is no pioneer, but its oversize scenes, straightforward narrative, and endearing characters are ideal for storytime sharing.-Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.