The Cow Who Wouldn't Come Down

by Paul Brett Johnson

Children's Fiction. Early readers 5-9. Book design by Mina Greenstein. Illustrations acrylic paintings reproduced in full color. 30 pgs. Miss Rosemary can't get Gertrude the farm cow to come down from the sky. Children love anticipating what Miss Rosemary will do to trick Gertrude.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Humor, Animals, Fantasy, Kids, Juvenile

30 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1993

About the author

Paul Brett was a painter and children’s book writer/illustrator who grew up in the small town of Mousie, Kentucky, in Knott County. He was asked once in an interview to locate Mousie. He said: “Mousie is over there around Onion Blade, Dismal, Possum Trot, Sassafras, and Right and Left Beaver. But, if you haven’t been to Knott County, you may not be able to locate those places, either.”
That response was quintessential Paul Brett Johnson, a man of deep humor, good will, and immense artistic talent who honored his mountain upbringing in his work. Because he showed talent as a young child, his parents secured art lessons for him, and he made drawing and painting his life’s work.
After nearly a decade of trying to break through in the children’s book market, he finally saw success in 1993 with the release of The Cow Who Wouldn’t Come Down, a School Library Journal Best Book, an American Bookseller Pick of the Lists, and one of the New York Public Library's "One Hundred Books for Reading and Sharing." He eventually produced two companion books of these funny, outrageous tales of a farm woman and her adventurous animals, The Goose Who Went Off in a Huff, and The Pig Who Ran a Red Light. His art was whimsical, colorful, and full of motion that delighted children and adults alike. He was most fond of giving animals a sly (and hilarious) sense of humor and keen intelligence—traits that often matched his own. Eventually he wrote and illustrated over 20 books for children and served as illustrator for several other children’s book writers including George Ella Lyon, James Still, and Margaret Hodges.

Reviews

[Stephan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amusing goodnight story. My daughter loves it. I enjoy it too when i read it loud to her. Great illustrations.

[Betty Ortega · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Book Summary
MisGertrude, the cow learned how to fly and Miss Rosemary, her owner has problems milking a flying cow. Miss Rosemary tries different ways to get Gertrude back down and is very adventurous and creative.

awards
Young Readers Choice Awards

* Grade Level/ Interest level
1st-2nd

* Appropriate Classroom Use
Read aloud before creative writing period

*Student Who Might Benefit From Reading
All students

* Small Group Use
I would use book in small groups and ask students to recreate the ending of the story

* Whole Class Use
Read aloud before creative writing period

*Related Book In Genre
On Top of Spaghetti
*Multimedia Connections
N/A

[Yazmeen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Cow Who Wouldn't Come Down is a story about a cow named Gertrude who spends all his time doing noncow things. Miss Rosemary was the owner and was frustrated with Gertrude because cows do not fly and she knew if people saw they would whisper to each other about it. Miss Rosemary did everything she could to get Gertrude to come down. None of her ideas worked until one day she thought of the perfect solution. Miss Rosemary sewed together another cow and pretended to take care of her, knowing Gertrude would get jealous. Although Gertrude finally came down from the sky, she did not stay around for long and created another problem by riding off on a tractor.

The overall theme of this story is that some things can be unpredictable and just when you think you have solved one problem, another has risen and you have to start all over again. Sometimes it's better to let people do what makes them happy and know that you can't control everyone. Just because society labels something unacceptable doesn't mean that it's always the case.

This is is a fun story that makes me laugh because even though Miss Rosemary tries her hardest to make the cow do what she wants, the cow always finds a way to do what the cow wants. The cow enjoys being different and does not want to be a normal cow when she has the ability to things that are more fun and exciting.

I would recommend this book because it goes out of the norm when it comes to the characteristics of the cow and can be a great symbol for doing what makes you happy even if society deems it unacceptable.

[Grace Glenaman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think "The Cow Who Wouldn't Come Down" by Paul B. Johnson is a great book for kids to read. This story is about a cow, Miss Gertrude, who figures out how to fly. The owner of the farm, Miss Rosemary, tries everything in her power to make the cow stop flying. I liked the message of this story because it shows if you try something and it fails, don't give up. Miss Rosemary comes up with all of these different ways to get this cow back down to the ground. A lot of tasks failed, but she didn't give up. Then by the end of the story, she came up with the perfect idea to get Miss Gertrude down, and it was successful. The visuals in this book were very easy to see as well. The text was bold and easy to read, and with the pictures, they all had small outlines that made it easy to see. I overall really enjoyed reading this book, and I think it's one kids would really enjoy! It gives a good sense of suspense because you never know if your idea is going to work or not.

[Alana Walters · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is about a little old lady farmer who has a cow who does things cows aren't supposed to do like fly in the sky. One day her cow just wouldn't come down she tried many things to get her down but the last thing was she sewed a fake cow and ignored her other one to upset her and trick her to come down. This worked and the cow never flew again but she did take to the tractor and drove off on the tractor.

This lesson is about problem solving and trying again after one idea you may have doesn't work out. This is a great lesson for students.

[Charity · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a known fact that cows don't fly, but, to Miss Rosemary's dismay, Gertrude didn't get the message.

Cute book with a cows behaving badly, "Click, Clack, Moo" feel (although I prefer the "Click, Clack, Moo" books).

[Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

BL 3.6
0.5 pts

[Jessica Pinnick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I️ love this book! It’s hilarious and the pictures are fantastic!

[Ron Turner · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's cute but I don't think it's aged that well.

[Chance Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deranged.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read. I thoroughly enjoyed Miss Rosemary through the text and the pictures.

[zunggg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bemusing tale of bovine aviation which is not without charm.

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picture Book: Story about the Cow who jumped over the moon and how her owner is trying to get her to come down.

[Elena Hitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Cow Who Wouldn’t Come Down tells the story of an old lady who owns a bunch of animals on a farm. One day, Gertrude, the cow, started flying and the old lady was not happy about it because cows are not supposed to fly. She did everything she could to try to get Gertrude down. She taunted her with alfalfa, she tried to lasso her out of the sky, and she even tried to just catch her from the roof but fell off the house. Finally, the old lady makes a sign asking for a new cow since Gertrude wasn’t doing her job. She had no intentions of getting a new cow, but was trying to make Gertrude jealous. She gathered materials and made a fake cow, so finally Gertrude came down and starting eating grass like a normal cow. The story ends with Gertrude driving the tractor; I guess she’ll never stop doing things cows aren’t supposed to do. The story was well-written and very humorous. Children will like the idea of a cow flying and being adventurous. The story didn’t have a lot of development; it jumped right in with Gertrude flying so kids might be left asking questions. The illustrations did great things for the story and added humor. For example, when the old lady fell off the roof, the pictures made the fall look funny so the reader knew the lady wasn’t hurt. The story was eventful and not too long, it would be a good read for a young audience.

[Jessica Berry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miss Rosemary lives on a farm and owns a cow named Gertrude. Gertrude can fly and does not listen to Miss Rosemary when she asks her to come down. Miss Rosemary tries many different ways to get her down; some include: trying to lure her in with alfalfa, trying to catch her with a fishing rod, and using a lasso. She becomes very frustrated when all of these ideas fail, she tries to think of new ideas. Finally, Miss Rosemary finally comes up with a clever idea. She puts up a sign for a new cow and sews a cow and puts it by Gertrude’s things and says it is a perfect cow. This does the trick and Gertrude finally comes down and knocks the cow over. Gertrude goes back to being a normal cow, for a while, and in the end she begins to drive a tractor! This is a funny book that many children will probably enjoy. I recommend it for second through fourth graders. The illustrations are bright and catch your attention because of the style in which they are done. This is a lighthearted book that is sure to make children laugh because of the sassy cow that can fly!

[RachelH. Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Cow Who Wouldn't Come Down is a silly little book that kids of all ages would enjoy. It is about Miss Rosemary and her cow Gertrude who has taken to flying! Miss Rosemary knows that cows cannot fly and does everything she can think of to try to get Gertrude to come down. Eventually Miss Rosemary is able to make Gertrude jealous enough to return to the farm and be a normal cow. But maybe Gertrude still has other things in mind! I really enjoyed this book because of the silly humor and cleverness of Miss Rosemary. The illustrations are beautiful and full of color. I would use this with 1st to 3rd grade students for entertainment or to teach a reading lesson.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. The illustrations looked a bit older, which I liked. And the story was pretty funny. School-age would love this in a storytime, lap-read, or read-alone. Preschool might enjoy a lap-read if they have good attention spans. Unfortunately, I think the book is too long for a preschool storytime, unless they are well-behaved and can sit for a long time. I'll keep it in mind just in case.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miss Rosemary can't quite figure out how to get Gertrude, her cow to come down from the sky. How was she going to milk a flying cow? She tries every bit of cajoling, begging, and pleading...all to no avail. That is, until she comes up with a very clever plan that pulls at Gertrude's mood. The Cow Who Wouldn't Come Down is brightly illustrated and is full of lots humorous situations.

Used for "Cheep, Oink, and Moo: Chicken, Pork, and Beef" storytime-April, 2010.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is funny and cute. I think the descriptions of what the cow's owner does are really good examples of descriptive writing. Things like "knit her brow" or "set her jaw." You could make a game of it with younger kids by showing them the face or expression and then having them do it. In the end the owner tricks her cow but the cow has more tricks in store.

[Foxytocin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely love the illustrations...they're light-hearted and whimsical....the book has a sedate, silly sense of humor. It's a little long for pure entertainment, but a great length for settling into the bedtime routine with the 5-7 year old set.

[Laura McCarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best beginnings ever... "the day Gertrude took to flying put Miss Rosemary in somewhat of a tissy!" Followed by Miss Rosemary's repeated attempt to get Gertrude down. Great for teaching perseverance, commitment. Also good for the concept of persuasion.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the pictures in this book. I had to summarize parts of it to keep the interest of my children.

[Cws]

JEAROS3-Joh

[☆Brittany☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

SUPER cute!!

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miss Rosemary tries everything to coax her flying cow Gertrude down from the sky. Very funny, neat story

[Kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is definately not one of my favorites. I think it is much to long of a story. It is a bit humorous, and could be a good choice for a fun read.

[Chase · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one. All the stars are filled up

[Brianna Crall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun book. Good for predicting.

[Rachel Otting]

A cow is flying and the owner is trying to get her down. She used jealousy to get the cow back on the ground.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is hilarious! And I love the language. Like an old country tale.