Tyrannosaurus Rex vs. Edna, The Very First Chicken

by Douglas Rees, Jed Henry (Illustrator)

Tyrannosaurus Rex wants breakfast. He stomps and he roars and he gnashes his teeth―and he scares all the other dinosaurs right out of the forest.

Only Edna, the very first chicken, is unafraid. She won't let that bully T. rex push her around! But will Edna's mighty beak and terrible flapping wings be a match for T. rex's mighty claws and terrible jaws?

This hilarious tale of bravery will have readers clucking in triumph!

Jed Henry's charming illustrations accompany Douglas Rees' upROARious tale.

Genres: Picture Books, Dinosaurs, Childrens, Humor, Storytime, Animals, Birds

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 26, 2017

About the author

I was born on October 19th, 1947 in the hospital at March Air Force Base just outside Riverside, California. My father, Norman, was a career sergeant who'd served as an aircraft mechanic and infantryman in the Philippines campaign early in the war and was taken prisoner on Bataan. My mother, Agnes, was a nurse at the hospital where he was sent to recuperate after the war was over.

Until I was fifteen, I lived on or near a number of Air Force bases in this country and in Germany. My sister, Patricia, was born in 1950 at Travis AFB.

Until I was six, I wanted to be a fireman. Between six and twelve, I wanted to be a paleontologist. When I was twelve, I decided I wanted to be a writer. I still haven't outgrown that.

I made some occasional stabs at writing and submitting manuscripts in my twenties and thirties. When I turned forty-seven, I decided to start writing things more regularly. I've been doing so ever since.

Reviews

[La Coccinelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This cute little book had me right up until the end when it implied that there are no Tyrannosauruses anymore because they were all chased away by chickens. Have you heard a dinosaur-obsessed kid talk? They'll be sure to let you know how wrong that idea is.

Other than that, the pictures are cute and the story of a tiny chicken using what is at her disposal (her feathers, sharp claws, and tenacity) to put a bully in his place is empowering.

This is a fun book for a few laughs, but if your kid is really serious about dinosaurs, be prepared for the inevitable corrections.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very very silly. Edna knows what's up.

[Sean Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a great storybook. I've read many children's stories, but this one is definitely the funniest I've read.

[Relyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, like 24 others, is a potential Show Me Nominee for the 2018-19 school year. What fun it has been to read all 25 books and help choose the ten nominees that most Missouri school children will read with their librarian next year.

Edna, the very first chicken, is a heroine everyone can love. Kids will shriek with laughter as Edna chases off the mean T-rex. This book is a sure crowd pleaser.

[Lizzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A humorous David vs Goliath story with a chicken and Tyrannosaurs Rex.
Well drawn, with precise language. Doug works here at San Jose Public so I got to see a galley copy. Go buy this book!

[Laurie B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous, funny book about a chicken taking on a T-Rex! If you or your kids like dinosaurs or chickens, you'll love this book. Wonderful illustrations, fantastic onomatopoeia, lots of humor, a nice bit of science education in the author's note, and a good message about being brave even when you're small. This book has the whole package! Should work well as an individual or group read-aloud.

[Chance Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, colorful story. Serves the dual purpose of being a story that both a) shows a small character standing up to a bigger character and b) illustrates that birds and dinosaurs are related. Bonus star for the onomatopoeia SCHNORCH! which is exactly the sound I'd imagine a dinosaur sneezing a chicken from his nostrils would make.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read-aloud power.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

I brought this book to my three favorite boys, and the youngest one, 6, read it aloud to the other two, 8 and 11, leaning over his shoulders. When he got to the part where Tyrannosaurus Rex is trying to talk while Edna's tiny claws are dug into his tongue, his brothers had to help him with the pronunciation, and they all had to try the wonderful words on their tongues. They had difficulty mostly because they were laughing so hard. What a joy for their mom and me to watch them enjoy this delightful book together!

[Anmiryam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Made me laugh raucously. Wish I had a small person to read it to!

[Laura McLoughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty silly story. Never underestimate someone (or chicken) because they are small - short people know how to fight dirty!

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is Earth canon and no one can tell me otherwise

[Mrs.Melaugh Melaugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who would win if a chicken faced off against a fierce Tyrannosaurus Rex? If you guessed T. Rex, then you haven’t met Edna, “the very first chicken”. When T. Rex stomps through the forest like a bully, looking for his breakfast, other dinosaurs flee, warning Edna to go, too. However, Edna stays where she is, pecking away at the ground. T. Rex boasts, “Beware my deadly stomp and long, sharp teeth.” Edna never backs down, responding, “Beware my pointy claws and many feathers.” In tall tale fashion, they face off for an epic battle that runs a most unusual course. My favorite illustration shows the two facing off eye-to-eye with T. Rex bending way down to meet Edna’s eyes. There is a shocking moment when (Spoiler alert!) Edna is gobbled up, but not to worry -- even that doesn’t stop her! Readers may be tempted to cheer when, thanks in part to using those claws and feathers that she mentioned, Edna prevails. A note informs readers that chickens are close relatives of dinosaurs, but admits that chickens would not have overlapped with T. Rex. Enjoyably silly, the story could easily lead to more serious discussions of David v. Goliath-type battles and the power of perseverance.

[Monique · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tyrannosaurus Rex Vs Edna The Very First Chicken is a thoroughly enjoyable read. What caught my eye first is the adorable chicken on the cover with the very big eyes, eyes that remind me of a young child exploring their world for the first time. Inside I found Edna, who is a small thing not to be underestimated and Rex, who is a big thing intent on taking what he wants. The story demonstrates that size does not matter when you believe in yourself and stand for what is important for yourself and your community, in this case, survival. The illustrations are wonderful adding character to Rex and Edna and coloring a world long gone, a great read for children. However, the end of the story left me thinking about the impact our actions ultimately have on others, in this case Rex. He only wanted breakfast and was denied the opportunity to eat, leading to an end of the Rex.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Tyrannosaurus Rex announces to all the other dinosaurs in the forest that he’s hungry and wants breakfast, all the animals began to scatter. As the dinosaurs run past Edna, the very first chicken, they warn her. “Get out of here, you strange-looking little whatever-you-are,” they say. But Edna ignores the warning and continues to eat some seeds for her breakfast. When Tyrannosaurus sees Edna he roars and tells her to beware since he has mighty claws and terrible jaws. But the little chicken warns him that he might want to beware of her mighty beak and terrible flapping wings. This banter goes on until . . . .  Is it possible that a tiny chicken will survive a large Tyrannosaurus Rex?

Cons:  None

Pros:  A fun tale of little vs. big with a cute surprise ending.

For the full review go to http://www.picturebooksleuth.com

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderfully cute story about a chicken who stands up to a bulling Tyrannosaurus Rex.
While all the other dinosaurs run and hide from the T-Rex, Edna refuses to be imitated. In fact, when T-Rex begins yelling about all the reasons she should be frightened, she answers back with reasons he should fear her! Just when you think this spunky little chicken is done for-T-Rex gobbles her up in one bite-she fights back! Using all the tools of her arsenal she fights back, and ends up chasing T-Rex out of the forest.

Super cute, with bright illustrations for little ones to focus on, and text that fits within the illustrations to become part of the artwork. The actual words are great for reading aloud, with some words modified for when T-Rex can't speak normally.

[Maggie Ignasiak · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. It's a David and Goliath/chicken or the egg story that is funny and would make for a great read-aloud. When it comes to dinosaur books, I'm very particular about whether or not it is obvious which scientific names are associated with which dinosaur, and this is a rare case where it's easy to tell what dinosaur is the parasaurolaphous, the ankylosaurus, and the triceratops. The author's note at the book's end it short and sweet, explaining that chickens are living dinosaurs, that a dinosaur probably didn't really beat a T-Rex in a fight, and that some dinosaurs definitely had feathers (contrary to many renderings of dinosaurs). I will use this book at work for sure.

[Michelle (FabBookReviews) · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this story all about bravery, a cute and ferocious chicken named Edna goes face to face with a monstrous, bossy T-Rex who disturbs the other dinosaurs and yells about wanting breakfast and threatening to eat anyone is his path. Edna commands the T-Rex's attention and fights her way to teach the T-Rex a few lessons. A tale from Douglas Rees and illustrator Jed Henry all about courage, filled with wackiness and laugh out loud moments, this one would make for a perfectly zany read aloud.

I received a copy of this title courtesy of Raincoast Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and comments are my own.

[Melanie H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The hilarious story of the mighty T-Rex and his hunt for breakfast. The other dinosaurs scamper away as T-Rex thunders through the forest. But then he encounters Edna the chicken, who shows him no fear. They exchange dangerous facts about each other, trying to scare the other off, but it doesn't work. T-Rex swallows Edna only to find she clamps onto his tongue with her sharp claws and begins to peck at him from the inside with her pointy beak. T-Rex eventually gets her out of his mouth and runs from the forest, never to be seen again. Edna then becomes the official protector of the peaceful dinosaurs.

Hilarious and children will love it in storytime.

[Lara · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK, I love this one. A good lesson about standing up for yourself, but it also tickles my absurd sense of humor. Add in adorable illustrations, and how can you not love it?
Great for storytimes on chickens or dinosaurs. Or because you have a squirrelly sense of humor :) Would love to pair it with We Don't Eat Our Classmates. Maybe Dinovember?

[Grace Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book! Really enjoyable as it is both fun and silly. Personally I wanted the ending to be a bit different, but overall a good book that will be enjoyable to read to little ones. I did enjoy how different dinosaurs were named and pictured (I'm not a dinosaur buff, and hadn't heard of the two of the three mentioned) as that could spark further investigation particularly for children who enjoy dinosaurs. I also like the connection of dinos to chickens given that some scientists have found evidence to suggest that birds (like chickens) are closely related to dinosaurs.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I was confused a bit by the Author's Note and tongue-tied a bit trying to pronounce Parasaurolophus, Triceratops, and Ankylosaurus" in one phrase, I was totally entertained watching Edna stand up to the big brute.
"The artist used scanned pencil and watercolor textures combined with digital watercolor techniques..." to create the illustrations on oversized pages with lots of great facial expressions.

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fun book for a read aloud to elementary kids because it has a dinosaur and he is defeated by a chicken. Tyrannosaurus is big and scary and looking for breakfast and all the other dinosaurs run for cover. But chicken stands up to him even when he tries to swallow her. Like a David and Goliath tale. Worth the read and colorful illustrations of all the plant eating dinosaurs who support the chicken.

[Nicholas Driscoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly fun book. My mom, a librarian, knows I love dinosaurs and brought this book home for me to read. Now... I can see some kids getting upset because there is no way a chicken could beat a T-Rex or, worse, be responsible for the extinction of rexes (which is kind of implied), but personally I found this book pretty fun, with excellent and expressive art, a very memorable sneeze onomatopoeia, and tons of hilarity. The picture of the rex with feathers popping out his nose really got me!

[SaraCat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just seeing the title, and knowing it's a children's picture book, I was fairly certain about how it would likely turn out. And I was right. But even though it was kind of predictable, it was no less enjoyable! The images are colorful and detailed. The humor great. The only thing is there was a dinosaur name I had not come across before, so I would need to research the pronunciation before reading it aloud to a kid. Though, I did think that was awesome they used the full names of the dinosaurs!

[Donna Mork · Rating 4 out of 5]

T-rex is stomping through the land when he meets Edna. She doesn't take guff from him. He tosses her in his mouth and she pecks him and claws his tongue. He sneezes her out and she chases him out of the forest. And she has kept watch ever since. That is why today there are lots of chickens but no T-rexes, or so the fable goes.

[Luana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this adorably (and the facial expressions captured are adorable) humorous book to a large group of 3-4 year old at my kindergarten visit and it had them enthralled and engaged. This book was one of three read and while the other two were enjoyed this was the definite winner both in terms of attention given, and smiles, glee and discussion generated.

[Chris Hays · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun book with a twist of satire. I am not sure this is the greatest message as the little one enrolls in a fight with the big, yet humor is spot on. The art and expression within the book is classic. I love the doe-eyed look Mr. Henry gives Edna. This will work as a one off read aloud, but I am not sure it could be used as a lesson in the classroom.

[Heydi Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very funny, unconventional story. I definitely haven't read a story that could be read at both a farmyard animal and dinosaur storytime. However, here it is. This story would pair well with The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson, as the theme is very similar but both are very outlandish and fun.

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is charming, funny, and sweet. T-Rex is hungry, and Edna is bound she--or her friends--are not going to be on the menu! Edna is proof that there is noting "chicken" about hens--they're bold, brave little birds. A laugh-out-loud reminder that nobody wants to be eaten, and chickens are so much more than ingredients.