The Big Sneeze

by Ruth Brown

'Atishoooooooooo!' sneezed the sleeping farmer, sending the buzzing fly sailing through the air--and causing a hilarious chain-reaction barnyard catastrophe!

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Storytime, Juvenile, Humor

26 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

Born in 1941, Ruth Brown is the creator of some of Britain's best loved children's books. She has created a great many picture books for Andersen Press and is highly respected as an author and illustrator.
She attended Bournemouth College of Art, 1957–59; Birmingham College of Art, degree (with first-class honors), 1961; Royal College of Art, M.A., 1964.
She is married to artist Ken Brown and they have two grown-up sons and one grandchild.

Reviews

[J9 · Rating 3 out of 5]

How could I not have found Ruth Brown before this? After reading A Dark, dark tale, I fell in love with it, and hoped I'd find some more "dark" stories in the Ruth Brown collection. While this isn't dark in any way, it IS, however, a wonderful story with some unusual and completely unique aspects to it. The story is adorable, the illustrations are so detailed! My 3 yr old twins liked the pictures, and even simple enough of a story to keep them engaged. My 5 yr old, however, loved the book. Just an overall fun book that's a great addition to any children's collection. I can't wait to read more Ruth Brown!

[Julie Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great quick read aloud for pre-k to maybe grade 2? Quick and cute. Kids wanted me to read it 3 times in a row. One sneeze leads to a chain reaction...perfect for cause and effect lessons.

[Fatima Seraj Alam · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you or your kid loves books where big catastrophes happen due to a series of minor actions, then this is the book.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

The big sneeze by Ruth Brown
Children's story of a farmer taking a nap in the barn one hot summer day.
Farmer sneezes that the fly lands on a spider, that captured the fly and the list goes on.
Farmer's wife asks what is going on, LOL
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).

[Addison Children's Services · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Farmer sneezes a fly off his nose and the chain reaction after causes confusion for all on the barnyard!

[Ms. B · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending gave me a chuckle. Cute cause and effect story.

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars for the excellent pictures!
I will say the writing is a bit sparse and minimal for my taste.

[Miss Pippi the Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A silly sneezy farm book that has a ripple effect from one sneeze.

Reviewed from a library copy.

[Books Kids Like · Rating 4 out of 5]

"One hot afternoon the farmer and his animals are dozing in the barn." When a fly lands on the farmer's nose the quiet nap turns into a chain reaction of chaos. The farmers sneezes, and the fly flies across the barn into a spider's web. The spider comes to investigate which causes the sparrow to fly off its perch. This action wakens the cat, who wakes the dog and frightens the rats. The rats run out of the barn chased by the dog. Next, hens scatter terrifying the donkey who kicks up a rumpus. The farmer's wife enters the scene demanding to know what happened. The farmer replies, "I only sneezed."
©2024 Kathy Maxwell at https://bookskidslike.com

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darn it! This is a book with a great premise...in fact, I like the idea so much that I wrote a story just like it several years ago, except that mine is in verse and ties in with a popular children's song. But this story was written in 1985 (when I was a but a fledgling myself) so, even though I only discovered this book today, I find myself pipped at the post. I say again, darn it!
However, that will not stop me from saying that this is a fun story for little ones about bedlam in a farm, and who doesn't like a good farm story?

Andersen Press 1985

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this humorous story for ages 2-5, a fly landing on a dozing farmer's nose causes him to sneeze a mighty sneeze. The sneeze blows the fly into a spider web, causing a chain reaction that involves all of the animals in the barn. The farmer ends up encircled by a yoke and covered by broken eggs. The beautiful paintings in this book perfectly capture the slapstick humor of the situation.

[Taylor Troncin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was read for Wesley’s summer reading club. Wesley is my (soon to be five year old) son. This review is what we used for his reading club.
***

This was a quick and easy read for Wesley. He enjoyed the story.

[Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable read with my 5 year old nephew. He enjoyed the chain reaction. Most of his enjoyment was through the pictures as he saw which animals woke up and predicted what would happen next.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ruth Brown again, with farmyard pictures this time. A fly lands on the farmer's nose and makes him sneeze, starting a chain reaction. Cherub particularly enjoys the very. Loud. SNEEZE!!!!!

[Shel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A simple, fast paced picture book, in a similar style to "I know An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly".

A must read twice, in a row.

[Edna · Rating 4 out of 5]

All sorts of commotion happens in the barn when the farmer sneezes in this delightful book with a cadence similar to The House That Jack Built.

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a very colorful book, mostly browns and yellows, although the entire story does take place inside a barn. The artwork looks very dated (1985). Don't think this would work for large groups.

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the facial expressions.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Also read in April 1991, February 1987)

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple cumulative story AND we've got the big book edition on our storyshelf. One to try in a farm animal storytime.

[Bree · Rating 3 out of 5]

Notes:
domino effect of sneeze
funny ending
great illustrations

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book shows how something little can turn in to something big. It is a cute book.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read at Drop-In Story Time on 5/14/13: http://storytimesecrets.blogspot.com/...

[David Macfarlane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great picture book, the pictures are large and detailed and explores cause and effect.