When Widow Tulip Jones of Bore, England, inherits a ranch in By-Golly Gully, Texas, and moves in with two trunks of tea, twelve pet tortoises, and three servants, hilarity ensues. The peaceful life suits the wealthy widow fine until word gets out and every unmarried man in Texas lines up to marry her. Widow Tulip and her small staff of three can't possibly run the farm and manage all the suitors, so she devises a plan—and it just might work. This story filled with giant tortoises, 1,000 brides, bad guys, a smart widow, and even a little romance is sure to get kids laughing.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Besides humor and great artwork, it contains great story that might well be treated in a longer, more demanding literary form
By Denis Vukosav
‘Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch’ written by Anne Isaacs and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes is an interesting picture book for slightly older children, with the nice Illustrations showing vivid pictures of life in Texas.The story main character is widow Tulip Jones of Bore from England who inherited a ranch in Texas. She will move in with lot of (I mean really lot of) tea, twelve pet tortoises which are named after the months of the year and her three servants Linsey, Woolsey, and Calico.Widow Tulip will soon learn that in Texas everything is bigger, whether we're talking about animals or plants and since Tulip coming she will be haunted by many men who would like to marry her for the wealth she owns. Tulip will have to be wise to keep all the suitors away, but over time someone special will appear who will win her heart…‘Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch’ is picture book with a bit more complex story, therefore is primarily intended for children over 5 years of age who will fully enjoy humorous adventures of widow Tulip, her servants and animals. Kevin Hawkes illustrations have been made in the style of the older folktales, full of color and details so in their artwork viewing reader can truly enjoy.Therefore I can fully recommend Anne Isaacs picture book because besides its humor and great illustrations, it contains great story that might well be treated in a longer, more demanding literary form.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
A tale as big as a Texas tortoise
By Sara
MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE RANCH is straight out of Texas, where, under the full penalty of the law, exaggeration is forbidden to every person (unless that person is an elected official or anyone who has ever ridden a horse), so the reader can take sometimes unbelievable tale as fact. It's 1870 When Tulip Jones, a widow from Greater Bore, England, inherits a ranch in By-Golly Gully, Texas. She sets off to set up residence, armed with plenty of tea, twelve pet tortoises (named January, February, March, and so on), and her three capable servants, Linsey, Woolsey, and Calico. Tulip quickly learns everything is bigger in Texas, including vegetables, tortoises, and the lines of bachelors who line up to marry eligible ladies. As a swarm of unmarried men descend upon By-Golly Ranch, Tulip and her ladies struggle to run the ranch and entertain the endless stream of suitors. It takes Tulip no small about of wit and cleverness to rid herself of the gold-digging suitors and, along the way, she just might find true love.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful.Great Read Aloud
By Teresa McCaw
Can't wait to read this to my library classes! I fell in love with it and I can't wait to see which age group likes it the most.
