Book Reviews

“Chicken Nibbles” could not have come to a better reviewer at a better time. Yes, I sit here with a foot broken in three places; meaning, this is one of those times in life where humor and smiling are not part of my daily regimen. But then… along comes a book that not only has you laughing out loud, but for a brief moment in time you forget the “boot” on your foot that feels mostly like a “cement shoe” that the Mafia must use to make sure their victims sink all the way to the bottom after tossing them off the nearest pier. (If law enforcement reads these reviews… no, I do not need to be put under surveillance. I know nothing.)

The crux of this super-fun book is taking a look at the behavior, thoughts, and actions of the chickens in your backyard. Now, being a caretaker’s daughter from a hoity-toity area of Connecticut, I never had chickens. The neighborhood would’ve frowned on these; either you had a dog that was perfect enough to win Westminster, or you had no pets at all. But after setting eyes on this award-winning book, and now living in a much more laid back part of America, backyard chickens are all I want!

“Chicken Nibbles” is set up in a great way. On one page you have a “tale.” A short ‘factoid’ that allows you to learn about chickens and how they act, etc. Then on the next page, the awardwinning cartoonist who joins this author, Mark Lynch, creates a comic panel (like the ‘funnies’ in your newspaper but beautifully drawn) that represents the ‘factoid’ you just learned. Of course, Lynch and the author worked hard to make sure their presentation of each comic panel is truly hilarious.

The hens and roosters are adorable. Although most pages were easy to understand, there were some that utilized Australian terminology where the ‘extra data’ given made it much more clear and even funnier. And I cannot stress enough how amazingly professional these comics are. The colors are stunning, the drawings are detailed to the ‘nines’, and you will definitely find your own personal favorites that will make you want to purchase the hardcover if you’ve only been looking at the Kindle version. Now, yes, there were some risqué facts about how the hens and chickens get along that a parent might feel isn’t suitable for the younger generation, but that’s not the point. You, the parent, will have a laugh fest the minute you set eyes on any one of these!

Some of my personal choices are a tale that shows you, basically, why two roosters do not make a brotherhood. The cartoon is hysterical, with two roosters inside a fenced-in area. The larger one is basically saying to the small one: make your exit swiftly, act like a hen, or say goodbye because you’re headed to rooster heaven. (I am using my own words, of course, in order to not ruin the comic for you.) There’s also a ‘hen version’ of the 70s hit show, “The Brady Bunch” – 2 – expertly referred to as “The Broody Bunch.” And another that knocked it out of the park showed how hens enjoy that famous song, “Boot Scootin’ Boogie.”

Dying to say more, folks, but you really have to purchase this one and enjoy it over and over again. Go on… buy it…. You don’t want people to think you’re chicken, right? (LOL) Forgive me for the bad joke… I have a broken foot, remember? Enjoy!

Chicken Nibbles (Cartoons about Backyard Chickens) by Alan Corbett provides a humorous look at the behavior of backyard chickens, with comic panels drawn by Cartoonist Mark Lynch. Readers familiar with chickens will recognize common behavior found in hens and roosters that they might have experienced first-hand, and readers new to chickens will learn many funny and unexpected facts about these unique barn yard animals. From aggressive roosters protecting their flock to hens maintaining their pecking order, these cartoons are sure to inspire laughter and bring a smile to the reader’s face.

This was a fun and interesting book, and I enjoyed reading it. Before each cartoon, there was information about common chicken behavior or chicken-related words, and these fun facts were used as the basis for the cartoons. Most of the cartoons were self-explanatory, but there were a few cases where certain Australian terms were used and some additional explanation was helpful to ensure that non Australian readers would be able to understand the joke. The cartoons in this book had a professional appearance, and I liked the artist’s use of bright colors and the individual personalities shown in the chickens’ expressions. My favorite cartoon was the chickens “playing chicken” with rebellious hens sporting a tattoo and piercings and taking a selfie in the face of danger. Many of the cartoons were taken from an earlier book written and illustrated by the author of this book, and it was interesting to compare the two drawings and see the differences between this version and the original cartoons. While most of the cartoons can be enjoyed by readers of all ages, there were a few that are not suitable for young children.

Although the cartoons varied and I did not feel that any of them should have been excluded, there was a bit of repetition in some of the facts. This could have been eliminated by changing the format of the book, so that a specific fact had multiple cartoons following it, rather than a page of information or explanation preceding every cartoon. But these are minor points in an otherwise wonderful book that I highly recommend.

Chicken Nibbles is a unique educational book that teaches readers about chickens in a fun and humorous way that will surely delight and educate readers of any age.

The explanations are excellent and the illustrations so depict the words. It’s endless laughter from the first page to the last – ENJOY!

This book has given all ages in our household a great belly laugh. It shows the frustrations we as chicken owners have to deal with and I have actually learnt a few tricks and things I didn’t know too. The cartoons are very high quality, lovely colours and drawings. This book would be perfect to buy for yourself or as a gift to your chicken loving friends and family.

I only kept a half-dozen RI Reds in a run, but I found most of these cartoons easy to understand. The one about coop cleaning made me laugh. My pig was quite honestly tidier than the chickens.

I was quite tickled at the chickens dancing to country music because I live in line-dance country and “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” is one of the popular ones. I’m glad the chooks liked it.

The escapist chicken reminded me of my boyhood when a man named Arnold used to give me a nickel for every escaped chicken I brought back. I told him about the hole in his fence. He never fixed it. I think he just liked the company.

I was edgy upon seeing the “touch and go” panel because the skid marks reminded me too much of Hitchcock’s “The Birds”! 😃

The author has done some standout work with these cartoons.

I opened the package and looked through the book. Honestly, I had a good laugh before I rewrapped and posted it to my friend.

Mind you, I would’ve been a bit lost at times as a non chicken owner, had each cartoon not had an explanation to help me understand some of the humour.

In fact, I still haven’t figured out the one with the hen at the chalkboard looking at a red cross she had made? The explanation here was quite cryptic.

I don’t think I will ever have chickens. They are too messy and roosters freak me out. However, my friend loved the book, gave me a half dozen organic free range eggs, and a peck to say thank you. Which, while a little less than what I had hoped for, was a start at least.