Hank the Cowdog – Maverick Books (Review)

Last week we received a package from Maverick Books introducing us to Hank the Cowdog. In our package was an assortment of items, including the CD "Tales and Tunes From Hank", the book "The Case of the One-Eyed Killer Stud Horse", and Hank's Tornado Game. 

As the title "Hank the Cowdog" implies, the stories are told from the dog's perspective.   Hank, the self appointed head of security on the ranch, tends to have a surly disposition; teetering precariously on the edge of disrespect and irreverence.

The cd has excerpts from 10 books plus 9 orginal songs. Song titles include "A Pox, A Pox on Emily Post";  "We Don't Give a Hoot" and "It's Not Smart to Show Your Hiney to a Bear".     Cost of the CD is $3.00 plus shipping. 

The book,  The Case of the One-Eyed Killer Stud Horse is well written, with humor and an interesting viewpoint.   Hank and his pal Drover have some terribly funny dialogues.   Again, Hank's surly disposition and attitude are questionable, although he is a hero in the end!    Priced at $4.24, this book may be just what you're looking for to spark interest in your hesitant readers.

The girls and I really enjoyed Hanks Tornado Game.  It's played similar to the old Trouble game.  Playing pieces are Hank, Drover and their friend Junior, the buzzard.  Another plus, is that the pieces fit inside the game board  (WITH A SECURE CLOSURE!!) for easy travel or storage. The game comes with a cassette tape that has several songs and excerpts from the book "The Case of the Swirling Killer Tornado".   The game is for 2-4 players, ages 5 and up (although my 3 year old loves it).  The gameboard and playing pieces are sturdy and for $12.99 you can't go wrong for hours of fun!

All of those things aside, after previewing the CD and cassette, I did not allow my girls to listen to either of them.   Although they are funny at times, and have good sound effects, I felt that the attitude of the main character was not in line with the character traits we're trying to instill in our daughters.   Older children who may be able to separate the story from the behaviors may benefit more from the audio's than younger children who easily pick up on negative behaviors.   My kids did enjoy the book, although I reworded it and skipped some parts that  I felt were disrespectful.  

Head on over to the Crew blog to see what others are saying!