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Description
Farmer Palmer and his hired hand, Ebenezer, have some mishaps on their trip home from the market.
Quick Summary
If you've got a kid who loves goofy humor and slapstick chaos, this one's a winner. William Steig, the same guy who wrote "Shrek," drops you right into a hay-filled adventure where Farmer Palmer and his hired hand Ebenezer are trying to get home after market day but everything that can go wrong, absolutely does. The AR level sits at 4.6, so younger readers in K-3 might need some help, but the short word count keeps it from feeling intimidating. What's really memorable here is Steig's classic cartoony art style and his way of making ordinary mishaps feel like huge, hilarious disasters, which is exactly what keeps kids turning pages. There's a sweet thread underneath all the silliness too the friendship between Farmer Palmer and Ebenezer comes through in small moments, so it doesn't feel like just a zany ride the whole way through. Parents should know there's some mild peril (the wagon gets a little out of control, things tumble and crash), but it's all played for laughs, so it's more "wheee!" than genuinely scary. If your kid devours this, they'd probably get a kick out of other Steig gems like "The Amazing Bone" or "Amos and Boris" same mix of wit, warmth, and just plain weird fun.