When we were packing up for our trip to Maine, we made sure to collect several of our favorite books about one of our all time favorite states. If You Give a Moose a Muffin doesn’t necessarily take place here, but my son does always associate moose with Maine. In fact, as we crossed over the Piscataqua River bridge and said, “Welcome to Maine!” he said, “Maybe we’ll see some moose in Maine!” We did see a moose crossing sign or two, but despite keeping a very close eye out for moose in the woods, we have not seen any yet. So for now, reading this story will have to do. We’ve already featured another book in the If You Give series by Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond back on Day 11, If You Give a Pig a Pancake, but this one is another favorite. If you’re unfamiliar with these delightful books, we highly recommend that you check them out. The illustrations are adorably clever, and the story lines about the silly animals and the havoc they innocently create throughout their days are wonderfully charming. Do you know what happens if you give a moose a muffin? He’ll want some jam to go with it, of course. And then he’ll want more. But watch out! As innocent as it sounds, making more muffins will soon turn into making puppets, painting, and a slew of other creatively messy endeavors. My son always finds these stories terrifically funny, and as a parent, I just love the way the beloved creatures zip from one activity to the next, exhausting their friends along the way. I know our household can certainly relate! We’ve read this story every night of our Maine vacation so far, and continue to keep a lookout for moose every day. Maybe we’d have better luck if we made some muffins and blackberry jam.
