Old Mr. Mackle Hackle    by Gunnar Madsen & Irana Shepherd Order:  USA  Can Little, Brown & Co., 2005 (2005) Hardcover     Reviewed by Hilary Williamson Irana Shepherd's zany, colorful illustrations are the perfect match for Gunnar Madsen's delightfully silly verses. Old Mr. Mackle Hackle 'had a hen that wouldn't cackle', and he's bound and determined to fix the problem. The doctor's offering of a beak to help the hen speak is rejected, and the fortune-teller's snack makes her quack. But Mr. Mackle Hackle is determined to make that hen cackle, so he buys a book of chicken jokes (I rather liked 'What do you call a crazy chicken? A cuckoo cluck!') The hen doesn't appreciate them, but she does lay some eggs, and that finally resolves the problem. Old Mr. Mackle Hackle offers the sort of rhyming silliness that kids love. That stubborn old man finally gets what he wanted, and we leave him surrounded by cackles. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Kids books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews