Veronica’s Very Important Scratch children’s book is where the Veronica the Clever Cow series begins — and if you are looking for the perfect starting point for a child aged 3 to 7, this is it.
Every great series has a beginning. A moment where a world announces itself and says: this is worth your time. For the Veronica the Clever Cow series by Australian author Jaz Hoy, that moment is a scratch. A very specific, very important scratch. And everything that follows is brilliant.
What Is Veronica’s Very Important Scratch Children’s Book About?
Veronica is a Swiss Brown cow. She lives on a farm in the Austrian Alps — the same Alps where real Swiss Brown cattle graze, bells around their necks, moving through their days with unhurried purpose and quiet intelligence.
She is the cleverest cow on the farm. And she has a problem.
There is one spot she cannot reach. It itches. To anyone else this might seem like a trivial thing — hardly worth a whole book. But to Veronica, it is the only problem that matters right now, and she will not stop until she has solved it.
What follows is twenty-two pages of warmth, wit, and the kind of quiet determination that children instinctively recognise and admire. Veronica does not give up. She does not ask someone else to fix it. She thinks carefully, tries something new, and finds a better way.
Why Veronica’s Very Important Scratch Children’s Book Works So Well
This book operates on two levels at once — which is the mark of great children’s literature.
For the child, it is funny, satisfying, and completely re-readable. The illustrations bring Veronica to life with an expressiveness that feels instantly familiar. There is something in her expression — patient, focused, quietly brilliant — that children recognise immediately. They root for her from the first page.
For the adult reading aloud, there is something sitting underneath the silliness that never needs to be stated out loud: persistence and creativity are the most important tools a person can have. Cleverness is not a fixed gift. It is a habit, practised one problem at a time.
Veronica never makes a speech about any of this. She just solves the problem. That is what makes it stick.
Who Are the Characters?
Book 1 introduces the full cast of Veronica’s world for the first time.
Otto the horse — proud, wise, and Veronica’s closest friend and confidant. Liesel, Veronica’s own daughter — young, curious, and full of questions that turn out to be more insightful than they first appear. Greta the goat — warm-hearted, enthusiastic, and magnificently prone to getting things muddled. And Seppi the sheep — happy, easygoing, and perfectly content to follow wherever the day leads.
These are the characters your child will grow up alongside. This is where they meet them for the first time.
What Readers Are Saying
“Absolutely love this book! Read it over and over with my daughter.” ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The response from readers has been wonderful. Families are returning to the book again and again — which is exactly how a picture book should be used.
A Series Worth Starting
The Veronica the Clever Cow series currently has three books published, with more in development. Each story is a standalone adventure — you do not need to read them in order. But most families find they want all of them once they have started.
Research consistently shows that reading aloud to children from birth to age seven is one of the most powerful things a family can do for language development, vocabulary, and a lifelong love of reading. The National Literacy Trust notes that children who read for pleasure are significantly more likely to achieve above expected levels at school. Veronica’s Very Important Scratch children’s book was written with exactly that in mind — a story good enough that a child will ask to hear it again and again.
Get your copy of Veronica’s Very Important Scratch here: veronicacow.com/go/scratch
Or join the free Veronica’s World library for printable colouring pages, activity sheets, cow facts cards and more — completely free at veronicacow.com/join.
