Is It Big or Is It Little?

Pres-Gr 1—This extremely simple book explains how the meanings of even very basic words can differ, depending on the perspective of the observer. For example, the first spread features a small black mouse gazing up at what is to him a large red ball of yarn (easily mistaken for a balloon, as it has no texture). He asks, "Is it big?" The following spread shows a black cat much larger than the yarn ball preparing to pounce on the mouse asking, "Or is it little?" Other illustrations deal with deep/shallow, light/heavy, long/short, scary/scared, and end/beginning. The artwork features clean white space, simple lines, and a palette of black, gray, and red. However, the colors are flat, with no value or shading-not much to engage the eye. There are some humorous touches but, while the point is made, there is not enough here to encourage repeated readings, even for the youngest audience, rendering this a marginal purchase.—Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ