PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
Steve Light is the creator of many picture books, including Have You Seen My Dragon?, Have You Seen My Monster?, and Road Trip! A Whiskers Hollow Adventure, which School Library Journal described in a starred review as “a near-perfect story that invites children to look at its pages and make connections.” Among his board books are Black Bird Yellow Sun; Mama Tiger, Tiger Cub; and Up Cat Down Cat. About this book, he says, “As a child singing ‘The Itsy Bitsy Spider,’ I always wondered: Why does the spider go up the waterspout, not once—but twice?” He lives in New York City.
This message of picking oneself up after disappointment is delivered playfully, making it appropriately effective for young readers, and the final double-page spread illustration lightly delivers the affirmative ending message: Having friends and helping each other are happier ways to live. . . . A heartwarming take on the familiar nursery rhyme. —Kirkus Reviews A comically elegant, unalloyed treat. —Publishers Weekly This jubilant rhyming picture book expands the famous nursery rhyme into a celebration of resilience and teamwork. . . . By tale’s end, Itsy Bitsy has helped rescue the endangered, and he hosts a tea party for his new friends. The final dedication is “for those who have been ‘washed out’ and had the courage to climb up again.” Fun and inspiring. —Booklist Light’s detailed watercolor and pen-and-ink pictures show dapper Itsy with four legs for arms and four more with shoes, and he gives lots of opportunities for predicting the next thing to happen through the pictures. . . . Itsy and his new friends begin again in the story of resilience, determination, and friendship. Children will surely sing along with Itsy and his friends on the final page. —The Horn Book
