Too Small - Hardcover

Kindergarten-Grade 2-A modernization of the Yiddish folktale of a too-small house. When a mother and two elementary-aged sons move from a two-story home with a pool to a tiny cottage on a quiet street, the boys complain in rhymed refrain about the lack of "tumble and wrestle" room. An elderly neighbor advises their mother to invite inside first a dog, then friends, then relatives, until the home is bedlam. When the visitors finally clear out, the space becomes exactly what the family needs. Flat, primitive-style illustrations with copious detail flesh out characters through their activities and possessions. The story's roots are not attributed, but the modern setting may serve for a comparative read with Julia Donaldson's A Squash and a Squeeze (McElderry, 1993; o.p.).
Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.