The Growing Story
*Starred Review* In the original, 1947 edition of Krauss' classic story, Phyllis Rowand's illustrations featured a small boy, dressed in checked pants, a red jacket, and a jaunty cap, who wonders if he is getting bigger. Now, Oxenbury lightens and brightens the palette and sets the boy against pages of inviting white space that open the story. In late spring, the boy, his puppy, and some baby chicks are "very little." As the days grow longer and the grass grows faster, the boy informs the animals, "We're growing too." Together he and his mother put away his winter clothes, forgotten as spring stretches into summer and summer shortens into fall. The boy asks more than once if he is growing, even as he can see his puppy is now a dog, the chicks have now become chickens. Winter approaches, and it's time to take down the warm clothes. To the child's delight, his pants are too tight, his sleeves are too short. Finally, he has visible proof. "I'm growing too," he shouts as he does handstands across the final spread. The story gets right to a child's experiences as it expresses both wondering and wonderment. This comes out beautifully in art that captures the affection between a boy and his hardworking mother who makes a bountiful place of the land they farm. Ebullient.Ilene CooperCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved