My Big Lie (A Little Bill Book for Beginning Readers)

Little Bill gets in big trouble when he tells a fib to explain why he has come home late for dinner, in the eighth title of a popular series that proves that honesty is the best policy. Simultaneous.

Grade 2-3-Cosby continues his easy-reader series with this story within a story. Little Bill retells the traditional "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" and relates how he has been banished to his room for making up a "BIG FIB" to cover up his tardiness. Once he confesses and sees himself in the folktale, he realizes that he deserves his parent's anger and punishment. Cosby's comic sense is not clearly in evidence in this didactic story, but he does meet the increasing demand by adults for children's books that illustrate moral issues. The sophistication of this book is found in Honeywood's collage illustrations. The artist's skilled use of flat color creates vibrant pictures that convey drama and emotion that are anything but flat.
Pat Leach, Lincoln City Libraries, NE
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