When You Were Small

O'Leary, Sara

ISBN 10: 1894965361 / ISBN 13: 9781894965361

Published by Simply Read Books, 2006

Seller Inventory # 1894965361-3-34727070

Synopsis:

When a son asks to hear about when he was a small boy, his father tells him about the time when he was so small he could walk his pet ant on a leash, wear a thimble for a hat, and be carried around in his father's shirt pocket, in an imaginative bedtime tale with full-color illustrations.

Reviews: PreSchool-Grade 3–Each night, Henry asks his dad to tell him about when he was small, and his father relates how very small he really was: …we used to give you baths in the teapot…, and …we took the toy castle out of the aquarium and you were king of it. This is obviously an enjoyable nighttime ritual and it always ends with the child asking, 'Dad, is all that true?' 'Well,' says his dad, 'don't you remember?' The minimal text is accompanied by delicate illustrations. Subtle coloring and ample white space add to the book's tranquil feel. A lovely title to share one-on-one, and sure to start many family rituals.–Wendy Woodfill, Hennepin County Library, Minnetonka, MN
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Gr. 1-3. Henry sits in an armchair opposite his dad. He asks for the usual evening ritual: "Tell me about when I was small." And so the father does, in a series of wonderfully unexpected images. When the boy was small, he could walk his pet ant, sleep in his father's left slipper (with a peppermint teabag for a pillow), bathe in a teapot, or ride on the cat's back, as if "[Henry] were an emperor and [the cat] was an elephant." He could fit in his dad's shirt pocket or play the part of a knight on the chessboard. When Henry asks his father if it's all true, Dad replies, "Don't you remember?" Whimsical, crosshatched line illustrations, washed with gently shadowed colors, appear to float on white pages, pairing a single, evocative picture with each fantastical memory. Packaged without a jacket and sporting an elegant cloth spine, this looks different from most picture books on the market--and the story's delightfully sly sensibility bears out initial impressions. GraceAnne DeCandido
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Bibliographic Details

Title: When You Were Small
Publisher: Simply Read Books
Publication Date: 2006
Binding: hardcover
Illustrator: Morstad, Julie
Condition: Good