Review by Booklist Review
PreS^-K. Every day, Hen takes her three chicks to the garden for their favorite snack of "sweet itty-bitty beans and potato bugs." One day a ferocious dog blocks their path to the garden, and the three chicks are disappointed. When Big Chick and Middle Chick fail to convince the dog to let them into the garden, Little Chick attempts a different tactic. She runs, "tippy-toe, tippy-toe," straight at the dog until she feels "Dog's breath," tippy-toes around a tree until Dog's leash is wound tightly, and then leads her family into the garden. Little Chick's trick is not an original idea, but the narrative has a fresh, buoyant vitality that begs to be read aloud. The mix of tension, sheer fright, and humor is just right, and Little Chick proves to be a plucky heroine. The bright, uncluttered acrylic illustrations neatly match the spare text. The pictures reveal personality and provide the humor that tempers the scariness. A sure pick for storytime and a choice selection for preschool collections. --Linda Perkins
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Dronzek (Oh!) makes the most of Shannon's (Tomorrow's Alphabet) tale of a diminutive hero's feats of derring-do, with folk art simplicity and a palette as lush as the first greens of spring. A hen and her three chicks go every morning "to the garden for their favorite treat-sweet itty-bitty beans and potato bugs." But one day, a nasty dog (think Petey, from Our Gang, with his black-encircled eye) barks menacingly at Hen, who sighs, "We'll never get past a dog like that." After Big Chick and Middle Chick's imploring and bullying attempts to pass by the canine fail, the two siblings laugh when Little Chick peeps, "I want to try." Though small, the smart, quick chick runs "tippy-toe" round and round the tree where the dog is tied, causing him to wrap his leash around the trunk as he chases her. Little ones will cheer this "underchick" who takes on a bully several times her size and wins. Shannon's prose runs clean and spare, spiked with just enough "tippy-toe, tippy-toes" and "Ruff-Ruffs" to make reading aloud fun. The simply drawn chicks and the vibrant acrylic backdrop of bright green grass and hot pink, blue and purple flowers make this a perky springtime offering. Ages 3-up. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-In this inviting tale, the youngest member of a family saves the day. Hen and her offspring make a daily trip to the garden to feast on yummy beans and potato bugs. Little Chick always trails behind, daydreaming, and then quickly runs across the yard to catch up with the others. One day, a loud dog that has been tied to a nearby tree blocks their path. Frightened, Hen is ready to turn around, but her hungry children insist on a confrontation. Big Chick and Middle Chick each take a turn with the barking beast and end up cowering under their mother's wing. Although her siblings laugh at her, Little Chick demands a chance at defeating the dog, and comes up with a courageous and cunning plan that makes use of her natural speed. Before long, the pooch is neatly tied up and the road to the goodies is clear. Lyrical language, catchy sound effects ("tippy-toe, tippy-toe"), and just the right amount of suspense keep the action moving at a brisk pace. With an interesting mix of dramatic full-page spreads and smaller vignettes, the colorful acrylic paintings pick up on both the humor and the tension of the text. Accentuated by fluid black lines and set against lush green backgrounds, the characters seem to jump right off of the pages. A winning choice for storytime or one-on-one sharing.-Joy Fleishhacker, formerly at School Library Journal (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Preschool, Primary) Each day, Hen takes her chicks to the garden for ""their favorite treat-sweet itty-bitty beans and potato bugs""-until the day they find the path guarded by a loud and grumpy dog. Hen despairs, but all three chicks think they can best the brute. Big Chick tries reason, only to be frightened off by Dog's fierce barking; Middle Chick threatens (""You'd better stop it right now! Or you'll be sorry when we get hold of you""), to no better effect. But Little Chick (""tippy-toe, tippy-toe"") runs straight at Dog and then, just out of reach, round and round the tree to which Dog's tied until he's ""stuck, and too mad to think ?back up.'"" And into the garden they go-""YUM!"" The story structure has the appeal of such old favorites as ""The Three Billy Goats Gruff""; the succinct narration moves right along, sparked with contemporary touches (chicks to Hen: ""You PROMISED!"" ""We DID our chores!""). Dronzek's illustrations are boldly drawn and brightly colored; ample white space and garden green set off the primary yellow of the starring youngest chick, while a creative combination of spreads, frames, and cameos varies the format. With its bold art and chant-along repetitions, this will serve equally well for preschool groups or beginning readers. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The usual favorite breakfast consisting of "sweet itty-bitty beans and potato bugs" awaits Hen and her three chicks in the garden, guarded this morning by a grumpy and growling dog tied to the tree. Shannon (More True Lies, 2001, etc.) has once again created a short, suspenseful tale with an unpredictable and satisfyingly canny ending. He develops the characters of Hen, her offspring, and Dog succinctly in a text that offers lots of opportunity to dramatize while reading aloud to very young preschoolers. Protective Mother Hen plays the respectable, appropriate role as she holds her chicks back and insists on waiting for the customary chicken feed. The oldest, Big Chick, tries to be a negotiator but fails to make a deal with Dog who continues to bark and jump out even though restricted by his leash. Brazen Middle Chick attempts a more aggressive approach of yelling threats but equally cowers under Dog's menacing anger. Finally, underestimated Little Chick proves to be the clever one in the brood with her cunning and winning solution that outwits scary Dog and leads her family to the garden. Bold acrylics reflect the action of all the characters with large figures in hues of pale yellows for the chickens and white for the dog against a garden background of bright greens, browns, purples, and blues. Great for group sharing and participation story hour. (Picture book. 2-4)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
