ISBN
9781848691834
Reviewed
by Liz Ledden
Cute
baby elephant Little Why struggles to stay in line as he marches along to the
watering hole with his elders. He diverts from the path each time he spots a
creature he aspires to be like, from the leggy giraffe, to crocodile with its
‘snippy-snappy snazzy snout’. When his request for their features is constantly
denied by the older elephant, Little Why asks ‘Why?’ to the reply of ‘Keep in
line!’
The
images are striking, with the use of white space accentuating the animal
characters, which are reminiscent of Eric Carle’s illustrations. Some fun
features on each spread include the busy little orange and purple insects, and
Little Why’s ever-faithful bird companion – extra layers to examine during
repeat reads.
Repetition,
alliteration and rhythm result in some lovely language, culminating in a
message of self-acceptance. Although, it takes one of the elephant elders to
point out Little Why’s unique attributes – it would have perhaps been more
powerful if Little Why came to this conclusion himself. Nevertheless, Little Why is a charming and beautifully
designed book with a strong, evergreen theme.
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