Big Little Hippo

by Valeri Gorbachev

Overview

“A great selection to share with young children to show them that they are ‘bigger’ than they believe and that their actions, big and small, do matter.” —School Library Journal
 
A board version of the popular picture book, Big Little Hippo by superstar Valeri Gorbachev!
 
Little Hippo is the youngest in his family . . . and the smallest. Smaller than his parents and siblings. Smaller than his neighbors, too, from old Crocodile to giant Elephant. And even though his mom promises he’ll grow, Little Hippo doesn’t want to wait; he wants to be big RIGHT NOW! But when he helps a creature even tinier than himself, Little Hippo learns that it’s the size of his heart that counts most of all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781454931317
Publisher:	Union Square Kids
Publication date:	03/05/2019
Pages:	22
Sales rank:	1,055,342
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 6.90(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	3 Months to 3 Years

About the Author

Valeri Gorbachev emigrated from his native Ukraine to the US in 1991, and now lives in NYC. He has written and/or illustrated more than 50 children's books, including Sterling’s Rufus Goes to School, Rufus Goes to Sea, and Rufus Blasts Off, written by Kim T. Griswell.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for the hardcover edition of Big Little Hippo
 
“A great selection to share with young children to show them that they are ‘bigger’ than they believe and that their actions, big and small, do matter.” —School Library Journal

“Sure to be a big hit at storytime for little ones.” —Kirkus

From the Publisher

04/01/2017
PreS-Gr 1—Little Hippo can't wait to grow up. Everyone in his family is bigger and older than he is. All of the animals who live nearby, from old Crocodile to Elephant, are MUCH bigger than Little Hippo. Little Hippo can't even walk underneath the trees or through the grasses without feeling incredibly small. And then one day, Little Hippo gains a new perspective. He sees a tiny beetle who is stuck on his back and gently rolls him over. When the beetle's family thanks him and calls him "Big Hippo," Little Hippo feels incredibly empowered by the praise and his deed. When he shares his success, his family dubs him "Big Little Hippo," and he enjoys a wonderful feeling of contentedness. This sweet story contains a certain amount of predictability and repetition, which young children will appreciate, and Little Hippo is quite adorable, with expressive eyes and a joyful smile after his good deed. Fine black ink lines add texture and contrast to the predominantly green, brown, and yellow tones used in the book. VERDICT A great selection to share with young children to show them that they are "bigger" than they believe and that their actions, big and small, do matter.—Sally James, South Hillsborough Elementary School, Hillsborough, CA

School Library Journal

2017-02-04
A little hippo makes a big difference.Little Hippo is smaller than everyone in his family, and he's smaller than all of the other nearby animals, too. He's not happy about this and isn't comforted by his mother's assurance that he will be big one day, too. Then he happens upon a tiny beetle that is flipped over on its back and sets it right. "Thank you Big Hippo!" the baby beetle's family calls out, and Little Hippo rejoices that someone's called him big. He runs past all of the other animals whose largeness had made him feel small, proclaiming, "I'm big now!" until he reaches his family and tells them about his bighearted good deed. Proud Mommy hippo praises her little one and dubs him Big Little Hippo, much to his delight. Gorbachev's watercolor-and-ink illustrations are largely redundant of his well-structured text's events, but they make excellent use of scale and perspective to underscore whether (Big) Little Hippo feels small or big from one spread to the next. The story has just the right amount of predictability and repetition to engage young readers and encourage participation. Sure to be a big hit at storytime for little ones. (Picture book. 2-5)

Kirkus Reviews