Chicken Big

Chicken Big. Keith Graves. 2010. Chronicle Books. 40 pages.

On a teeny little farm, in an itty bitty coop, a very small hen laid a big humongous egg.

As strange as Chicken Big is, it's not the weirdest book I've read this year. That's not to say I loved liked it. It's silly. And it's (meant to be) funny. It features a big chicken (no surprise!) and the three hens and a rooster that make up his family. The hens are referred to as the small chicken, the smaller chicken, and the smallest chicken. The smallest chicken is by far the silliest, most obnoxious of the bunch.

For example, she's the one who's convinced the chicken is no chicken, but instead an elephant, a squirrel, an umbrella, a sweater, etc.

It does have a twist ending...

Chicken Big is the perfect example of the kind of picture book I'm fine with reading once or twice.


© Becky Laney of Young Readers