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Summary
Summary
Size is relative, but everything is worth seeing in this concept book from the illustrator of And Tango Makes Three .
Beginning with a beautiful close-up of a "big" ladybug, this book artfully depicts the concept of scale. The book zooms out from the bug, to a flower, to a cow, all the way to an expansive spread of sky. Then Henry Cole masterfully zooms back in from that sky, to a tree, to a house, to a window, all the way to the end where an adorable dog is taking a "little" nap.
In this ideal introduction to the concept of scale, young readers will love the lush illustrations of the animals, objects, and scenery of a farm, and they'll delight in seeing how something "big" can suddenly seem "little" with the turn of a page!
Author Notes
Henry Cole has illustrated more than fifty books for children including The Leprechaun's Gold by Pamela Duncan Edwards, Little Bo by Julie Andrews, and On Meadow Street, which he wrote. His first novel was A Nest for Celeste.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-A bug may look huge to itself and other bugs. A leaf may seem big among other leaves. When you put the two objects next to each other, one will look bigger in comparison to the other. Cole has taken this idea of scale and turned it into a fascinating story that will delight kids and enthrall parents and teachers looking to teach the concept to young children. The lush paintings capture the beauty of the natural world while also showing simple comparisons. The spare text is perfectly used throughout, highlighting the unique qualities of the things that surround us. Cole starts off with a single ladybug and escalates to the vast bright blue sky before bringing the reader back down to the smaller level of a single ladybug crawling on a napping dog's nose. The concept of scale is brilliantly depicted on the title page (where tiny ladybugs crawl over the title of the book in large font) as well as the endpapers. The different font sizes further highlight the use of scale in his breathtaking illustrations. Big Bug is a unique reading experience with broad appeal.-Christopher Lassen, Brooklyn Public Library (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Readers get a hint of the ingenuity in Cole's (Unspoken) nifty study of comparative sizes from its arresting cover, which features a ladybug at very close range, Inside, realistic full-bleed paintings provide a playful look at scale and perspective, using a ladybug as an initial point of reference. The tiny insect ("Little bug") rests on a leaf ("Big leaf"), which becomes a "Little leaf" when seen alongside a "Big flower" on the next spread. Cole continues to pan out until eventually the bucolic farm where the action takes places appears small against the "Big... BIG sky." He then reverses direction, zooming in to view some of the same items in different locations. A final endearing scenario brings readers indoors, where a dog, seen on the prior page through a window with its master, naps contentedly, unaware that a certain little ladybug rests on the tip of its nose. It's an accessible entry point to the concept of relative sizes, with a rural setting whose endless expanses of sky and grass are just as inviting as the flora and fauna seen up close. Ages 4-7. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
It's all in the perspective when it comes to size, as demonstrated in this clever picture book with minimal text and richly colored illustrations. The first page opens on a hugely magnified ladybug, labeled "Big bug." Our view pulls back so we see the same scene from a distance and observe the ladybug resting on a leaf ("Little bug. / Big leaf"). And then with another shift in perspective, it's a little leaf attached to a big flower, which in turn becomes a little flower sniffed by a big dog, all part of an ever-widening rural scene with a barn and farmhouse, under a big sky. Halfway through, the game changes, and instead of pulling back we go closer, right up to and inside the house. This time, however, rather than having the size comparison according to actual scale, it is instead relative to the position of the viewer. The "big tree," for example, is much larger than the "little barn," but only because we are closer to it. This second type of size comparison, based on spatial perspective, is much trickier for preschoolers, as is the final comparison showing the dog sleeping on a couch ("Big dog. Little nap"). Here "little nap" may also refer to the one being taken by the ladybug sleeping on the dog's nose. Cole leaves it open to interpretation, which adds to both the challenge and the fun. kathleen t. horning (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
In Cole's latest picture book, an object can be seen as big or little depending on context. The words Big bug appear on a double-page spread almost filled with a picture of a ladybug. The next spread, illustrating Little bug / Big leaf, shows a smaller picture of the same ladybug on a large leaf. Each turn of the page takes the viewer farther away. The leaf is little compared with a nearby flower, but the flower is little next to a dog, which is dwarfed by a cow. After the big object pictured is the sky, the comparison vector shifts, and everything named is smaller than its predecessor. Well matched with the concept, the mixed-media illustrations are simple and effective. Cole makes good use of changing perspectives in the skillfully composed paintings of rural scenes. Children will enjoy picking out the objects that appear in several illustrations, as they diminish or increase in size from page to page. An attractive addition to picture-book collections.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2010 Booklist
