Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts with the label Regina Linke

Picture Books

  I'm a fan of "Big Enough," an early birthday present for my daughter. (Susie herself says she is unimpressed, and that she is waiting for the *real* present, which will be some kind of disposable Elsa trinket from Disney's "Frozen." But I notice that she listens to the story of "Big Enough.") A little boy, Ah-Fu, lives in rural China. His parents inform him that he is "big enough" to fetch the ox from the woods and lead him back home. But the parents' anxiety seeps out: "Just be sure you don't ride on his back, because he might knock you off." Excited and scared, Ah-Fu sets out on his mission. A bullfrog adds commentary: "Don't lead him by the horns. He might try to ram you in the butt." Birds, in a flock, share advice: "Don't push from behind. The ox might kick you." The ox himself has thoughts. He is consumed with fears; he can't walk alone across a stream, because he needs a guiding h...