The littlest yak

Gertie, "the littlest yak of them all," wishes she were bigger. She tries eating veggies; she tries exercise; she tries reading "to make her thoughts grow." Nothing works. But when another yak needs rescuing from a precariously narrow ledge, well, you can guess whose qualities come in handy. (Being the "grippiest" doesn't hurt, either.) This iteration of the difference-is-good plot is unusual because the other yaks are supportive from the start, and Fraser elevates the familiar story line with a well-paced rhyming text that invites reading aloud: "Look up! / A yak's STUCK! / On the craggy cliff's edge! / At the end of the narrowest, / rockiest ledge!" Hindley's digitally colored pen-and-ink illustrations, in a limited palette and featuring cool blue and green wintry backgrounds, are populated with endearing yaks, whose boldly patterned hats and scarves match the story's cozy feel. Shoshana Flax November/December 2021 p.71(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Discouraged with her small stature, a little yak tackles a size-related challenge. Living atop a snowy mountain, Gertie's the smallest yak in her huddling herd. Despite having the "curliest, whirliest wool" as well as "splendidly grippy" hooves to scale the most "slippy" cliff, Gertie longs for "BIGNESS." She wants to grow up to have "greatness and tallness" and the "hugest of hooves and humongous horns." Reminding Gertie that yaks are "all shapes and sizes / and BIGNESS can come in all sorts of disguises," Gertie's mother urges her to enjoy being small. Nevertheless, Gertie embarks on a "Growing-Up Plan," eating well, exercising, and reading to make her thoughts grow, but despite her efforts, "no growing arrive[s]." But then the herd frantically calls on Gertie to rescue a yak trapped on a cliff edge, a dangerous mission only she can attempt, and Gertie discovers she's had "bigness inside" all along. The jolly, fast-paced, rhyming verse propels readers through diminutive Gertie's harrowing, wind-swept rescue mission and matches the upbeat mood of her quest for "bigness." A pleasing palette of silvers, grays, and blues with red and yellow accents accentuates the bleak, snowy mountaintop venue, while whimsical scenes of hairy, wide-eyed, comical yaks of assorted shapes and sizes sporting amusing cold-weather headgear will trigger chuckles and reinforce the message of individuality. A real little winner. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.