A little jewel of a classic
This retelling of the tale of a chicken who didn't seem to be able to motivate her fellow barnyard denizens - until it was time to eat - should be on every nursery bookshelf. The lesson is a good one, in that nobody gets to eat without helping with the work. The story is a good one for very young children, with repetition that gets them anticipating the story. My daughter was imitating "Not I!" from the time she was a toddler. But my favourite thing about this book is the artwork - with crooked perspective and little details that reward you for paying attention. The best of them? A little tiny framed picture on the Little Hen's nighttable of an egg. That's cute. And so's the book.