Big Box Little Box

April 30, 2018
With its bold, retro-stylized images and easy-reader verse, this creation harkens to iconic picture books of decades past. It stars a gray cat with brilliant green eyes—a cat that loves, as most cats do, to play with boxes. Fortunately, the cat’s house is full of them. In a broad, cheerful spread, the cat hides behind an orange-and-pink-striped gift box, and a smaller box stands close by: “Big box/ Little box,” the verse begins. More are pictured: “HUGE box/ Tiny box/ Thin box/ Fat box.” The cat tries sitting on a box, which quickly collapses: “Cat box?/ Flat box.” It finds a small mouse, but instead of dispatching it according to feline custom, the cat makes friends. Hart’s (The Princess and the Peas) punchy, telegraphic text recalls One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish, while stylish, vintage-y graphics by debut British illustrator Underwood have some of the flavor of mid-century ads. A handsome palette of lime, warm gray, and fuchsia, simple visual elements, and moments of humor create a visual excursion that explores shapes, actions, and sequences of events. Ages 3–6.