My Thumb

PreS—What's a girl to do? Her mum would love for her to stop sucking her thumb—but as the ginger-haired child attests, "I love my thumb, I truly do./It tastes of pears and carrot stew./It's like a hug, an 'I love you.'" As she leaps across a spread with balloons and her faithful pup at her side, the nameless preschooler acknowledges some difficulties that she experiences when glued to her thumb. Delicate illustrations washed with softly hued colors allow the girl and her red cardigan to easily stand out on each page. Young readers will empathize with the main character as she lists in poetic rhyme the pros and cons of sucking her thumb. A spread of a multicultural cast of characters at storytime subtly showcases bottles, dolls, binkies, blankets, and other soothing objects being employed as the class listens intently. The story ends with the girl in the bath before bed as she concludes, "I love my thumb. It's true, I do,/its soggy, wrinkled, half-baked hue,/its scent of O's and honeydew./If it were yours, you'd love it too."