My Thumb

by Karen Hesse, Rich Deas (Illustrator)

Overview

I love my thumb, I truly do,
it tastes of pears and carrot stew.
It's like a hug, an "I love you."
My mom hoped in a year or two
there'd be some things that I outgrew,
and some I have, but never you.

Kids who suck their thumbs know there's nothing better. NOTHING! Here is a fun picture book ode to the thumb by Newbery Medalist Karen Hesse, with art by Feiwel and Friends Creative Director Rich Deas.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250129505
Publisher:	Feiwel & Friends
Publication date:	07/26/2016
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	64 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	2 - 4 Years

About the Author

Karen Hesse is the author of numerous novels and picture books for children, including Out of the Dust, which won the Newbery Medal. Her recent books for Feiwel and Friends are Brooklyn Bridge and Safekeeping. She lives in Vermont.

Rich Deas is the creative director of Feiwel and Friends. He's illustrated several picture books, including Cocka-doodle-dance for F&F. He lives with his wife and their two sons in New Jersey.

Karen Hesse is the author of many books for young people, including Out of the Dust, winner of the Newbery Medal, Letters from Rifka, Brooklyn Bridge, Phoenix Rising, Sable and Lavender. In addition to the Newbery, she has received honors including the Scott O’Dell Historical Fiction Award, the MacArthur Fellowship “Genius” Award and the Christopher Award, and was nominated for a National Jewish Book Award. Born in Baltimore, Hesse graduated from the University of Maryland. She and her husband Randy live in Vermont.
Rich Deas is a designer, illustrator, and currently the creative director at Macmillan Children's Publishing in NYC. He has designed hundreds of book covers and is the illustrator of 10 Fat Turkeys. Rich resides in Glen Ridge, NJ with his wife and two sons.

Editorial Reviews

05/02/2016
Hesse’s redheaded narrator begins and ends this book as an unrepentant thumb sucker, but it’s her very intransigence that makes this tribute to the First Digit so refreshing. Even if there are hints that she won’t be a thumb sucker forever (“You make it hard to run,/ and beat a drum,/ and eat a plum”), this is a girl who knows what she wants. “There’s nothing mum could say or do/ to break the bond between us two,” Hesse (Spuds) writes. “It’s like there is some kind of glue,/ that no one, nothing, can undo.” Deas (Cock-a-Doodle Dance!) generally contributes literal interpretations of the rhymes, but he has some standout moments: in one, the narrator assumes the no-nonsense demeanor of a teacher and, with the help of a pointer and chalkboard, explains that she has already outgrown baby bottles, pacifiers, diapers, and nose-picking. For the most part, this is Hesse’s language-fest, and she doesn’t disappoint, ending the story with a string of rhymes that gamely employs kung fu, Peru, déjà vu, snafu, and IQ. Ages 2–4. (July)

Publishers Weekly

"Hesse’s redheaded narrator begins and ends this book as an unrepentant thumb sucker, but it’s her very intransigence that makes this tribute to the First Digit so refreshing. Even if there are hints that she won’t be a thumb sucker forever (“You make it hard to run,/ and beat a drum,/ and eat a plum”), this is a girl who knows what she wants." - Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

No matter what the cute and active red-haired girl does in this book, her thumb is her best buddy and goes with her everywhere. She has it when she runs outside with her dog, when she learns about far off places in school, when she eats plums, when she’s sick or well, when she soaks in a soothing bubble bath, and also when she sleeps. To her, it appears that her thumb is actually glued to her mouth! Colorful illustrations are very appealing and closely match the text, which is set up in an easy to understand rhyming pattern. This structure certainly calls for more than one read. The narrator’s “mum” is a delightful background character. Situations shown are relevant to youngsters, whether they suck their thumb or not, and the action involves the reader or listener. This is a good resource for young children who have not yet given up the comfort of their thumbs. My Thumb will work well in homes and also in preschool and early grades. Reviewer: Nancy Garhan Attebury; Ages 3 to 5.

Children's Literature - Nancy Garhan Attebury

05/01/2016
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." VERDICT An engaging and useful selection for early learning collections.—Lisa Kropp, Lindenhurst Memorial Library, NY

School Library Journal