TOO SMALL FOR HONEY CAKE

Little Fox grows increasingly resentful of the attention that Daddy Fox lavishes upon the new baby. Fed up, he hides under the stairs and creates a song to express his feelings about this new sibling: “Baby Fox is a stinky-pooh. / Put him in a box, / and send him to the zoo!” After his anger is spent, Little Fox begins to cry. Just then, Daddy Fox pokes his head in to offer Little Fox some honey cake. Placated enough to be generous, Little Fox tells his father that Baby Fox, who is “much too small for honey cake” now, can have a bite of his when he’s bigger. Braun’s illustrations, in their warmth and simplicity, possess a folk-art quality that merges with Lobel’s deliberate phrasing to create an endearing story capable of reassuring even the most anxious of children that, while it is normal to feel jealous and angry when a new person enters the family, they will always hold their own special places in their parents’ hearts. (Picture book. 3-7)