“The biggest challenge in life is being you – In a world trying to make you like everyone else.”–Unknown

Reading Level:

Easy Reader, Ages 4-8

Review and Comments

You Are (Not) Small  by Anna Kang is a story with few words but a meaningful message.  The characters in the book have a debate about their size.  One character is obviously big and the other one is obviously small.  Each character points out those physical traits, sometimes with passion. “You are small.”  “You are big.”  It seems that both are correct.  The discussion progresses when they each show that there are others who are their same size so that must mean they are not really big or definitely not small. The debate begins to get heated because they will not change their viewpoint of one another.

Then, a few more characters, which are much bigger and smaller, are introduced for another comparison in size. They finally agree that when looking at each another in one simple way they are indeed big and small but when looking at one another with a broader perspective they can see that sometimes they are big and sometimes they are small.  That enlightened conclusion seems to settle the discussion and satisfies both sides.

One way to look at the message of this book is through simple measurement.  We can and do describe things by size because it is an obvious physical trait.  That is a big dog.  That canyon is enormous.  I’ve never seen such a small piece of cake before.  Using elementary measurement is what the characters at the beginning of the story do when they say, “You are big.”  “You are small.”  Another way to look at the story is to see the characters label and define one another by narrowly observing one attribute of the other and miss the broader sense of who they are.  They are different but those differences are what make them unique and special. Children see that God loves variety in His creation. He created a great array of flowers, trees, and animals so it seems only logical He would also create people who are as varied. Loving God’s bounteous creation of people is a way to show respect and give dignity to life.

The vocabulary in this book is simple and the repetition of basic words is designed for beginning readers. The large illustrations are expressive and help highlight the emotions of the size debate.

Possible Issues:

There are no issues with this book.

Further Discussion:

1. Pre-K Math. This site has very good activities to explore size and measurement. I particularly like two of the activities because the sizes of the children are not compared to one another.
   1. Size hunt.  Go on a nature walk size hunt to find things of different sizes: something smaller than a fingernail, bigger than our hand, longer than our arm, smaller than our foot, bigger than our whole body.
   2. Building sizes with blocks.  Use blocks to build towers that are smaller than the child’s body, larger than the child’s body, and the same size.
2. Read the story of The Blind Men and the Elephant. [An Indian Parable] Grades 1-2

Catholic Resources:

Read the story of David and Goliath.  Discuss the differences in size of the two of them.

1. Catholic Children’s Bible: David and Goliath Tell It! Cards 
2. David and Goliath Bible Story Board Book
3. CCC 1931 “Respect for the human person proceeds by way of respect for the principle that “everyone should look upon his neighbor (without any exception) as ‘another self,’ above all bearing in mind his life and the means necessary for living it with dignity.”