A sweetly comical board book features a pair of chicks repeatedly searching for their mother. "Mommy! Mommy!" There she is, behind the fence. "Here I am!" Now she's behind the shrubs, only her ruffled pink frill visible. But it turns out to be a flower. "Oops!" Is that her behind the rocks? Yikes! It's something large and pink and frilly with gnashing teeth. How about peeking out behind the roof of the barn? No, it's the rippled sun rising. But who's that next to the sun? It's mommy! Taro Gomi's spare, repetitive text is funny, but the real charm is in the stylized illustrations featuring two big-eyed, boxy chicks with the suggestion of tail feathers, and their bigger boxy mother, not to mention the rectangular pink menace. Young children will enjoy the humor and drama both. (Ages 6 months-2)

“The story’s gentle surprises are sure to delight, as will the birds’ happy reunion.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
 
Toddlers and beginning readers will love joining in on the quest for a missing mother chicken in this sweet book by the beloved, award-winning author and illustrator that shows how appearances can be deceiving . . .
 
“Two little chicks play hide-and-seek with their mother. But though they find her easily enough on their first two tries, the game becomes more difficult; the shape of the comb on top of the hen’s head turns out to be very like the petals of a flowering tree, the fur of a growling dog, and the rays of the rising sun . . . There’s a nice balance of predictability and surprise in Gomi’s narrative that should appeal to preschoolers.” —The New York Times