The Great Frog by Katie Palazzola is a picture book about a big sister, a worried little brother, and a tall tale that gets out of hand. When Kit and Peedie find a cluster of frog eggs by the pond and Peedie frets over keeping them safe, Kit reaches for an easy comfort: the Great Frog will look after them. The trouble is that Peedie keeps asking questions, and the Great Frog keeps getting bigger, with a horse in the stars, a castle on the moon, and a whole mythology spun out of a sister's good intentions. It is a quietly philosophical story about the difference between something being made up and something being true, and it lands somewhere genuinely tender. Palazzola's mixed-media art gives the Great Frog's world a rich, dreamy texture while keeping the kids drawn in simple, funny lines, and the book is told in four chapter-like sections, each with small inset drawings that track the eggs as they grow. A debut from an author-illustrator with a real feel for how children think. Kit's Science Notes and an author's note round things out at the back. HardcoverAges 4–8
