The Girl and the Bicycle by Mark Pett

Last week, I got a Facebook message mention from Lester Laminack--he had a book he thought I might like. Well, when Lester recommends a book, you buy it immediately. Lester only likes great books and I didn't want to miss anything he recommended. He recommended The Girl and the Bicycle.

I was happy to see this new book by Mark Pett. I read The Boy and the Airplane and loved it so I was excited to see another by this author/illustrator.  I really don't think a classroom can have too many quality wordless picture books.  So I am always looking for new ones to add to my collection. A good wordless book provides so many opportunities for conversation and learning.

The Girl and the Bicycle is about a little girl who REALLY wants a bike she sees in a store window. But she doesn't have enough money for the bike. So she works really hard to earn and save her money. It takes her a very long time. (I love that the illustrations let the reader know that it took her a long time--so brilliant!).  But when she goes to buy the bike, it is no longer in the store window.  A very sad moment for the little girl who has been working so hard for so long.

This book gives readers lots to talk about and I LOVE the style of Mark Pett's illustrations.  This is a totally separate story from Pett's other wordless book but a conversation comparing the two would be worthwhile and interesting.

As an aside, I took some time to visit Mark Pett's blog this week. He has this amazing zip code tradition which I completely love.   You must read this post! He might be one of my new favorite people.

A great wordless picture book!