Leo Lionni's stories are similar in theme as their characters explore who they really are. Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse and Tico are very similar stories. In Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse, a wind-up mouse is in search of a friend and longs to become a real mouse. In Tico, a bird begins wingless and dreams of being like the other birds. One night, he is visited by a wishing bird who grants him his wish of having wings and gives him golden wings. His enthusiasm over his new wings diminishes as his friends don't accept him with his golden wings. He decides to give his golden feathers to people in need, but for every golden feather he removes, a black one takes its place. Once he has given up his last golden feather he returns to his friends who now accept his newfound wings. Both of these stories are great reads by themselves, but can also provide inquisitive discussions of self and identity. Teachers, you can add these to your critical literacy section!
Inch by Inch offers a different type of story. A clever inchworm escapes being lunch by showing how useful he can be to his predators.... he measures things for them! I like to use this book to introduce measurement in my classroom. After reading, we measure various objects with paper inchworms.
~Erica, elementary school teacher
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