Hewitt Anderson's Great Big Life

By Jerdine Nolen

Book Overview

Young Hewitt Anderson is sweet, smart, polite--and very, very small. This warmly humorous tale is "proof that, when it comes to heart, physical size isn't the whole story" (Kirkus Reviews).

Descended from a long line of giants, the J. Carver Worthington Andersons take their height very seriously indeed. You see, without exception all of the many J. Carver Worthington Andersons have been giants until now. And poor Hewitt--hidden in the floorboards, trapped in the flour vat, lost in the bedsheets--has his struggles being tiny. Oh, his parents worry: How will their son manage to live in a world of big things? Leave it to Hewitt to prove the power of being small.

Inspired by the tale of "Jack and the Beanstalk," the inimitable Jerdine Nolen tells an original story of bravery and the power of the individual. Kadir Nelson's imaginative and loving illustrations create a world where smallness rules--a world that children will want to return to again and again.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0689868669
• ISBN13: 9780689868665
• Release Date: January 2005
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
• Length: 40 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 9.3" x 11.4"
• Age Range: 5 to 8 years
• Grade Range: Kindergarten to Grade 3

Customer Reviews

Love this book

My daughter & I really enjoy this book. Not only is it fun (and Kadir Nelson, as always, does not dissapoint with his illustrations), but the message comes through clearly. It doesn't matter if you are different, we each have our own unique giftings & abilities that are valuable. Not to mention the unconditional love between the child & parents. Beautiful book you will want to read over & over.

Teeny-weeny or Overwhelmingly Huge ... Completely Loveable

Jerdine Nolen's story of a normal-sized boy born into a community of giants is funny and heart-warming. Her language is beautiful and would be fun to read aloud. Plus, Nolen includes funny little references to the Jack and the Beanstalk tale. Illustrator Kadir Nelson does a marvelous job. A number of the illustrations are from Hewitt's point of view; we see how Hewitt's mom and dad are overwhelmingly huge, but completely loveable, from his perspective.

Big Shoes to Fill

Have you ever felt like a little person amid a group of giants? This was Hewitt Anderson's everyday existence in the book HEWITT ANDERSON'S GREAT BIG LIFE. His parents, descendents of a long line of giants, have lived their life with the belief that bigger is always better. So when their son was born tiny and didn't seem to grow, they were so concerned that they took him for medical evaluations. Yet, they loved their son unconditionally and did all they could to ensure he could survive as a little person in a great big world. In the process, they all learned to appreciate Hewitt's unique talents and abilities. Loosely inspired by the fairy tale Jack in the Beanstalk, this book was a lot of fun to read. The author has penned a story that implicitly reminds children that it is okay to be different. The warm, inviting illustrations are detailed enough to hold a child's interest and further draw them into this gargantuan story. However, word count and vocabulary may be a little too difficult for very young children to read without assistance. This book is so much more than a mere retelling of a classic fairy tale with black characters, it is a story destined to be a classic on its own merits. Reviewed by Stacey Seay of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers