A Spider Named Itsy
by Steve Light; illus. by the author
Preschool, Primary  Candlewick    32 pp.
9/23    9781536225297    $18.99

This riff on the classic children’s song begins with a prequel, as “Itsy Bitsy sits at home, / drinking tea, / all alone” in a web constructed on the spout and handle of a watering can. When that cozy home is ruined by a branch falling off of a tree and ripping the web to pieces, Itsy quickly turns to a promising-looking waterspout. Light’s detailed watercolor and pen-and-ink pictures show dapper Itsy with four legs for arms and four more with shoes, and he gives lots of opportunities for predicting the next thing to happen through the pictures. Other tiny insect creatures scramble to pack up their homes as the wind begins to blow with a beetle, a ladybug and her babies, and others working together with Itsy to all climb that waterspout, helping one another along the way. As the song goes, the rain dooms their expedition to failure, but: “What a mess! / No time to rest!” Itsy and his new friends begin again in this story of resilience, determination, and friendship. Children will surely sing along with Itsy and his friends on the final page, which shows the original words surrounded by waves of musical notes.

From the September/October 2023 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.