FROM OUR EDITORS

Jan Brett fans can now get three of her bestselling books in one box! This "little library" contains the board book editions of three Brett wintertime tales: The Mitten, The Hat, and Gingerbread Baby. Young readers will love watching woodland animals snuggle together in The Mitten, and in The Hat, they'll laugh at seeing Hedgie -- and his animals friends -- wearing clothes! And of course, no one can forget Brett's mischievous Gingerbread Baby, who winds up safe and snug in his own gingerbread house. Featuring the author's intricate, Scandinavian-influenced artwork and beloved characters, these classics are easy to tote and will make a heartwarming addition to any bookshelf.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Now you can savor all three Jan Brett board books in one beautifully illustrated gift set. Jan Brett's Little Library features three of her best-loved titles, The Mitten, The Hat, and Gingerbread Baby, available for the first time in board, together in a sturdy slipcase decorated with Jan's signature illustrations. A welcome addition to anyone's Jan Brett collection, it makes a perfect gift year round-for the holidays, for a new baby, for birthdays.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Another trio of classic board books are collected in the boxed set Jan Brett's Little Library, which includes The Mitten, about a lost mitten that expands for all the woodland animals to share; The Hat, in which a hedgehog gets a sock stuck on his head and inadvertently starts a trend; and Gingerbread Baby, a retelling of "The Gingerbread Man." Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature - Sharon Salluzzo

Three neatly packaged little board books set in winter comprise this "library." Included are The Hat, Gingerbread Baby, and The Mitten. In The Hat, Lisa is hanging her clothes on the line when one of her socks blows off, Hedgie the Hedgehog finds it lying on the ground and puts it on his head. The farm animals laugh at him but when he explains all the reasons why wearing a hat is good, the other animals decide they want hats, too. Off to the clothesline they go. Brett has added a new and gentle twist at the end of the story of the Gingerbread Baby. He finds a home in a gingerbread house. For The Mitten, she has adapted a Ukranian folktale about a little boy who loses a mitten and the animals who find shelter in it. Brett's signature style of illustration: busy borders with hints of what is to come, and old world folk style clothing have endeared these books to many people. Each story is still available as a trade edition picture book. The smaller size here makes them more appropriate for individual use rather than group use. It is a nice little gift package. 2003, G P Putnam's Sons, Ages 3 to 7.