The Little Guys

By Vera Brosgol

An adorable cautionary tale from Caldecott Honoree Vera Brosgol

We are the Little Guys.
Yes, we are small. But there are a lot of us.
Together we are strong, and we can get all we need.

The Little Guys might be small, but they aim to be mighty.

As they head off to find breakfast, they can conquer anything through teamwork—cross deep waters, dig through obstacles, and climb the tallest trees. Nothing can stop them!

But as they begin to amass more than they need, the creatures in the forest ponder—what happens when no one can stop the Little Guys?

This slyly funny and rambunctious read-aloud explores how strength in numbers only works when the whole community unites together.

A School Library Journal Best Book of 2019
A 2019 Horn Book Fanfare Best of 2019 Book

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Publishers
• Release date: Apr 2, 2019
• ISBN: 9781250254559

Vera Brosgol

Vera Brosgol was born in Moscow, Russia, in 1984 and moved to the United States when she was five. Her two graphic novels, Anya's Ghost and Be Prepared, were published by First Second, and her debut picture book Leave Me Alone! was a 2017 Caldecott Honor book. She’s also worked in story on several animated films, including Coraline and Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her dog Omar, a mere two hours from the sea.

Book preview

Reviews for The Little Guys

[Elizabeth Mellen · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I loved the art, but the story left something to be desired. First the little guys show off how because they are many, even though they are small they can do big things. They aren’t careful to animals around them and begin hoarding everything. When they fall the other animals help them up without being asked, and the little guys realize they should use their sheet numbers for good of all instead of selfishness. But it’s kind of subtle? The other animals seem perfectly content with the change, the only real consequence is the precarious pile they made themselves turning on them, and much of the book is this unthinking taking through the forest, and I didn’t like that that’s most of what’s being modeled without an obvious (to kids) lesson in why we should share, be careful, be aware of others.