Heckedy Peg by: Audrey Wood and illustrated by: Don Wood

Ages: Kindergarten – Grade 3

A poor woman lives with her seven children: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The mother goes off to the market, promising to return with individual gifts that each child requested. The mother tells the children to not let strangers into the house and not to touch the fire. A witch tricks the children to letting her into their house, and she turns them all into food. The mother is distraught when she returns home and her children are missing. Luckily, a blackbird leads her to the witch’s house. The mother tricks the witch to letting her in. The witch tells the mother if she can identify which food is which child, then the food will become her children once again. Will the mother be able to identify which child is which food? Find out in Heckedy Peg.

Heckedy Peg is a wonderful and intriguing children’s book. The text is a little longer, but it very creative. The book is a quick read, and children will be excited to see what happens next. The format of the book is unique. The text is placed in different places throughout the pages of the book. Also, some pages contain more illustrations than others. The illustrations in the book are outstanding. They are very detailed and expressive. The expressions on the faces of the characteristics are amazing. One creative detail about this book is that the blackbird is on almost every page. Children will enjoy looking for the blackbird. It is also fun to stop reading in the middle of the book and have children predict which child is which food. There are a few great lessons taught in this book. First, don’t talk to strangers. The second lesson I found in this book was to listen to your parents. This book is a great example of a mothers love for her children. Although this book may be a little scary for some children, it is a wonderful book. I would recommend a parent to look at it before reading it to their child to determine if it is too scary. Heckedy Peg is a heart-warming book that readers of all ages are sure to enjoy!