Given the title, one might expect this book to be a variation on the classic story of Chicken Little. While there are some elements of that story in this one it is so much more. Chicken Big is the story of an abnormally large chicken and his efforts to be accepted by the rest of the flock who don't know what to do with this oddity. So clearly, the heart of the story is accepting other's differences. Graves approaches this lesson not from a soap box but with a heavy dose of humor. The other chickens are, to put it nicely, rather dim, leading to hilarious speculations. I defy anyone not to laugh at their overreactions and speculations (like the assertion that the new chicken must be an elephant). The humor and heart hold up well to repeat reads and there is a heavy visual appeal as well.
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