I Can Fly - the little golden book

Ruth Krauss and Mary Blair's I CAN FLY won awards upon its first publication in 1951 and has not lost an iota of its charm. The first pages open to a girl standing on a swing, sailing high in the sky next to a bird whose feathers match her "A bird can fly./ So can I." She can moo like a cow, grab like a crab, be merrier than a terrier, and pick, pick, pick like a little chick. Krauss's simple verses capture a child at play and provide wonderful rhythms for a lively, interactive read-aloud "Crunch crunch crunch/ I'm a goat out to lunch," Blair's playful illustrations are as exuberant as the story-poem, with their gorgeous (truly '50s!) palette and bold compositions that cleverly juxtapose the girl with her pretend animal playmates, page by page. Arms outstretched on the loops in the playground, the girl looks just like the crab with its grabby claws; eating celery at the table she mimics the goat eating flowers outside the front door. Young children will revel in the young girl's splendidly confident "Gubble gubble gubble/ I'm a mubble in a pubble./ I can play/ I'm anything that's anything./ That's MY way." We welcome this timeless classic back into print with open arms, much like an octopus might.--Karin Snelson ABOUT THE Ruth Ida Krauss (1901 – 1993) was an American writer of children's books, including The Carrot Seed, and of theatrical poems for adult readers. Many of her books are still in print. ABOUT THE Mary Blair (1911 – 1978) was an American artist, animator, and designer. She was prominent in producing art and animation for The Walt Disney Company. Blair also created character designs for enduring attractions such as Disneyland's It's a Small World, the fiesta scene in El Rio del Tiempo in the Mexico pavilion in Epcot's World Showcase, and an enormous mosaic inside Disney's Disney's Contemporary Resort. Several of her illustrated children's books from the 1950s remain in print, such as I Can Fly by Ruth Krauss.