First the Egg by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

First the Egg is a beautiful picture book that young readers will likely love to read. The story begins "First the egg...then the chicken". It goes through a series of other events, like "First the tadpole...then the frog", until it finishes with the phrase "first the chicken...then the egg" (a reversal of the beginning statement). Very clever! The story also addresses creativity: first the paint, then a picture; first the word, then a story. It shares with the children how things may begin as one thing, but end up being something greater then they started out.

Not only do the words convey a beautiful message, but the pictures also add their own beauty and contribute to the unique nature of the book. The illustrations cover the entire page, and appear to be paintings on canvas. On each page, there is a cutout that illustrates the "first idea" (for example the egg), but as you turn the page the cutout illustrates the "then the.." concept (such as the body of the chicken). These features certainly make the book very enjoyable.

I really like this book, and believe it would be a good resource for a preschool or kindergarten classroom.

Seeger, L. V. (2007). First the egg. New Milford, CT: Roaring Brook Press.

Caldecott Honor Book