When Big Dog Cries
Big Dog is crying. And Little Dog doesn’t like that at all. The endearing Little Dog enters the page with a bunch of flowers, jumps on a trampoline to stick plasters on Big Dog’s fur, digs up bones and takes Big Dog to a field of pooing and peeing dogs in case she needs to go, too.
Nothing helps. The tears keep on coming. Tamara Bos and Barbara de Wolf cinematically build up the tension and despair as Little Dog frantically searches for a solution. But it’s no good. In the lively illustrations, you see the tears rising higher and higher, until it looks like they’re about to wash the dogs away in an enormous wave. Little Dog doesn’t know what to do – except for join in with the crying. Then Big Dog tells Little Dog that she’s sad. And that crying isn’t a bad thing and it’s sometimes necessary. It’s a thought that’s both funny and touching, and it even makes Big Dog smile. Even when she’s full of tears, she’s still Big Dog.
And that’s the beautiful conclusion of this comforting picture book. It shows that sadness is a part of life – even for grown-ups.