The Littlest Yak: A Picture Book Celebration of Individuality

The Littlest Yak
by Lu Fraser
illustrated by Kate Hindley

On the tip of the top of a mountain all snowy,
where the ice-swirling, toe-curling blizzards were blowy,
in a herd full of huddling yaks, big and small,
lived Gertie . . . the littlest yak of them all.

Despite her size, Gertie is great at all the things a small yak should be: she can clip-clop up the slippiest of cliffs with her splendidly grippy hooves, and the curly, whirly wool on her back keeps her nice and warm. There’s only one problem . . . Gertie feels stuck in her smallness, wishing she could grow UP and have huge horns and humongous hooves! Because there isn’t anything a BIG yak can’t do.

So Gertie devises a growing-up plan! She eats every veggie, patters up mountains and clatters down hills, she hops and skips and never sits still, reads lots of books to make her thoughts grow, and wishes and hopes for bigness . . . But still, she isn’t any bigger. Gertie is devastated, thinking she’s just a yak who can’t grow. Until one day, the other yaks need Gertie to help them with a dangerous task. Could it be because it’s something only a small yak with the grippiest hooves can do?

An adorable picture book debut from author Lu Fraser, this rollicking, rhyming tale celebrates individuality, self-esteem, and the importance of not growing up too fast. Bestselling illustrator Kate Hindley brings this heartwarming and relatable story to life with a delightful wintry landscape packed with yaks of all shapes and sizes. A new wintertime classic for snuggly read alouds with young bookworms.

★ “The jolly, fast-paced, rhyming verse propels readers through diminutive Gertie’s harrowing, wind-swept rescue mission and matches the upbeat mood of her quest for “bigness.”. . . Whimsical scenes of hairy, wide-eyed, comical yaks of assorted shapes and sizes sporting amusing cold-weather headgear will trigger chuckles and reinforce the message of individuality. A real little winner.” —Kirkus Reviews