Amid the pressures of contemporary life, and the moving ahead from one thing to another, grownups often forget to stand still and feel the full pleasure of the present moment. But the wise little girl in this new book by Charlotte Zolotow believes in right now.

"I want to stay little," says the little girl, "so I can skip and jump rope and go to birthday parties, with candles and cake and balloons." She likes to cry when she's sad, and turn summersaults when she's glad. Grownups don't do such things—and the little girl is not ready to give them up yet.

All the wonder and enchantment of a child's world are unfolded in this story to charm "little" people of all ages. For who does not recall with tenderness and nostalgia their own carefree days as a young child?

It is the known and familiar activities of childhood that Mrs. Zolotow has captured here so memorably. Tony De Luna's imaginative illustrations accompany the text.

From the dust jacket