Hoogie in the middle

the long version

Sometimes Hoogie feels like the hole in the middle of a donut. She isn't big and dependable like her sister Pumpkin. She isn't tiny and sweet like her brother Tweezle. She's just Hoogie. Every day she hears, "You're too big for this" and "You're too small for that" until there's such a big little pain inside of her that she doesn't know what to do. Luckily Mom and Dad are there to show her what a very special place the middle can be. Stephanie McLellan's rhythmic text uses an exuberance of rhyme, alliteration, and spot-on simile to affirm and celebrate the middle child.