THIS IS A BORZOI BOOK PUBLISHED BY ALFRED A. KNOPF • Text copyright © 2011 by Shutta Crum • Jacket art and interior illustrations copyright © 2011 by Patrice Barton

All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

Knopf, Borzoi Books, and the colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc. • Visit us on the Web! www.randomhouse.com/kids • Educators and librarians, for a variety of teaching tools, visit us at www.randomhouse.com/teachers • Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

eISBN: 978-0-375-98887-5

The illustrations in this book are pencil sketches created digitally.

Random House Children’s Books supports the First Amendment and celebrates the right to read.

v3.1

For my granddaughter Chloe Szukala, who shares her life and love

–S.C.

To Janie, Tony, and Mary Kate

–P.B.

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

First Page

About the Author and Illustrator

“Mine.”

“Mine.”

“Mine …

mine …

mine …”

“MINE!”

“Mine!”

“Mi—”

“Woof?”

“Mine!”

“Mine!”

Shutta Crum writes books for children and poetry for adults. She is also a storyteller, a lecturer, and a librarian. And although she was the oldest child in her family and often shouted “Mine!” to claim the best toys and books, she has elected to share this story.

Shutta was born in Paintsville, Kentucky, and now lives on a farm in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Her many picture books include Thunder-Boomer! and The Bravest of the Brave, and she is also the author of the novels Thomas and the Dragon Queen and Spitting Image. She was inspired to write Mine! by watching her young granddaughter at play.

Patrice Barton’s artistic talents were first discovered at the age of three, when she was found creating a mural on the dining room wall with a pastry brush and a can of Crisco. Although the work itself was never fully appreciated by her parents, her interest in art was. They quickly gave her a better canvas and more appropriate supplies. Her passion for art grew, and she earned a BFA in studio art from the University of Texas in Austin, where she lives now with her husband and their son.

Her most recent work includes the illustrations for Sweet Moon Baby by Karen Henry Clark. Patrice says: “It was such a treat to illustrate Mine! Because I’m a mother, these weren’t just drawings—they were memories revisited.”

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Contents

First Page

About the Author and Illustrator