A sandhill crane lifts a stick. A construction crane lifts a log. The two cranes grab, stretch, and stack, working through bad weather and difficult obstacles toward their end goal: building a home for a new family. Told in a simple sequence of verbs, this colorful picture book demonstrates how the mechanical world mirrors the natural world.

Linda Joy Singleton's sparse text invites comparison between words that have similar meanings but different actions. Richard Smythe's watercolor and crayon illustrations convey a story of a crane building a nest and a house being constructed for a human family. By the end, a crane chick and a human baby are born and both families are content in their new homes. On the last page, a "Crane vs. Crane" feature labels parts of both bird and machine
Called "Elementary but ingenious" by Horn Book Guide, this book is perfect for preschool collections to use as a read-aloud and to teach different meanings of words.