Petook is a snowy white rooster and proud of his wife's new brood of chicks, and quick to protect them from an intruding young stranger named Jesus walking through the garden. But when he sees the child kneeling in wonder and caressing his newborn chicks, Petook is soothed and crows happily.

Years later, Petook, whose home is in sight of Calvary's hill, is awaiting another hatching and becomes strangely agitated when he sees men being lifted onto crosses there. He doesn't know that one of the men being crucified is the same boy who visited Petook's family long ago.

But three days later on Easter morning, as a new brood of chicks hatches that coincides with the Resurrection of the stranger, Petook is inspired to crow with great joy, celebrating the mystery of new life.

Caryll Houselander's artful storytelling and Tomie dePaola's delightful illustrations will invite young readers to enter into a relationship with the One who longs to care for us all.

"One of the most evocative Easter stories ever written. The sun-drenched colors, accented with vibrant reds and yellows, reflect the serenity of the story and subtly draw the reader's attention to the beauty and inner message of Easter."
— Publisher's Weekly

"Beautifully written in poetic, pictorial language and illustrated with dePaola's usual mastery, this oblique view of the Easter miracle touches upon Christian themes - the gentleness of the boy Jesus, the symbolism of the hen and chickens, the mystical joy of resurrection and renewal - with delicate sensitivity."
— School Library Journal