The size of a thumb

FOUND IN A NOVEL: One was a small black cylindrical object about the size of a thumb, with one end narrowly ridged, like a coin.

Why say "small" and "the size of a thumb" in the same sentence? You wouldn't say "large" and "the size of a thumb."

The writer, one of my favorites, could have said this:

One was a thumb-sized black cylindrical object, with one end narrowly ridged, like a coin.

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