The Best Worst Brother [Hardcover]

Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen (Author), Charlotte M. Fremaux (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2005 | Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

For ages 4-8. Isaac is almost three years old and Emma is in elementary school. Emma misses the adoring baby brother Isaac used to be. Now that he's older, he's a pain. Emma used to be able to make Isaac laugh. He used to let her hold him without squirming. But no more. Now Isaac spits out his food and knocks down her blocks when Emma tries to play with him. Sometimes his behaviour is downright embarrassing. Emma thinks Isaac would be more fun if he'd hurry up and learn some of the sign language she and her mom are trying to teach him. His slower pace is maddening at times! THE BEST WORST BROTHER is an endearing and realistic look at how a relationship evolves between a typically developing older sister and her younger brother with a developmental disability. It also shows how sign language can help a child that acquires speech more slowly. As Emma is pleased to discover, Isaac can learn to sign, he just learns when he's ready. For those who recognise aspects of their own family in the story, it will be comforting to read about this 'warts and all' sibling relationship. Charlotte Fremaux's realistic illustrations are deft and colourful. Text and illustrations mesh beautifully, making THE BEST WORST BROTHER a delightful tale to read at home or share at school.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 4–This sequel to We'll Paint the Octopus Red (Woodbine, 1998) follows the relationship between three-year-old Isaac, who has Down's syndrome, and his older sister, Emma, who is frustrated by his slow language and motor development. Because he does not yet have the skills required for speech, the family attempts to teach him sign language, which is a transitional system of communication for children with Down's syndrome. Emma works hard to make her brother understand, but he doesn't seem to make much progress. However, by the end of the book, he demonstrates that he is capable of learning, albeit at a slower pace than she expects. Emma, in turn, shows more understanding of his developmental disability and takes great pleasure in his successes. The illustrations are softly colorful, but Emma and Isaac have identical facial features and expressions. Children who have not read the earlier title may not know this is a story about this condition until the question-and-answer section at the end. The text is simple but the message could be shared with a fairly wide audience.–Robyn Walker, Elgin Court Public School, St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
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Review

"Siblings will find this book...both educational and encouraging." -- NDSS Update, Fall 2005

"This book would be a nice addition to a children's library at home or school." -- Down Syndrome News, Volume 28, Number 6

"This is an endearing and realistic look at an evolving sibling relationship." -- NADS News, November 2005

"[R]efreshingly honest look...showing negative emotions while retaining a believable sense of optimism and affection." -- Notes from the Windowsill (Flipside Families bibliography)

"[W]onderfully written and illustrated." -- NewsLine (Federation for Children with Special Needs), Volume 26, Number 2, Fall 2005

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Hardcover: 26 pages
• Publisher: Woodbine House (June 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890627682
• ISBN-13: 978-1890627683
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #940,429 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Worst Brother (title), February 22, 2007

By 

A. Ruiz (Lockhart, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Best Worst Brother (Hardcover)

My family and I really enjoyed this book. It was easy to follow for my kids (2-6 years) and it had a very valuable lesson to learn about their little brother who also was born with Down Syndrome. The pictures are very true to life. It helps give some insight into our son's future and how we can handle behaviors in a positive way. Thanks. We need more books like this one.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars needs to fill in the gaps, March 19, 2008

By 

NJ Working Mom (New Jersey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best Worst Brother (Hardcover)

I have a son with DS and "typical" daughter without DS. I was looking for a book to explain DS to younger children for my son's daycare, as some of the kids were starting to ask questions. This is the first book that I read aimed at children, and I paged through it, and quickly replaced it on the shelf and left the bookstore discouraged. The sister in this book feels that she has the worst brother until almost the last page, when she decides she has the best brother. The book doesn't do a good job of explaining how she came to this conclusion. Luckily, I found much better books ("We'll Paint the Octopus Red", and "Hi, I'm Ben . . .I've Got a Secret") which are much more positive in tone throughout the books. In "We'll Paint the Octopus Red", for example, the typical sister systematically comes to the conclusion that she will be able to do everything with her brother with DS that she had planned to do before it was discovered that he has DS by going through each activity one by one. That conclusion takes half of the book's pages to develop. Unfortunately, "The Best Worst Brother" doesn't really take much time developing the sibling's conclusion that her brother is really great. It is important, though, to let the siblings of children with disablities express their negative feelings on the subject to their parents, which this book does.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An engaging picturebook about an older sister struggling to get along with her three-year-old brother with Down syndrome, October 4, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best Worst Brother (Hardcover)

The Best Worst Brother is an engaging picturebook about an older sister struggling to get along with her three-year-old brother with Down syndrome. Her brother can't talk yet, so she and her parents try to teach him sign language to help him communicate. She is frustrated that her brother isn't as cheerful or as easy to please as he was when he was a baby, while at the same time he isn't grown up enough to talk or play with her. But an exciting visit to the school's Open House day shows that Isaac really is learning and growing up - one day at a time - and that he really is her "Best Worst Brother". A brief section of questions and answers about sign language rounds out this excellent book especially meant to be shared for young children with family members or friends who have Down syndrome.