From School Library Journal
reS-Gr 1-A serviceable picture book targeting Orthodox Jewish families. Benny admires his older brother, who teaches him to play ball, put on his socks, and say his prayers. When a new baby sister is added to the family, Benny realizes that he is now a big brother with certain duties, but the baby is too young to need help with her socks or to catch a ball. Benny worries that he is not a good big brother until the baby cries and his soft singing of a prayer puts her to sleep. The colored-pencil illustrations have a stiff 1950s' textbook look, but the observant family is accurately depicted in kippot and tzit-tzit. The formal art accompanies a text that is also somewhat impersonal. Benny's older brother is referred to as "Big Brother" and the little sister is never mentioned by name. The parents are usually shown watching from a doorway and do not take an active role in the story. This book disappoints by failing to personalize the joy and excitement that accompany the birth of a new baby.
Martha Link, Louisville Free Public Library, KY
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